Governing Board Updates - January 2018

NCACH recently welcomed two new members onto our Governing Board:Michelle Price, Superintendent of the North Central Educational Service District 171, was elected onto the Governing Board in December 2017. Michelle represents the education sector, and we are excited to incorporate her expertise and leadership into the work that NCACH is doing.Michelle Price, Ed.D. moved to East Wenatchee from Moses Lake. She is the new superintendent of North Central Educational Service District 171. Michelle is married to Rich Price. Together they have four adult children and three grandchildren. Michelle is a lifelong learner holding three degrees - a Bachelor of Arts degree in education, a Master’s degree in School Administration, both from Central Washington University and a Doctorate degree in School Administration from Washington State University. She has a passion for children and public education, serving as a teacher, principal, assistant superintendent for teaching and learning and superintendent over the last 30 years in Tacoma, Soap Lake, and Moses Lake. Michelle is committed to community service. She is a past president of the Moses Lake Chamber of Commerce, served on the Columbia Basin Boys and Girls Club Board of Directors, and is a Rotarian. Her state and national advocacy for rural Washington has led her to be the past president of the Washington Association of School Administrators (WASA) and to serve on the Executive Committee for the American Association of School Superintendents (AASA). In January 2018, the Governing Board elected Blake Edwards, with Children's Home Society, to sit as the Board's mental health sector representative.Blake Edwards is currently Clinical Program Manager for Child & Family Counseling at Children’s Home Society of Washington in Wenatchee and East Wenatchee. Blake has been on staff at CHSW since July 2016. Blake has also served as the North Central Behavioral Health Champion for Washington state’s Pediatric Transforming Clinical Practices Initiative (P-TCPi) since September 2016. Blake has served as a clinical supervisor at multiple agencies, as clinical director for a treatment foster care program in Dallas for three years, and in addition to management roles has provided psychotherapy services with children, families, and adults for over eleven years in Texas and Washington state. Blake lives with his wife and twin daughters (third graders) in East Wenatchee. Lastly, Governing Board member, Tim Hoekstra, announced his resignation, effective January 12, 2018. Tim, most recently the Director of Behavioral Health Services with Columbia Valley Community Health, will be pursuing a new opportunity outside of the North Central region. Tim served on the NCACH Governing Board since 2017, and was instrumental in his efforts to align NCACH initiatives at the clinical level.  While we will miss Tim as a member of our team, we wish him the best in this next step!