Kathryn Firestone

Moving to Clackamas, Oregon in 1990, Kathryn and family bought a house based on the reputation of the local school district.  Between the time that the sale of the house had closed and she'd moved in, ballot measure 5 would pass, forever changing the landscape of public school funding in the state.   Her sons, then 7 and 4, would never experience a year in school - kindergarten through college - without cuts and program reductions. 

Starting with an over-crowding issue in the community, Kathryn found herself in front of the local school board, pleading for adequacy in both capital construction and program support.  She served as a citizen lobbyist for the North Clackamas School District, championed the passage of the Education Reform Act, served on the Oregon Department of Education's communications committee to illuminate the requirements of the Act with both internal and external audiences.  During this same time, she was hired by the district to serve as Volunteer Coordinator and developed a risk management plan for the district, as well as significantly boosting the number of volunteers and organized programs for all twenty-six schools.  In her last year of tenure, she served as Co-Director for the first Parent Resource Center. 

She also became active in the Oregon PTA, elected to serve first as Vice President for Legislation, lobbying in both Salem and in Washington DC.  After three years in that position, she was elected President and served on the National PTA Board of Directors.  Firestone was appointed to the landmark Quality Education Commission in 2000.   Kathryn's career as an advocate for public schools culminated in 2009 with the Oregon Supreme Court Decision in Pendleton School District et al v State of Oregon, which found that the legislature was in violation of their constitutional obligation to fund K-12 to meet state goals.

Firestone's political career evolved in other ways as well.  She has served as spokesperson for more than 15 ballot measures, as a trainer on tax policy for Citizen's for Oregon's Future, the OPTA co-chair for the Million Mom March in 2000, and on the board of directors of Oregonian's Against Gun Violence.   In 2004, she mounted an impressive campaign against an Oregon House Republican incumbent in a district that hadn't elected a Democrat in over 20 years.  She came within 5 points of winning and still says it's one of the best things that she's ever done; she highly recommends it to everyone once.  The seat was taken by a democrat in 2008.

She's now happily serving as executive director for Emerge Oregon - her ulterior motive?  To help get Democratic women elected to office - knowing they're the key to change for our schools.  In her spare time, Firestone reads voraciously, plays the piano, does yoga, cooks hugely caloric meals, and greatly enjoys her grown sons' company.