Iris M. DeGruy Bell, Chairperson
Iris M. DeGruy Bell was Executive Director of the Oregon Youth Development Council (OYDC) from its inception in 2012 until her retirement from government service in 2017. Appointed by Oregon Governor John A. Kitzhaber, M.D., and re-appointed by Governor Kate Brown, she served as the Council’s Chief Administrator.
Prior to her work in state government, Ms. DeGruy-Bell served as the Chief Operating Officer (COO) for Multnomah County. As COO, Ms. Bell oversaw the daily operations of Oregon’s largest County and managed a budget of 1.1 billion dollars.
Ms. DeGruy-Bell has expertise and experience in management principles and methodologies supporting the development and implementation of service programs for federal, state and local government, and has extensive background working with foundations and non-governmental organizations.
Ms. DeGruy-Bell holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Political Science from the University of California, Santa Barbara, and Master’s Degree in Government with an emphasis on Public Policy Studies from the School of Politics and Economics at Claremont Graduate University.
Dr. Terry Kneisler, Vice-Chairperson
Dr Terry Kneisler is a career educator of 40+ years, 30 of which were as district superintendent in both California and Oregon. He is also a former associate professor at the University of Oregon School of Education and an advisor to the State Board of Education.
Raised and educated in Chicago, Terry attended the University of Chicago and lived in Hyde Park, a culturally diverse and dynamic community.
Now retired, he serves Central East Portland Rotary and on the board of AHAD, Advancing Human Achievement and Development.
Most importantly he is the father to three daughters and the grandfather to a 4-month old boy and a 2 and 1/2-year old girl, while happily married to his wife Carrie for the past 40 years.
Roger Nesbit, Treasurer
Mr. Nesbit serves as the Treasurer for the AHAD Board. He retired from Federal government service after 35 years as an attorney for the United States Department of the Interior. He has also served for over 40 years as a member of Spiritual Assemblies of various Bahá’í communities, including 25 years as Treasurer for the Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá’ís in Portland. He also raised 6 children and has 5 grandchildren with another on the way.
Dr. Schuyler “Skye” Lininger, Jr., MA, MBA, DC, Secretary
Dr. Lininger is a successful serial entrepreneur, having founded six companies during his business career; and been involved at the start-up phase with several others. He holds a BA and MA in English from California State University, Fresno, where he was a teaching assistant for two years; a DC from Western States Chiropractic College, Portland, where he was adjunct faculty in the nutrition department; and an MBA from the University of Oregon.
Dr. Lininger has served at the board level for a number of non-profits, corporate, and academic institutions, including Western States Chiropractic College (Board Chair), Bastyr University (Board Chair and Acting University President), Portland Center Stage (member of the Executive Committee), gDiapers, Pulse Health LLC, and Healthnotes Inc. He is currently on the boards of AHAD and Sonoran University.
He has authored a dozen books and written over a hundred published articles on topics including computer interface and technology, natural medicine and health, and supply chain information gathering and automation. In the 1980’s, he and his wife (also a chiropractor) established and ran a chiropractic practice for over a decade in Sandy, Oregon. Bull Run Chiropractic Clinic is still operating today.
From 1999 to 2018, he was the founder and CEO of Healthnotes, Inc., the largest creator and supplier of evidence-based information on natural medicine. Their customer list included Wal-Mart, GNC, Costco, Kroger, New Seasons, Vitamin World, and Vitamin Shoppe. From 2018-2019 he was the President of Dietary Supplements for TraceGains, Inc. He is currently on the adjunct faculty of the School of Business at Portland State University teaching Management of Convergent Exponential Technologies.
https://www.linkedin.com/in/skyelininger/
Ebonee Bell
Ms. Bell received her Masters from the Harvard Graduate School of Education and undergraduate degree from Smith (North Hampton, MA). She has been an Amazon Diversity series speaker, a Multnomah County Black History Month speaker, and a speaker at the Tualatin Martin Luther King Day celebration. Noting that “books have the power to change lives,” Ms. Bell has dedicated her career to advancing the education of children and youth through the various literacy initiatives she promotes locally and nationally. She has led the Multnomah County LibraryBooks2U literacy promotion program for public schools. She is currently a Research Evaluation Analyst for Multnomah County’s Idea Lab (MIL).
Karida Griffith-Walker
Karida Griffith Walker grew up training in a variety of dance styles in Portland, OR, primarily with local legend, Sally Mack. After finishing her business degree at New York University, Karida actively pursued her professional dance career. Highlights include: The Radio City Rockettes, Cirque du Soleil, The Tony Awards, Today Show, recurring appearances on HBO’s Boardwalk Empire, European tour of Black & Blue, and the critically-acclaimed Tap dance company, Dorrance Dance.
As an educator and choreographer, Karida has worked in a variety of settings including Pace University as an adjunct professor, Broadway Dance Center in NYC, the Stockholm Tap Festival, DC Tap Festival, the Children’s Theatre Company of NY, and in a variety of dance studios. Karida also provides choreography, in-school residencies, and lectures about Tap Dance History in Universities, non-profit organizations, and public schools.
Now raising 2 young daughters, Karida is sticking closer to home, and has focused her professional energy on empowering dance educators around the world. She has incorporated the breadth of her experience into online professional development programming that gives dance educators the strategies and tools they need to confidently meet the demands of 21st century dance education.
To this end, Karida founded The Tap Teachers’ Lounge in 2018, a comprehensive online training program for Tap Dance educators. And in 2020, Karida began offering seminars about Race & Dance History to public and private institutions. She also founded the Roots, Rhythm, Race & Dance program, a six-week professional development program which helps dance educators (from all styles & educational settings) to confidently introduce age-appropriate lessons around race and dance history to their students.
Consultants
Zhalih Taefy-Cross
Ms. Taefy-Cross has been a pre-school through 3rd grade educator for over 20 years, in both public and private schools. Having grown up in Venezuela, she is bilingual in Spanish and English. She holds a BA in Art and a Master of Arts in Teaching, both from Lewis and Clark College.