To view a list of our Past Board Membersclick here.
Kenneth F. Bunting
Associate Publisher, Seattle Post-Intelligencer 101 Elliott Avenue West
Seattle, WA 98119-4220
Phone (206) 448-8210; Fax (206) 448-8305 kenbunting@seattlepi.com
Kenneth F. Bunting was named Associate Publisher of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer in August, 2005 after 12 years as the newspaper's top editor. He was Managing Editor from 1993 until January, 2000, when he was named Executive Editor. Bunting is responsible for the newspaper's ethical standards and practices, community affairs, and reader relations. . Mr. Bunting has bachelor's degrees in journalism and history from Texas Christian University, and completed the Advanced Executive Program at Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Business. Mr. Bunting served on the Board of the National Freedom of Information Coalition, and is currently on several boards of directors, including the the Alfred Friendly Press Fellowships, the SDX Foundation, the (Seattle) Alliance for Education, CityClub, P-I Charities, and the Woodland Park Zoo Society.
William Crittenden
Attorney at Law 927 N. Northlake Way, Ste 301
Seattle, WA 98103
Phone (206) 361-5972; Fax (206) 361-5973 wjcrittenden@comcast.net
William Crittenden is an attorney in private practice. Mr. Crittenden represents parties in litigation and appeals involving freedom of speech and access to public records. He is also Of Counsel to the Groff Murphy law firm where he represents developers, builders, owners and other interested parties in administrative and legislative land use matters. Mr. Crittenden has represented WCOG and the League of Women Voters as amicus curiae in cases involving public records and voting rights. Before entering private practice Mr. Crittenden served as a law clerk to Chief Justice Barbara Durham of the Washington Supreme Court and Judge William W. Baker of the Court of Appeals. Mr. Crittenden is a 1992 graduate of the University of Washington School of Law.
Richard Davis
Association of Washington Business PO Box 658
Olympia, WA 98507-0658
Phone (360) 943-1600; Fax (360) 943-5811 richardsdavis@gmail.com
Richard Davis has served as Vice President of Communications for the Association of Washington Business since December 2006. In that capacity, he has overall responsibility for AWB's external communications. Before joining AWB, Davis was president of the Washington Research Council, a business-oriented public policy research group. His syndicated column has been published in The News Tribune, Everett Herald, and Spokesman-Review. An Iowa native, Davis has degrees from Drake University and Iowa State University.
Davis lives on Bainbridge Island with his wife, Elaine and has three grown children living in the Puget Sound region.
Trent England
Evergreen Freedom Foundation (EFF) P.O. Box 552
Olympia, WA 98507
Phone (253) 549-5000 tengland@effwa.org
Trent England is director of the Citizenship & Governance Center at the Evergreen Freedom Foundation, a non-profit public policy research and education organization dedicated to individual liberty, free enterprise, and limited, accountable government. Ensuring access to government records and meetings is of paramount importance to the Evergreen Freedom Foundation. Mr. England has been a candidate for the Washington State House of Representatives and was a legal policy analyst at The Heritage Foundation in Washington, D.C. He is a graduate of Claremont McKenna College and the George Mason University School of Law and is admitted to the Washington State Bar. Mr. England lives with his wife and their three children in Bremerton.
George Erb
Managing Editor, Puget Sound Business Journal 801 Second Avenue
Seattle, WA 98104
Phone (206) 447-8505 geoerb@seanet.com
George Erb is editor of the Puget Sound Business Journal. He has worked as a reporter and editor at daily and weekly newspapers in Washington state since 1983. Mr. Erb has a Bachelors degree in History from Hanover College and a Master’s degree in Journalism from the University of Oregon. He is a past chapter president for the Society of Professional Journalists a member of the state Bench-Bar-Press Committee. Mr. Erb is also the editor of two editions of "Access; a guide to government information," an open-government manual published by the Society of Professional Journalists.
Mike Fancher, Vice-President 3774 W. Commodore Way
Seattle, WA 98199
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Phone (206) 285-469 fanch@mikefancher.com
Michael R. Fancher, is Editor at Large and Senior Vice President of The Seattle Times. Mr. Fancher holds a bachelor's degree from the University of Oregon and a master's from Kansas State University. He received his Master of Business Administration from the University of Washington. Mr. Fancher is a member of the board of directors of the Walla Walla Union-Bulletin, Yakima Herald-Republic and Blethen Maine Newspapers. He has served as a member of the board of directors of the Associated Press Managing Editors, and is a member of the American Society of Newspaper Editors and the Society of Professional Journalists. He has served as a judge for the Pulitzer Prize four times.
Ruth Gordon
Jefferson County Clerk P.O. Box 1220
Port Townsend, WA 98368
Phone (360) 385-9128 rgordon@co.jefferson.wa.us
Ruth Gordon is the elected County Clerk and ex-officio Clerk of Superior Court in Jefferson County and holds the Legislative Star award for 2007 from the Washington Association of County Clerks. She represents WSACC on the Board for Judicial Administration Best Practices Committee, is the Vice-Chair and past Chair of the Jefferson County Law and Justice Council, and serves as a Trustee-at-Large on the Washington Association of County Officials Board. Prior to entering public office she was a counselor in private practice, an online producer for Oxygen Media, and community activist. A founding member of the Port Townsend chapter of the League of Women Voters, she currently serves as the Democratic State Committeewoman for Jefferson County. She graduated summa cum laude Phi Beta Kappa from Purdue University and completed graduate studies in curatorial science at the University of Minnesota.
Scott Johnson
Shareholder, Stokes Lawrence, P.S 800 Fifth Avenue, Suite 4000 Seattle, WA 98104
Phone (206) 686-6000; Fax (206) 464-1496 sawj@stokeslaw.com
Scott A.W. Johnson is a trial lawyer and focuses his practice on complex business and commercial litigation. He has served for many years as a cooperating attorney with the ACLU of Washington for which he has handled a number of public records cases. He also has spoken about public records and open meetings to a number of community groups. He obtained his law degree, magna cum laud, from American University, Washington College of Law in 1985 where he was a Notes and Comments Editor of the American University Law Review. He received his B.A. in Business Administration (Accounting) from the University of Washington in 1980.
Rep. Lynn Kessler
Washington State Representative
Majority Leader PO Box 40600
339A Legislative Building
Olympia, WA 98504-0600
Phone (360) 786-7904
kessler.lynn@leg.wa.gov
Lynn Kessler is serving in her 16th year in the Washington State House, and her tenth year as Majority Leader. In addition to her Leadership duties, she sits on the House Appropriations and Rules committees, the Washington State Arts Commission, and is the only state legislator appointed to the National Assembly of State Arts Agencies Board of Directors.
Lynn is also a member of the Grays Harbor Economic Development Council Board and the Legislative Committee on Economic Development and International Relations. She has served on numerous committees and boards in her community, including ten years as a trustee at Grays Harbor Community College, where she is a past chair, and was the first female president of the Aberdeen Rotary.
Lynn is a mother of four and grandmother of Kyle, Ryan, and Arita.
Richard B. Kielbowicz
Department of Communication
University of Washington
Box 353740
Seattle, WA 98195-3740
Phone (206) 543-2660 kielrbk@aol.com
Richard B. Kielbowicz, associate professor in the Department of Communication at the University of Washington, teaches courses on mass media law and communication history. Richard has written one book, News in the Mail: The Press, Post Office, and Public Information, 1700-1860s, and has contributed articles to social science journals and law reviews. He has a B.A. in history from the College of Wooster and an M.A. and Ph.D. in mass communication from the University of Minnesota. In addition to his teaching, Richard has served as a consultant on communication policy for federal agencies and business groups.
Christopher K. Leman is a political scientist (Ph.D., Harvard University) who writes and consults on public governance and policy issues and nonprofit management. He previously taught at Brandeis University and the University of Washington's Evans School of Public Affairs, and in the UW Extension School. Leman's writings have appeared with a wide range of university presses, institutes, journals and newspapers. His volunteer service has included many years as an officer or board member of neighborhood groups, including the Seattle Community Council Federation.
Jason Mercier, Treasurer
Washington Policy Center PO Box 3643 Seattle, WA 98124
Phone (360) 485 - 2485 jmercier@washingtonpolicy.org
Jason Mercier is Director of the Center for Government Reform for the Seattle-based Washington Policy Center. Among the Center's priorities is public records reform. Prior to joining WPC, Jason worked on public records issues for the Evergreen Freedom Foundation. He also serves as a voting member on the American Legislative Exchange Council's Tax and Fiscal Policy Task Force and is a contributing editor of Heartland's Budget Tax News. He received a B.A. in Political Science from Washington State University. Jason and his wife Kristen make their home in Lacey where he serves as president of their homeowner's association.
Toby Nixon, President
Former State Representative, 45th District Microsoft Corporation
12113 NE 141st Street Kirkland, WA 98034
Phone (425) 823-9779 toby@tobynixon.com
Toby Nixon served in the Washington State House of Representatives from 2002 through 2006. He was ranking member of the State Government Operations and Accountability Committee, which has responsibility for overseeing Washington's open government and election laws. Toby continues to be committed to preserving and restoring trust in government through openness and accountability. Toby was the 2006 recipient of the "Freedom's Light Award" from the Washington Newspaper Publishers Association, in recognition of his work to protect and advance First Amendment interests in Washington. He has been previously nominated for the Washington Coalition for Open Government's "James Madison Award". Toby works as standards program manager in the Windows group at Microsoft, focusing on networked devices and "smart home" technology, with particular interest in security and privacy issues. He has worked in the computer field for over 30 years, and holds five patents related to computer communications technology. He serves in leadership roles in several local non-profit organizations and industry standards-setting groups. He, his wife Irene, and their five children make their home in Kirkland.
Sam Pace
Association of REALTORS® 29839 - 154th Ave. SE
Kent, WA 98042
Phone (253) 630-5541 SamPace@concentric.net
Sam Pace is a REALTOR® with Executive Real Estate and a contracted Housing Specialist for the Seattle-King County Association of REALTORS®. He is a Past President of the Washington REALTORS® and has been honored as King County's REALTOR® of the Year.
Mr. Pace served as the founding chairman of the South Sound Chambers of Commerce Legislative Coalition and has served on the boards of more than a dozen community and professional organizations. Prior to his career in real estate Mr. Pace was a partner in the Springfield, Oregon, law firm of Harms, Harold, Leahy & Pace where a significant portion of his practice involved litigation and municipal law. He received his bachelor's degree (double major in urban and regional government, and political science) and MBA from Willamette University, and is a graduate of the University of Oregon School Of Law.
Gerry Pollet, Secretary
Executive Director & legal counsel, Heart of America Northwest 1314 NE 56th St. #100
Seattle, WA 98105
Phone (206)382-1014 gerry@hoanw.org
Gerry Pollet is Executive Director and legal counsel for Heart of America Northwest, a 16,000 member citizens' group dedicated to "advancing our region's quality of life." Heart of America Northwest is the region's largest citizens' watchdog group for the cleanup of the Hanford Nuclear Reservation, the most contaminated area in North America. Gerry also serves as Executive Director and general counsel for Legal Advocates for Washington, which provides legal advice on non-profit; open government (public records / FOIA / open meetings); electoral; and, hazardous waste law to non-profit organizations. Gerry chaired the "Protect Washington" campaign for Initiative 297 in 2004, to stop Hanford from being used as a National Radioactive Hazardous Waste Dump and to end dumping of waste in unlined trenches. Gerry has been honored as the "National Grassroots Activist of the Year" by the Alliance for Nuclear Accountability; and, the 2006 Washington Physicians for Social Responsibility Paul Beeson Peace Award. Gerry was involved in drafting and passing Washington laws to protect state and local government whistleblowers.
Patience Rogge
Private Citizen 696 Woodland Drive
Port Townsend, WA 98368
Phone (360) 385-6975 rogge@olympus.net
Patience Rogge holds a Bachelor of Arts in American Government and a Master of Library Science from the University of California, Berkeley. She has worked in academic, school and public libraries in Delaware, California, and Saudi Arabia. She has served on the Jefferson County Rural Library District Board of Trustees, the boards of the Washington Library Association, the Pacific Northwest Library Association, and Friends of the Washington State Library. She has chaired the Washington Friends, Foundations and Trustees Association and the Grassroots! interest group of the Washington Library Association. In 2001, she received the Trustee Award from the Washington Library Association, in 2005, she received the Association's Honorary Lifetime Award and was named to the American Library Association's National Advocacy Honor Roll. In addition to her library-related activities, she has been active in environmental, political and educational efforts in California and Washington. She currently directs the Fort Worden Oral History Program at Fort Worden State Park Conference Center in Port Townsend and is vice president of the Friends of Fort Worden.
David Seago
Retired, editorial page editor for The News Tribune 4405 N. 34th St.
Tacoma, WA 98407
Phone (253) 761-0709 sds99@harbornet.com
Retiring in July as editorial page editor for The News Tribune, David Seago ended a 40-year career with the newspaper. He began with the TNT as an office boy, fetching mail and filling paste pots, then graduated to a reporting job during summers while attending Stanford University. He earned a masters degree from the Columbia University School of Journalism, then began working full-time as a reporter in 1972. After beat reporting on consumer affairs and education, he filled several newsroom editing positions, including city editor, before becoming an editorial writer in 1983. He was named editorial page editor in 1995. The editorial page under Seago consistently supported the cause of open government and the disclosure of public records in particular.
Seago, 59, continues to serve on the boards of two nonprofit groups that tutor elementary students in reading and provide services for the disabled, respectively. He also serves on an advisory committee promoting education in ethics at Tacoma Community College.
Brian Sonntag
Washington State Auditor P.O. Box 40021 Olympia, WA 98504
Phone (360) 902-0370 sonntagb@sao.wa.gov
Now in his third c, Brian Sonntag has served the citizens of Washington as State Auditor since 1993. He is committed to open and accountable government. He supports independent, comprehensive performance audits of state government, building on legislation that was passed in 2002. During the 2001 session, his Office proposed and won passage of legislation that clarified the state's Open Public Meetings Act. Mr. Sonntag is a Certified Government Financial Manager and a member of the Performance Audit Task Force of the National State Auditor's Association.
Duane Swinton
Witherspoon Kelley Davenport & Toole PS
1100 U.S Bank Building, 422 West Riverside
Spokane, WA 99201
Phone (509) 624-5264
Duane M. Swinton is a partner at Witherspoon, Kelley, Davenport & Toole law firm in Spokane, where he has practiced for 29 years. Duane specializes in Media law and has argued a dozen media cases before both the Washington and Idaho Supreme Courts on such issues as access to public records and court documents, defamation and prior restraint. He is an adjunct instructor at Gonzaga Law School in media law. A 1977 graduate of the University of Iowa law school, Duane also has a B.A. degree from Iowa in journalism and has several years experience as a newspaper reporter.
Bill Will
General Manager, Washington Newspaper Publishers Association 12354 30th Ave. NE
Seattle, WA 98125
Phone (206) 634-3838 bwill@wnpa.com
Bill Will is the General Manager of Washington Newspaper Publisher Associations. He has worked for Washington Newspaper Publishers Association since 1997, where he helps reporters and editors with access and legal questions and monitors First Amendment issues in the Legislature and the courts. Will has more than 20 years of experience in the newspaper business. After graduating from the University of Idaho in 1982, he worked as a reporter at the Newport Miner and worked briefly as sports editor of the Columbia Basin Herald in Moses Lake, Washington. From 1984-88 he was a reporter, copy editor, and later assistant managing editor at The Daily Idahonian/Pullman Daily News (now the Moscow-Pullman Daily News). In 1988-89, he was managing editor of The Sparks Tribune in Sparks, Nev. and helped convert the newspaper from twice-weekly to daily publication. From 1989-1995 he worked as a copy editor at Outdoor Empire Publishing Company in Seattle. He worked as a contract employee at Microsoft Corp. for two years on the launch of Microsoft Network News and MSNBC on the Internet before joining WNPA.
