It is with mixed emotions that I announce that after seven years of service to College Possible Oregon, Senior Program Director Margarita Gutierrez Lemus will be leaving the organization.
Margarita came to us in 2016 as our first-ever college program coordinator. Over the years, she has grown in her career and program leadership as she also served as our program manager, was promoted to program director in April 2020 and then again to senior program director in July 2022. She has supervised many AmeriCorps members and leadership team members, and has led the program team through the pandemic and programmatic changes with grace and humility.
In addition to all of this work, she has served in countless leadership roles both at the Oregon site and nationally. She was instrumental in starting intentional DEI work at the site and started program initiatives like family engagement workshops and advocacy for DACA students. She also leads Oregon’s local advisory board’s Nominating and DEI Board Committee. In addition to local leadership, she has served on multiple national College Possible workgroups to share her expertise with colleagues across the country.
Her passion for the mission and dedication to students shows up in her work every day; to say we will miss her is an understatement. Margarita’s last day will be Friday, August 18th – please join us in thanking Margarita for her outstanding service and wishing her the best in her future endeavors.
Sincerely,
Clark Haass, College Possible Oregon Board Chair
