Salem, Ore. – The Oregon Senate confirmed four trustees for the governing board of Oregon Institute of Technology (Oregon Tech) in February. The new trustees are Stefan Bird, president and CEO of Pacific Power; John Davis, partner at Lynch Murphy McLane; and Kanth Gopalpur, entrepreneur and angel investor. Celia Núñez, deputy director of the HECC Office of Community Colleges and Workforce Development, is a former trustee returning to the Board.
The at-large trustee positions are currently served by Trustees Paul Stewart, Dr. Lisa Graham, and Jessica Gomez, and are scheduled to become vacant June 30, 2022. The position Davis will fill is currently vacant. The following members continuing their service are Trustees Brown, Hill, Jones, Minty Morris, Starr, and Ziari.
Stefan Bird is president and CEO of Pacific Power, a division of PacifiCorp serving 783,000 customers in communities across Oregon, Washington, and California. Under his leadership, the company is making historic investments in renewable energy and transmission infrastructure that will transform the West’s role in a sustainable energy future.
Bird serves on several nonprofit and public service organizations including as chairman, PacifiCorp Foundation; chairman, STEM Investment Council; chairman, CTE-STEM Employer Coalition; and director, Oregon Business Council. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Kansas State University.
John Davis is a business, nonprofit, and estate planning attorney at Lynch Murphy McLane, LLP practicing in Portland and Bend.
Davis served as a member of the Oregon House of Representatives representing District 26 from 2013 until 2017. He was also a member of the Oregon Tech Foundation Board and recently served as vice president.
Kanth Gopalpur is a serial entrepreneur and angel investor who has been involved in Oregon’s entrepreneurial ecosystem for over 25 years. After helping found Powell's online bookstore in 1995, he founded and was the CEO of software company Monsoon Works until its sale to a private equity group in 2010. In addition to Monsoon, Gopalpur was also a co-founder of two other companies —Thrift Recycling Management, and Public Market. He is now principal of Kestrel Advisors and serves as an advisor and angel investor to tech startups
Gopalpur currently serves as the chair of the Business Oregon Commission and as the co-chair of the Oregon Futures Commission. In addition to being an ex-officio member of the Oregon Innovation Council, he also sits on the boards of Poached Jobs and the James Beard Public Market. Previously Gopalpur served as Entrepreneur in Residence for Business Oregon and was on the board of the Oregon Growth Account, the Oregon Talent Council, TIE Oregon and numerous private companies in and outside Oregon.
Celia Núñez is a former locally elected and appointed official, community college senior level administrator, policy advisor, and a self-proclaimed proud Latina executive. She currently serves as deputy director of the HECC Office of Community Colleges and Workforce Development (CCWD). In this role, she will work closely with CCWD director Donna Lewelling to lead state strategic policy and funding coordination for Oregon’s locally-governed community colleges, adult basic skills and high school equivalency providers, career and technical education partners, and more. Núñez has held a variety of significant leadership positions in the private sector and state government, and has a long legacy of promoting economic development and equality for historically and currently underserved and under-resourced communities.
Before joining HECC, she served as the executive director of the Chemeketa Center for Business and Industry and in numerous other leadership roles, including service for many years as a city councilor with the City of Wilsonville and city council president. Núñez served as a member of the Board of Trustees for Oregon Tech from 2015-2019 and as a member of the Oregon Community Foundation’s Northern Willamette Valley Advisory Council. She earned her Bachelor of Arts and Master of Business Administration from George Fox University, and is a graduate of the Harvard Kennedy School Executive Program as well as other leadership programs.
There are 11 at-large positions on the Board, three positions filled by faculty, staff, and student members, and an ex-officio position held by Oregon Tech’s President, for a total of 15 members.
For more information on Oregon Tech Board members, go to www.oit.edu/trustees.
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