North Clackamas School District board elects chair and vice chair, approves minutes and affirms reporting duties

The North Clackamas School District Board of Directors elected Director Gina Benaloga as board chair and Director Tory McVay as vice chair, approved the board minutes from June 26 and reviewed annual conflict-of-interest disclosures and mandatory child-abuse reporting rules during a brief meeting Thursday, July 7.

The leadership elections were conducted under Oregon School Boards Association guidance. Director Gina Benaloga was nominated for chair and elected by voice vote with a recorded tally of 6 yes, 0 no. Director Tory McVay was nominated for vice chair and likewise elected with a 6–0 vote.

The board also approved the consent agenda, which consisted of the minutes from the June 26, 2025 meeting. Director Dobson moved to approve the consent agenda; the motion was seconded by Director McVay and passed 6–0.

Directors made annual declarations of actual, potential or perceived conflicts of interest under board policy BBFA. All directors present said they had no conflicts except Director Gina Benaloga, who disclosed a potential conflict. Benaloga said, "I am an academic director for an exchange program, and I do place exchange students in the North Clackamas School District." The disclosure was recorded on the public record; no action or recusal was indicated in the meeting minutes.

The board discussed operating agreements and liaison/committee assignments. Board members were told they will receive a Google form to indicate committee preferences; the district said committees generally begin meeting in the fall and that a minimum of two board members will be assigned to each committee. The board clarified that some committees, such as the educational equity committee, have a preference for in-person attendance while others, such as the policy committee, are conducted online; a small number of committees allow either format.

Superintendent Shay James reviewed mandatory child-abuse reporting responsibilities and referenced Senate Bill 415 (2019), which requires school board members to be mandatory reporters. James told directors that while the district provides an online training module that staff complete annually, board members are not required to complete the online training but were encouraged to review the materials and to contact staff for assistance if they need support making a report. The superintendent said the training documents are included in the board packet.

The meeting opened with a land acknowledgment naming the Kalapuya, Chinook, Molalla and Clackamas peoples and closed within roughly 11 minutes. Chair Benaloga closed the meeting with a brief reading of a passage attributed to C.S. Lewis: "Children are not a distraction from more important work. They are the most important work." The board adjourned at 6:44 p.m.

Votes at a glance: chair election — Gina Benaloga elected (6–0); vice chair election — Tory McVay elected (6–0); consent agenda (minutes of 06/26/2025) approved (motion by Director Dobson; second by Director McVay; 6–0).