Staff

Executive Director - Mari Offenbecher Mari Offenbecher has been the Director of School's Out Washington since 1990. Mari has provided leadership to local and statewide community building efforts including the Leadership Council for Quality Care and Education and the Washington Afterschool Association. She currently participates on a variety of local and state committees to help shape policy to benefit and sustain community-based out-of-school time programs and systems. Mari is responsible for the overall administration of School's Out Washington including budget, staff, program, and community building efforts. Mari graduated from California State at Sacramento with a BA in Child and Youth Development. She conducted research on advanced Child Development systems at the University of California at Berkeley and Edinburgh University, Scotland.
Network Director - Janet Frieling Schmidt Janet has worked with School's Out Washington since 1991. Previously, she was a local before and afterschool program director and a sixth grade teacher in Montana. At School's Out, Janet oversees advocacy efforts and all activities within the Washington Afterschool Network, the action arm and advisory group for School’s Out. In addition, she serves on many state and national work groups to ensure that the needs of Washington's afterschool and youth development programs are included in policies and funding initiatives. Janet has a degree in Elementary Education and a Masters in Non-Profit Leadership from Seattle University.
Refugee School Impact Grant Project Director - Pang Chang From 2001 to 2004, Pang worked as the Grants and Contracts Specialist at School’s Out Washington. Prior to that, she coordinated youth programs for the Refugee Women’s Alliance. Pang then worked as the Refugee Program Planner for the Nonprofit Assistance Center. In December 2007, Pang rejoined School’s Out Washington as the Refugee School Impact Grant Project Director. Pang oversees the administration of Refugee School Impact subgrants to district-community partnerships and connects those partnerships to resources for improving services to refugee students.
Educational Services Director - Zach Wilson Zach began his work with School's Out Washington in 2002 as an apprentice in the Trainer Apprentice Project and went on to be a contracted onsite trainer. With over four years’ experience as SOWA’s Educational Services Director, Zach leads the successful and respected annual Bridge Conferences. He supports the overall organizational growth, budget development and marketing for all of SOWA’s fee-based services. He has a strong focus on supporting effective community partnerships, including those between schools and onsite afterschool providers. Zach has a degree in Business Administration with a concentration in Marketing from the University of Washington.
Quality Initiatives Director - Jackie Jainga-Hyllseth In her new role as the Quality Initiatives Director, Jackie will lead the statewide efforts that promote program quality and increase the use of quality assessment and improvement processes in afterschool and youth development programs. Jackie has been working with SOWA since 1999 as a trainer providing on-site technical assistance to programs serving ethnic and cultural communities. In 2007, she joined SOWA’s staff as the Professional Development Director and managed the four year researched based, Pathway to Excellence (PTE) project, led the statewide process to develop the Washington State Core Competencies for Child and Youth Development Professionals and supported SOWA’s efforts to build professional development systems for the afterschool and youth development field. She has experience in program planning, organizational development, project management and community building. Jackie holds a BA in Foreign Language and Literature and a Secondary Teaching Certificate.
Training Director - Glen Osborn Glen oversees organizational contracts for onsite training and technical assistance. He supports the quality of these services by coordinating professional learning opportunities for trainers and coaches across Washington. He encourages everyone to bring their skills and interests into their work life (trading time for money) . His experience and education include parenting, teaching preschool through college, curriculum development, and developmental psychology. Sparking lifelong interests in youth and adults, humor, juggling, woodwork, gardening and storytelling are some of the interests he incorporates at work.
Education Policy Director - Amanda Thomas As Director of Education Policy for SOWA, Amanda leads our organization’s policy initiatives to broaden and deepen the reach of Afterschool Youth Development (AYD) within both the education sector, and in the afterschool and youth development field. She’s tasked with helping establish AYD programs as a critical strategy to address the achievement gap in Washington State. Amanda’s professional background spans nonprofit, county and state government. Before joining SOWA, she was Governor appointed staff for the Arizona Governor’s Office of Children, Youth & Families under Governors Janet Napolitano & Janice Brewer administrations. Amanda holds a BA with an emphasis in Public Policy & Law from the Evergreen State College-Tacoma campus.
Communications & Grants Manager - Danielle Baer Danielle oversees grants administered by SOWA including Quality Enhancement and Feed Your Brain. She also coordinates the implementation of a comprehensive communications plan to increase public awareness and influence policymakers on the need and benefits of afterschool. Danielle has a Masters in Social Work from the University of Washington. She previously worked in the White Center community developing a plan to better coordinate out-of-school time programs and worked as a legislative aide for former state Representative Schual-Berke. Danielle enjoys traveling, food and learning everyday from her 3 year old son.
Quality Initiatives Program Manager - Krista Galloway Krista coordinates a variety of statewide program quality improvement initiatives. She works in partnership with the Washington Regional Afterschool Project (WRAP) to increase access for afterschool and youth development providers to professional development opportunities, on-site assistance, assessments and resources. She creates curriculum materials and training tools and delivers workshops and trainings. You may know her from the registration table at the annual Bridge conference. Krista has worked as an afterschool teacher, program supervisor, and program director and has a BA in English from Yale and a Masters in Early and Middle Childhood Education from Ohio State University.
Professional Development Coordinator - Emily A. Emerson Emily coordinates and facilitates professional development opportunities for Seattle Community Learning Center staff. She also supports the Afterschool and Youth Development (AYD) Professional Development project to build a statewide AYD professional development system. Emily has worked in the youth development, violence prevention and sexuality education fields as an educator, trainer and program manager. Emily graduated from Rollins College and received her Master of Philosophy from the University of Memphis. While not working, Emily enjoys taking urban walks with her partner Andy, baby Hattie Lalie and Finster Dog of Visions. She also enjoys a hot cup of tea and a good book.
Web Communications & Database Specialist - Jessie Rymph Jessie grew up in the Washington, D.C. area, studied at Washington University in St. Louis, and then moved to Seattle, WA. She holds a BA in Anthropology and an Advanced Certificate in Non-Profit Management. She volunteered for three years as Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) on behalf of infant victims of parental neglect. She currently volunteers to support a women's health clinic. Please contact her if you have any comments about the website or if you would like to share a video of something cute.
Publication & Administrative Analyst - Delphi Locey In her role as Publications, Administrative Analyst & Bridge Sponsorship/Exhibitor Coordinator, Delphi is responsible for the direction and coordination of daily operations and overseeing accounts payable and receivable. She also works closely with the talented and knowledgeable pool of trainers who specialize in supporting programs and staff who work with school-age children and youth. Delphi, originally from the island of Maui, received a B.A. in Political Science from the University of Hawai'i – Manoa. After relocating to Washington State, she earned a Certificate of Study in Public Relations from the University of Washington. In her free time she enjoys playing soccer with several recreational teams.
Program Assistant – Regina Lum-Witkoske As the Program Assistant, Regina provides operational, administrative and fiscal support for the annual Bridge Conference as well as other statewide training and events. She graduated from Northwood University in Michigan with a Bachelors in Business Administration, majoring in Marketing & Management. Born and raised in Malaysia, Regina grew up being actively involved in out-of-school programs herself and believes that a well-rounded education is important for young people. Therefore, she believes that working with SOWA will help her pursue her passion in providing safe places for young people to learn and grow.
Program and Administrative Assistant - Isaac Fuchs Isaac provides administrative support to SOWA’s Quality Division. Originally from Ithaca, New York, he earned a BA in International Development Studies from Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Michigan. In Seattle, Isaac coordinated resource development for Somali Community Services Coalition and was a program associate on OneAmerica’s “English Innovations” pilot project before joining SOWA.