Finance and administration committee to meet Thursday; Trustees next meet  April 19

Ashland.news staff report

The Oregon Legislative session not only yielded more than $6.6 million to fund projects and programs at Southern Oregon University, it also included the appointment of four new trustees to the SOU Board of Trustees.

The board’s Finance and Administration Committee, a subcommittee of the Board of Trustees, meets Thursday on campus in Ashland. The full board will meet April 19.

In February, Gov. Tina Kotek appointed the following members to their posts:

• Sachta Bakshi Card, an Ashland business owner who came to SOU at age 17 from India. Card owns multiple restaurants in Ashland, and holds bachelor’s degrees in Business Administration and Economics, with a certificate in Applied Finance and Economics and master’s degrees in Business Administration from San Francisco State University and International Business from the University of Nice Sophia Antipolis. She also holds a master’s degree in Management from SOU. Card worked in finance for a global accounting and auditing form before becoming an entrepreneur and investor in the hospitality industry. Card serves on boards of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival (OSF) and Opportunities for Housing, Resources & Assistance (OHRA).  

Card’s position was held by Jonathan Bullock, who resigned his post in 2023. Card will serve a two-year term.

• Hala Schepmann is a professor of Chemistry at SOU, and will also serve a two-year term as SOU’s faculty representative. She came to SOU in 2001, and was chair of the Chemistry and Physics Department for six years. Schepmann led the Department through COVID-19, modernized curricular offerings, and led the creation of an endowed summer research program for students and faculty. Schepmann co-leads a National Science Foundation (NSF) ADVANCE Partnership project focused on supporting the advancement of women STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) faculty. Recently, she completed an NSF GRANTED (Growing Research Access for Nationally Transformative Equity and Diversity) project, centered on transforming research enterprises at primarily-undergraduate, emerging research institutions. This includes working with research administrators, faculty, and institutional leaders to remove research productivity barriers as well as infrastructure challenges with the ultimate goal of increasing faculty and student engagement in the nation’s research enterprise, according to the SOU website.

Schepmann holds a bachelor’s degree in Chemistry from University of Texas Austin, a M.S. in Synthetic Organic Chemistry from University of California Berkeley, and a Ph.D. in Bioorganic Chemistry from Rice University. Her research interests include products in drug discovery and the development of inclusive teaching strategies.

• Julissa Taitano is a graduate student at SOU, pursuing her Master’s of Science Degree in Education with a concentration in Higher Education Leadership. Taitano will serve a two-year term as a graduate student representative. She chairs the Student Fee Budget Committee of Associated Students of SOU (ASSOU) and is previous vice president of ASSOU. She interns for the Center for Holistic Education and serves as resident manager for SOU’s Student and Family Housing Department.

• Garima Sharma is a junior at SOU Honors College and is pursuing a bachelor’s degree in Pre-Nursing and Healthcare Administration, with minors in Health Promotion and Ethics. She is also chief justice for ASSOU and is past president of the Black Student Union. 

Card, Schepmann, and Taitano are all voting members and Sharma is a non-voting member in her first year, but is allowed to vote in her second year.

“This is an outstanding group to help steer the course of the university we all love,” said Daniel Santos, board chair, in a news release following the appointments. “These new board members bring rich and varied experiences to the table, and each has deep connections to SOU. Our governing body, university, community and state will benefit from their service.”

The committee meets from 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday for a Finance and Administration Committee meeting.

The Board of Trustees meets next from noon to 5 p.m. April 19.

Reach Ashland.news reporter Holly Dillemuth at hollyd@ashland.news.