ABOUT DEANNA PALM.
Deanna Palm, President of the Greater Hillsboro Chamber of Commerce and PCC board director since her appointment in 2009, has filed to run for another term to represent zone 7 on the PCC Board. Zone 7 covers western Washington County and southern Columbia county.
Palm graduated from Portland Community College with an A.A.S degree in Business and Information Systems. “PCC prepared me for my career. I know first-hand what an education at PCC can do,” she shared.
“Deanna is a successful PCC graduate who cares about our community and will continue to serve our region well,” said endorser Tom Hughes, Metro Council President and former Mayor of Hillsboro.
Palm believes her extensive background working with the business community makes her uniquely qualified for the PCC Board.
“I understand the importance of PCC in our economic and workforce development efforts. Our college is assisting economic recovery through workforce retraining, job creation, and small business training throughout our region. As your Board Member, I will continue working with our business community to assist PCC in job creation and economic development efforts for our rapidly changing workforce so our graduates can find work here the way I did.”
Before joining the Hillsboro Chamber in 2001, Palm worked with the Portland Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce. Her community service includes the Hillsboro Community Foundation, the Workforce Investment Board, past-president of the Jackson Bottom Wetlands Preserve, the Oregon State Chamber, and the Hillsboro Rotary.
Palm says she does not aspire to higher office and sees her role as community service, not a political stepping stone. “I am not a career politician, but a lifetime resident of this community and I hope to continue my service.”
She believes her experience working with PCC during difficult financial times is needed right now. “These are tough budget times, but we can’t let that stop us from providing affordable, excellent education. More students than ever are choosing PCC, while state funding has decreased. We can’t count on the state to solve all of our budget problems. As your Board Member, I am fiscally responsible to ensure that our limited resources are wisely spent to keep student tuition as low as possible.”