Emielle Nischik will be the new deputy executive director at OSBA.
Emielle (pronounced Emily) Nischik has built her career on a belief in the power of education.
As College Possible’s Oregon executive director, she worked with individual students to get them into and through college, but there is a limit to how many students the nonprofit can reach. As OSBA’s new deputy executive director, she hopes to work for transformational changes to the K-12 system.
“I really appreciate OSBA’s commitment to education and equity throughout the state,” she said.
Nischik will be starting July 10 in OSBA’s second-in-command position, which opened in January when Melissa Goff left to become Gov. Tina Kotek’s education adviser.
OSBA Executive Director Jim Green said Nischik’s vast experience in association management will allow her to hit the ground running.
“She will be learning about school board perspectives, but as a product of Oregon public schools, she understands the reach of the system that gave her a strong foundation,” Green said.
Nischik grew up in the Mapleton School District between Florence and Eugene. She earned her bachelor’s degree from Oregon State and a master’s in public administration from Portland State. She went to work for nonprofit agencies before finding her way into the education sector. She joined College Possible in 2015, rising to the Oregon chapter’s top spot in 2020.
College Possible is a national nonprofit that offers free coaching and support for underserved and low-income students. Since 2012, College Possible Oregon has put more than 2,400 students, 69% of them students of color, on the path to a college degree, according to the nonprofit’s website.
Ken Thrasher, the Oregon founding board chair and a current board member, said Nischik helped the chapter grow. Thrasher, a retired Fred Meyer chief executive officer, said Nischik is one of the best leaders he has seen. He said her focus on moving children to graduation will translate well at OSBA.
“She understands the needs of students in schools and what kinds of supports they need to be successful and how that translates with administrators,” he said.
Salvador Garcia Lopez has seen Nischik from both the student and the employee angle. Garcia Lopez was a junior at Troutdale’s Reynolds High School in 2013 when he started receiving College Possible support. He went on to graduate from Western Oregon University.
“I owe it everything in a way,” he said. “If it wasn’t for this organization, I do not know if I would have gone to college. Sometimes you just need somebody to believe in you.”
Garcia Lopez said Nischik is easy to talk to and treats young people and their ideas with respect. He became a College Possible AmeriCorps coach and then was hired as a high school program coordinator. He called Nischik a fearless advocate for getting students what they need.
“She is not afraid to ask the difficult questions or call out the inequities,” Garcia Lopez said.
OSBA Board President Sonja McKenzie said Nischik’s career mission aligns well with OSBA’s values.
“Emielle brings to OSBA a wealth of leadership experience in the nonprofit sector and with organizations focused on educational equity around Oregon,” said McKenzie, a Parkrose School Board member.
Nischik grew up in a lower-income household and is a first-generation college graduate. She is married with two young children in the Portland Public Schools system. Nischik said public education is the foundation for generational economic mobility and change.
“If done well, it is the thing that can be the great equalizer,” she said.
– Jake Arnold, OSBA
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