Board

Board Roles and Responsibilities

Board members of the Center for Service-Learning and Social Change lead the efforts to promote the goals of the Center. Our continued success depends on the personal commitment and active involvement of a select group of individuals, who embrace the privilege to serve and the responsibility to lead. Board members agree to uphold the Center's mission, vision, and core values, and to meet the responsibilities and expectations detailed below. These include, but are not limited to:

Advocacy and Personal Involvement
  • Advocate: be well informed to convey the Center's mission and strategies, programs, strengths and needs
  • Board meeting attendance: attend a minimum of 75% of the 6-10 board meetings annually
Leadership Development
  • Self-assessment: complete annual self-assessment to appraise performance
  • Strategic planning: participate in setting Board/committee goals and objectives at the retreats and throughout the year
  • Advise: provide input regarding services and programs
Financial Expectations
  • Annual Support: make a personal gift to the Center each year
We also encourage board members to consider the following forms of involvement, depending on their interest, abilities, resources, and time.
  • Committee participation: serve on one standing or ad-hoc committee and actively participate in that committee's projects and activities
  • Event participation: attend programs and events and encourage/invite others to participate; volunteer when possible to support these programs and events
  • Board recruitment: identify strong candidates for the Board who will represent the Center effectively
  • Mentor: be a partner/mentor to a fellow board member
Board Members
Scott Frieler

Scott Frieler is the Youth Minister at Church of the Holy Spirit in St. Cloud, Minnesota. Scott also serves as co-director of A Call to Service - a five day service learning experience for youth in ninth through twelfth grade sponsored by Catholic Education Ministries, Diocese of St. Cloud. Scott received his Bachelor of Arts in education in 1999 from St John's University in Collegeville, MN. He received his Masters Degree in Pastoral Ministry in May of 2005 from School of Theology at St. John's University in Collegeville, MN.

Scott Frieler coordinates programming for youth in 7th - 12th grade at Holy Spirit. He is responsible for organizing and leading youth groups, retreats, service experiences, and parish trips. He also is responsible for training volunteers that help with youth activities. Scott is a member of the St. Cloud Area Youth Ministers and also serving his 2nd term on the Diocesan Education Council for the Diocese of St. Cloud representing Youth Ministry.

Lalita Subrahmanyan (board chair)

Dr. Lalita Subrahmanyan is Professor of Elementary and Middle Level Education at St. Cloud State University. Her Ph.D, obtained in 1993 from the State University of New York at Buffalo, was in Comparative Education. At SCSU, she mainly teaches courses in emerging adolescent development and middle level education, instruction and assessment, and the social foundations of education. Her emphasis in her teaching and her work is on developing students to be thinking citizens in a global and pluralistic democracy. Dr. Subrahmanyan has had seven years experience in schools in India, and in urban community development projects. Additionally she has had extensive experience working with schools in Minnesota since 1993. In 2000-02 she served as the cultural diversity coordinator in the St. Cloud schools. Currently she directs, with two other colleagues, a mentoring project in which mentors from St. Cloud State University are trained to work with students from grades 7-12 of diverse backgrounds in culturally appropriate mentoring relationships. Dr. Subrahmanyan has made several national and international presentations on curriculum and instruction, middle level education, multicultural education, social justice and related topics.

John Wertz

John Wertz is a retired St. Cloud Social Studies teacher (Apollo & Tech). Previously, he served in leadership positions in the St. Cloud Education Association, the Governing Boards of the Minnesota Education Association & Education Minnesota. He has also served on the Board of the United Way of Central Minnesota. In retirement, he has served as President of the Disabilities Council, and the President of the Board of the St. Cloud Area Family YMCA. He currently serves as a Counselor with SCORE (an organization providing business mentoring), and on the Steering Committee for Create CommUNITY in St. Cloud.

Daniel Anderson

Daniel Anderson sits on the St. Cloud Human Rights Commission for the City of St. Cloud. He has received the Special Person Award from the Minnesota Council for Exceptional Children for his advocacy for children with disabilities. He has also received the Power of One Award from Philanthrofund for his advocacy of social justice issues faced by the gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and allied community.

Dan Anderson has been involved in faith communities throughout his life as an educator, a musician and a servant. He is presently a member of University Lutheran Church of the Epiphany and Lutherans Concerned St. Cloud. These past years he has been an "out" delegate to the Southwestern Minnesota Assembly of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America . In the summer of 2003 he was a delegate representing the Southwestern Minnesota Synod at the Worldwide Church Assembly of the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Dan Anderson is a former elementary school teacher and a former K-12 principal. He is presently an elementary principal in the St. Cloud Area Schools. He serves on the Board of Directors for the St. Cloud Symphony Orchestra. He is a founding member of Element - St. Cloud Area and St. Cloud OUT. He has presented at the Education Minnesota State Conference, the OutFront Minnesota State Conference, Central Minnesota School Counselors Conference, St. Cloud State University and the Professional Issues Conference in Moorhead, MN. He has also given various trainings to school staff in Central and Northwestern Minnesota. Dan's presentations are on various issues from school district policies to how to discuss glbta issues in an "age-appropriate" manner with kids.

Karen Vann

Karen has been on staff at Atonement Lutheran Church in St. Cloud for 20 years serving first as Program Coordinator, later as Education Director, and currently as Coordinator of Shared Ministries. Her responsibilities include organizing the confirmation, Sunday school, summer Bible school, day camp, new member, and small group ministries; she recruits, trains and nurtures those who volunteer for those ministries. She has served in many volunteer positions with the church at the congregational, synodical, and national levels. As part of a team she helped to establish the Culturing Compassion retreats for high school youth and continues to work with that ministry.

Although Karen has a Bachelor of Science degree in Home Economics from the University of Minnesota, she has never been "gainfully" employed in that field. She has worked in the travel industry for both airlines and agencies which provided her the opportunity to engage in one of her interests*.travel.

In her 45 years as a Girl Scout, Karen has served in a variety of positions both operational and policy making. Her participation in this movement helps fulfill her interest in empowering girls and women.

Karen's other interests include gardening, golfing, word games, bridge, and reading. Karen's husband is retired and her two daughters live and work in the Twin Cities.

Eileen Bitzan

Eileen has been the Program Director for Anna Marie's Alliance for the past 2 years. Prior to that, she served as the Hospital Advocate for Anna Marie's for 2 years. From 1989-2004, Eileen worked at the College of St. Benedict as Director of the Haehn Campus Center. Eileen has Bachelor's degrees in Social Work, Psychology and Physical Education and a Masters degree in Education with a Women's Development emphasis. Eileen's areas of interest are women's holistic development and leadership development in organizations.

Sanda J. Lang

Sanda Lang joined Miller, Welle, Heiser & Co., Ltd., a certified public accounting (CPA) firm, in January 2005. She earned her CPA while working for a St. Cloud, MN CPA firm in 1980 and was then employed for twenty years in private accounting. Her experience includes financial and tax analysis and projections, accounting services, payroll and benefits administration, auditing, and income tax preparation and review for both individuals and business entities.

Sanda and her husband have been lead facilitators for the last five years for the Alternative to Violence Project (AVP). AVP offers workshops in prisons and in the community which help participants develop skills in affirmation, communication, cooperation, and conflict resolution which are needed in order to live nonviolent life styles.

In the past, Sanda has served in her church as a member of the Board of Education, Sunday school teacher and youth leader. She volunteered as bookkeeper and board member for the Path Recovery Center for three years and as Treasurer for the Alternatives to War Committee for two years.