Board Members
Sabrina Shields-Cook, President
Elected to the Board in 2019, Sabrina Shields-Cook has lived in Ames since 1989 and is a 1996 graduate of Ames High School. She received her B.A. in Anthropology from the University of Iowa and M.A. in Rhetoric and Professional Communication from Iowa State University. Sabrina is currently an Academic Adviser at Iowa State and previously worked in communications for a research institute on campus. She and her husband Nathan have four children in the Ames Community School District.
Committees: Equity and Policy
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Michelle Lenkaitis, Vice President
Elected to the board in 2019, Michelle Lenkaitis has lived in Ames since 2008. She has a BS in Economics from Northern Illinois University and an MS in Agricultural Economics from the University of Illinois. She has worked for Iowa State University since 2012 and is currently the Manager of Custodial Services for Facilities Planning and Management. Lenkaitis also worked with the US Department of Labor for over 20 years in Illinois, Ohio, and Wisconsin. She and her husband, Vic, have four children: Charlotte, Oscar, Sadie and Zach.
Committees: Teaching and Learning, Policy, School Improvement Advisory, and Facilities
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Jane Acker, Director
Jane Acker has lived in Ames since 1995. She received her BA from Stanford University and masters degree from Yale. She was elected to the school board in 2001 and 2004, and was appointed to serve 2013-15. She has worked at YSS, where she helped start the GRIP mentoring program, and has also served on the Ames Parks and Recreation Commission (2006-12) and the Ames Public Library board of trustees (2012-18). She is currently secretary of the board of directors of the United Way of Story County and also serves as an ASSET volunteer representing UWSC. She and her husband David have three children, all proud Ames High graduates.
Committees: Audit and Budget Oversight
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Dr. Allen Bierbaum, Director
Bierbaum has lived in Ames since 1994, and is currently the Chief Technology Officer at Priority 5. He received his Masters and PhD in Computer Engineering from Iowa State University and has remained engaged in the community through a variety of groups. He currently serves as the vice-chair of the Ames Parks and Recreation Commission, and has been a member of Iowa Innovation Council, and Leadership Ames Class 29. Allen and his wife Lora have three children in the Ames school system.
Committees: Audit and Budget Oversight, Equity Insurance, Policy, and Technology
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Dr. Monic Behnken, Director
Elected to the Board in 2017, Monic Behnken has been an Ames resident since 2009. Dr. Behnken completed a joint J.D./Ph.D. program in Psychology and the Law in 2008. Currently, she is an Associate Professor in the Department of Sociology and the director of the Leadership Studies Program at Iowa State University. Dr. Behnken teaches upper division courses in the Criminal Justice Studies Program. Her area of research focuses on mentally disordered offenders, alternative adjudication programs, and designing interventions that address various disproportionalities within complex systems. Monic happily lives in west Ames with her husband, Brian, and their two children.
Committees: Equity and Policy
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Jamet Colton, Director
Elected to Board 2017, Jamet Colton is an Ames resident since 2000. Jamet has served as an Educational Assistant for the Ames Community School District since 2012 and a Spanish-English language interpreter since 2014. Prior to this she spent 10 years as a licensed insurance office manager. She was honored in 2017 to receive the Ames Humanitarian Award. Volunteer work includes Chair of the Outreach Committee for the Ames Progressive Alliance. Born in Santiago, Chile, Jamet became a U.S. Citizen in 2014. She has attended Kirkwood and Des Moines Area Community College. She and her husband, Chase, have one son, Tiago, and a dog named Shanti .
Committees: Equity, Teaching and Learning, and Ames Education Foundation
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Alisa Frandsen, Director
Elected to Board 2015, Alisa Frandsen is an Ames resident since 1999. Currently a stay-at-home mother, Frandsen is the former Assistant Dean of Students/Director of Greek Affairs at Iowa State University. Frandsen holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Mathematics, Secondary Education Certificate (1997) and a Master of Higher Education degree (2001) from Iowa State University. She and her husband Matt have four children: Ali, Meredith, Joey, and Grant.
Committees: Audit and Budget Oversight and Facilities
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