Amy married Okemos native, Dan Crites, in 1989, and they chose to stay in Okemos to raise their family. Two of their three children currently attend the Okemos schools. Their eldest graduated in 2009.

Amy graduated from the University of Michigan in 1984 with a B.A. in Communications. She worked in the Investment and Banking industries for the next 11 years, gaining experience with client relations and with retirement and employee benefit plan law and investments. Amy earned both the Series 7 license and the Certified Financial Planner designation. When her second child turned one in 1995, it became clear that her time and energy were needed at home.

A big part of Amy's life is her commitment to the community. Joining the Junior League of Lansing in 1990, she actively served that organization for 10 years. Since her oldest child reached Kindergarten, she has served as parent volunteer in each of her children's classrooms and continues her hands-on dedication to their education through a variety of channels. Amy joined Central Elementary School's PTO and took on the jobs of Treasurer and President, serving 2 and 3 years respectively in those positions. She also acted as Central's representative on the District-wide Parent Council for three years.

Amy had the unique opportunity to be one of the representatives on the Superintendent Search trips both in 2004 and 2007 where she was able to gain first-hand knowledge about the search process, the candidates' leadership styles and the internal workings of other school districts. Also in 2004-2005, Amy served as the Deputy Superintendent's co-chair for the K-5 Reconfiguration Committee and as Chippewa's parent representative on the school district's Strategic Planning Committee. She also volunteers for the Music Patrons, Art Patrons and Okemos Athletic Boosters. Amy was elected to the school board in May 2006, and currently serves as Vice President. She has earned the certified board member designation from the Michigan Association of School Boards. Amy formerly served as Parliamentarian and Treasurer, as the board's representative to the Okemos Education Foundation and as the Okemos School Board representative for the Ingham Intermediate School District’s Consolidation and Collaboration committee. She currently serves as President. Her term of office expires December 31, 2014.

Amy and her husband Jesse Lothamer have resided in Okemos since 1999. They have 2 children in the district; one being at Kinawa and the other at Cornell.

Amy obtained a Bachelor in Science form Michigan State University. She currently serves as the Marketing and Human Resources Vice President at Lothamer Tax Resolution.

Amy is involved with Junior League of Lansing and served on the Board as Fund Development Vice President. She is also involved with Okemos Special Needs Day Camp. In conjunction with working, volunteering, and raising a family Amy is very passionate about health and fitness and how it can impact people of all ages.

Ms. Lothamer was elected to the board in November 2012 to fill a full-term position. Her term of office expires December 31, 2016

Melanie C. Lynn and her husband, Wayne W. Lynn, are the proud parents of three Okemos Public School students; one at Chippewa and two at Okemos High School. They have resided in the Okemos community for three (3) years.

Melanie received her BS in Electrical Engineering from Clemson University (Clemson, South Carolina) and her MBA/Operations Management from the University of South Carolina (Columbia, South Carolina). She has over ten years of experience as an Electrical Engineer and Project Manager designing and applying technology solutions in manufacturing, production and business applications. Melanie’s success with planning, budgeting, resource coordination and overall responsibility for implementation activities required that she demonstrate strong interpersonal and communication skills.

Prior to beginning her current position as an Information Technology Instructor at Lansing Community College, Melanie was an active school volunteer. She enjoyed participating as a member of the Hiawatha Elementary School Parent Group, “Popcorn Mom”, and Classroom Mom. During her children’s academic progression, the family has resided in several states. She has served as the President of the Parent Group for Saint John Preschool in Columbia, SC and the Membership Chairperson for the Spring Brook Elementary School Parent Teacher Association in Naperville, IL.

Melanie is proud of the service that she renders on behalf of children. She serves as the Mid-Western Regional Program Director for Jack and Jill of America, Incorporated, a national organization that promotes leadership development for children ages two (2) years old to nineteen (19) years old. In that volunteer capacity, Melanie manages the coordination of leadership development programs for children in the nine (9) states of the region. She recently completed a term as the President of the Greater Lansing Chapter (Lansing, MI) of Jack and Jill of America, Incorporated.

Melanie was appointed to the Okemos Board of Education on October 28, 2010 to serve in a seat vacated by former Board Member, Mary Graham. She currently serves as Vice President. Her appointment expires December 31, 2016.

Vincent and his family moved to Okemos in 2002 primarily because of the excellent schools. He and his wife, Sarah, have two children. Their son is in 5th grade at Kinawa and their daughter is a 2nd grader at Bennett Woods. Sara is a chronic disease epidemiologist for the Michigan Department of Community Health. Vincent is a Full Professor of Anthropology at Western Michigan University, an active volunteer in the schools and community, a committed teacher, and a supporter of the Okemos Education Foundation.

His teaching and research focuses on poverty, homelessness and other inequalities as well as the complexity of globalization and political economic restructurings. Vincent spent over a decade working in homeless shelters in Connecticut and Massachusetts and as an activist member of several community based movements aimed at transforming responses to homelessness. He continues that work today in Kalamazoo. His recent research explores the impacts on communities and middle class Americans from recent political-economic and cultural restructurings within the US.

Vincent enjoys coaching youth sports and is currently coaching 5th grade boys and 2nd grade girls soccer teams. He consistently volunteers at his children's schools and in their classrooms working with small reading groups, cooking at the annual Field Day BBQ, chaperoning field trips, reading to classes, and presenting in classes on social studies. He has been a consistent participant in community forums and board meetings in order to contribute to, and learn from, the process of maintaining a quality educational system. He currently serves as Treasurer.His term of office expires December 31, 2014.

Tonya Rodriguez was raised in the Okemos. She was enrolled at Cornell Elementary School in the second grade and graduated from Okemos High School. Ms. Rodriguez returned to Okemos in 2012 to be closer to family and to give her daughter the benefit of the excellent educational opportunities available at Okemos Public Schools. She has since had the honor of enrolling her own daughter at Cornell.

Ms. Rodriguez earned a Bachelor’s of Science from Michigan State University. After earning her undergraduate degree, Ms. Rodriguez served as a Community Health Educator for the Peace Corps in Niger, West Africa. Ms. Rodriguez then earned a Juris Doctorate, Cum Laude, from Michigan State University College of Law. While in law school, she worked at Legal Services of South Central Michigan (LSSCM) providing legal assistance to the economically disadvantaged. Ms. Rodriguez practiced law in Southern California for several years before returning to Okemos and starting her own practice. Her practice focuses on providing family based legal services, such as estate planning, probate, elder law, bankruptcy, resolving dissolution issues, and advising on small business matters. Ms. Rodriguez continues to be active with LSSCM and is committed to giving back to the community through pro bono work.

Ms. Rodriguez was elected to the board in November 2012 to fill a partial-term position vacated by former Board Member, Ron Styka. She is involved in the Policy Committee, currently serves as Parliamentarian and the representative to the Okemos Education Foundation. Her term of office expires December 31, 2016.

Felix Sharpe was born in Habana, Cuba. He is a graduate of Western Michigan University. He has more than twenty years of experience and practice in the field of public administration to include public policy development and the administration and management of government programs and facility operations.

Felix Sharpe is currently the Director of Substance Abuse Prevention, Treatment and Recovery Services for the State of Michigan. In that capacity he directly oversees the policy, planning and funding ($80 million) of the state’s public substance abuse prevention and treatment programs. In 2005, Felix was appointed by Governor Jennifer Granholm to serve as the Director of Facilities Operation for the Bureau of Juvenile Justice. There, with the facility facing potential closure, Felix negotiated a successful consent agreement with the United States Department of Justice related to the W.J. Maxey Boys Training School. Prior, Felix served as the Director of Legislative Affairs in the administration of Mayor Dennis W. Archer in the City of Detroit. There he was responsible for the coordination of the successful approval and subsequent implementation/development of the Compuware Campus Martius Development, the Detroit Lions/Tigers Stadium Development Projects, and the Casino Development Agreements.

Felix is a past board member of the Todd Martin Development Fund, the Chief Okemos Council Boy Scouts of America, and is a member of the Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity. He enjoys tennis, racquetball and working with young people to achieve their total true capacity.

Felix lives in Okemos with his wife, Lisa Webb Sharpe, who serves as a board member on the Okemos Education Foundation. Their daughter, Alexandra attended Okemos Public Schools, and their two grandchildren are current students in the Okemos School District.

Mr. Sharpe was elected to the board in November 2012 to fill a full-term position. His term of office expires December 31, 2016

Steve Vagnozzi and his wife, Darlene, moved to Okemos in 1985. They have two daughters who graduated from Okemos High School in 2006 and 2009. Their son is a current sophomore, and is following in his sisters’ footsteps as a student of Okemos Public Schools since Kindergarten.

Steve received a Bachelor of General Studies degree from the University of Michigan, and subsequently completed numerous computer science courses at Lansing Community College. He worked in Information Technology for 26 years with the State of Michigan. For 15 of those years, he was the systems manager for occupational & professional licensing computer systems at the state. He is currently self-employed as an IT consultant specializing in occupational & professional licensing systems.

Steve has served the Okemos Public Schools as the Citizens Millage Committee treasurer, a Technology Committee member, a Junior Achievement elementary school instructor, and a computer lab volunteer at Hiawatha Elementary School. He currently serves as Secretary and the representative to the Ingham County School Officers Association. His term of office expires December 31, 2014.