December 10, 2007

SACRAMENTO, CA – Current California public school educators elected three members to the governing body of the California State Teachers' Retirement System. In election results announced today, the two Teachers' Retirement Board members elected by the kindergarten through twelfth grade educators are:

• Dana Dillon, a teacher/librarian with the Weed Union Elementary School District, is the current Teachers' Retirement Board chair following her election to the board in 2003. Dillon has spent 22 years as a member, vice-chair and chair of the California Teachers Association's Retirement Committee.
• Harry M. Keiley, a high school teacher with the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District, has served as the president of Santa Monica-Malibu Classroom Teachers Association and chairman of the California Teachers Association Political Involvement Committee.

The third elected seat, representing community college faculty, has been filled by Carolyn Widener, an English professor at West Los Angeles College. She was the only candidate who qualified for the community college seat. Widener, a current member of the board and past chair, is currently serving as the chair of the Benefits and Services Committee.

Dillon, Keiley and Widener will serve four-year terms, which begin January 1, 2008.

Legislation in 2003 established the election for these three seats to the 12-member Teachers' Retirement Board, which sets policy and makes rules for CalSTRS. The board also includes members named by the Governor and confirmed by the Senate representing the public, school boards and retired CalSTRS members as well as four ex-officio board members: Director of Finance, State Controller, State Superintendent of Public Instruction and State Treasurer.

With a $180 billion investment portfolio, the California State Teachers' Retirement System is the second-largest public pension fund in the United States. It administers retirement, disability and survivor benefits for California's 813,000 public school educators and their families from the state's 1,400 school districts, county offices of education and community college districts.