SNOHOMISH COUNTY, Wash., July 12, 2022 –The Board of Health of the Snohomish Health District unanimously elected Lynnwood Councilwoman Dr. Julieta Altamirano-Crosby as its Chair today. Members not attending today’s meeting were Lake Stevens City Council Member Anji Jorstad, Sultan City Council Member Joe Neigel, and County Councilman Nate Nehring.

Chair Dr. Altamirano-Crosby was proceeded by Snohomish County Councilwoman Stephanie Wright, who announced her resignation from the Board in an email last week.

Dr. Altamirano-Crosby in her second year serving on the Lynnwood City Council, was appointed to the Board of Health in February of this year. She has been a tremendous force helping the most vulnerable among residents in the county by volunteering with the Lynnwood Food Bank, the Refugee & Immigrant Center Northwest, and assisting with statewide COVID efforts. She is a member of the League of Women Voters in Snohomish County, a Stakeholder Member of Re-opening of Washington Schools for 2020-2021 school year, and a Board member of the following organizations: Lynnwood Food Bank, Community Leadership Board of the National Resource Center for Refugees, Immigrants, and Migrants (NRC-RIM), and the Foundation for Edmonds School District.

Dr. Altamirano-Crosby is a trained researcher who earned her Ph.D. in Social Communications, as well as a Certificate in Race, Equity, and Leadership from Harvard University. She also holds a M.E.D. in Educational Leadership from Seattle Pacific University.  She is involved in research projects about Latinos in education in Washington. She has presented her research at the National Catholic Educational Association (NCEA) Convention in San Diego, California, and at the Washington Education Research Association (WERA) Conference in SeaTac in 2016, in addition to the International Conference hosted by the Janusz Korczak Association of USA in 2018. 

Dr. Altamirano Crosby has over a decade of non-profit and community organizing experience. She is the co-founder of the WAGRO Foundation, a non-profit 501(c)(3) whose primary focus is to provide resources to people or groups who belong to marginalized and underserved communities. During the COVID-19 Pandemic, WAGRO has partnered with UW Harborview Medical Center and Snohomish Health District to bring COVID-19 testing to Snohomish County. She has received numerous awards, including the Snohomish County Human Rights Award in 2017, the Distinguished Alumni Award at Everett College Community 2019, and was named the Seattle Pacific University Medallion Award Honoree in 2020. In 2018, Governor Jay Inslee appointed Julieta as a Commissioner to the Washington State Commission on Hispanic Affairs and in 2019, to the Humanities Washington Board of Trustees. She was recognized by SPIRIT 105.3 as an “unsung hero.”

According to the Snohomish Health District’s Board Rules the Chair is responsible for the management, development, and effective performance of the Board of Health, and provides leadership to the Board for all aspects of the Board’s work. Specific responsibilities include:

• Chair all meetings, unless unavailable, and then coordinate with Vice Chair
• Work with Administrative Officer to set agenda for meetings
• Conduct the meetings in an orderly, fair, open and efficient manner
• Guide and mediate Board actions and integrity of deliberations
• Facilitate discussion and decision-making
• Call special meetings if necessary
• Ensure committee reports are made to the full Board
• The Chair of the Board may appoint other committees of the Board from time to time as deemed necessary
• Counsel and consult with the Health Officer
• Speak for the Board as delegated by the Board
• Represent the Board to other groups
• Participate in new Board member orientation
• Consult with Board members who are not fulfilling their responsibilities or who are violating law, policy, or practice or who are unable to regularly attend Board meetings
• Initiate annual evaluation of the Health Officer
• Oversee searches for a new Health Officer and/or Administrative Officer
• Initiate annual evaluation of the Administrative Officer

The Chair of the Board must exhibit leadership ability and provide direction to the Health Officer and Health District staff. When selecting a Chair, the Board should identify someone who is actively engaged and concerned with the issues of the Health District. The Chair may be called on to go to county and city governing bodies to support Health District concerns and issues. The person selected for this leadership position should be someone who has the time, energy, and savvy to work throughout the county to represent the concerns of the Board and the Health District. Given the responsibilities of the Vice Chair to perform the responsibilities of the Chair in his/her absence and otherwise support the Chair, the Board should consider similar qualities in selecting a Vice Chair.

In selecting members for the Chair and Vice Chair positions, the Board will consider the mix of representation from member jurisdictions in its leadership positions and will consider rotating the positions among the member jurisdictions.  While not required, the Chair is encouraged to serve two consecutive terms and the Vice Chair is encouraged to seek the Chair position.