Essentials of Financial Management & Administration 2022-2023

Anne Arnold is Treasurer/CFO at Gibsonburg Exempted Village Schools in Sandusky County.   She oversees the financial operations of the district with a general fund budget of almost $11 million dollars.

Before coming to Gibsonburg, Anne was the Treasurer/CFO at Edison Local School District in Milan and prior to that at Benton-Carroll-Salem in Oak Harbor. 

Anne graduated from Bowling Green State University with a Bachelor of Science in Broadcast Journalism.  After a career in retail management, she decided to pursue public education and became the Accounts Payable Coordinator at Fremont City Schools.  While there, she obtained her School Treasurer’s License in May 2003. 

Anne has been involved with OASBO for many years and has served on a number of committees, served as an officer for the Northwest Chapter and been a presenter at several professional development meetings.  She was also named Outstanding Treasurer/CFO of the Year for 2017. 

Anne lives in Lindsey, Ohio with her husband and son.  In her spare time, she enjoys day trips with her family and friends and spending lots of time at the lake.

Matt Feasel has been facing the issues of school finance for over thirty-six (36) years now.  Currently he is serving as CFO/Treasurer of the Pike Delta York Local School District in Northwest Ohio.  Prior to that, Matt’s professional path has taken him through the Perrysburg Exempted Village, Hilliard City, Fremont City and Elmwood Local Schools.

Matt has served as the OASBO President during the 1997-98 year.  He remains an active member of OASBO serving on several committees.   He’s a past board of education member serving eight (8) years as a member of the Elmwood Board of Education in Wood County.  He enjoys working with K-12 Business Consulting and school business professionals across the state, providing forecasting and treasurer search services.   Mentoring new treasurers and providing needed and necessary professional development have been a high priority for him his entire career.  He enjoys playing golf, traveling and spending time with his family and seven (7) grandchildren.   

Brad Bennett is an employment and labor attorney who works with public sector employers, including school districts, townships, municipalities, county agencies and boards of developmental disabilities. Experienced in state and federal employment and labor compliance, he counsels and represents public clients in all aspects of labor law, including negotiation and administration of collective bargaining agreements, grievances, mediations and arbitrations. Additionally, he comprehensively represents employers in employment litigation in both federal and state courts and defends employers before various administrative agencies, including the EEOC,OCRC, SERB and the SPBR. Brad also drafts, revises and reviews employee handbooks, policies and job descriptions, as well as conducts internal investigations and in-house training.

Katie Johnson is the Executive Director of the Ohio Association of School Business Officials. Katie is the seventh Executive Director and the first woman to lead the organization since its inception in 1936.

Katie was the Deputy Executive Director for OASBO prior to being named Executive Director. In that role, she served as legislative lead and in-house legal counsel for the association, keeping staff and members abreast of legal and regulatory compliance issues in school business. In addition, she has served as the chief learning officer, developing curriculum to support OASBO’s strategic plan and the Ohio school business profession.

Katie also serves on boards and committees focused on public finance, including serving as a member on the Finance and Appropriations Committee for Columbus City School District, as Treasurer of the Confluence Community Authority, and as past President of the Ohio Chapter of Women in Public Finance.

Katie holds a bachelor's degree in Business Finance from the University of Colorado, a master’s degree in Education from The Ohio State University, and a law degree from The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law.

Ryan Pendleton is the Executive Director of the North Coast Shared Services Alliance where he coordinates financial and operations support for northeast Ohio school districts through the Educational Service Centers of Northeast Ohio, Medina, and Lorain Counties.

Ryan is very active in state and federal issues concerning education and the potential impact on the students of Ohio. He is a member of the Fair School Funding Work Group, co-chairing both the Base Cost and Analysis and Support Groups.  As an inaugural member of the Work Group, Ryan made significant contributions to creating and advocating for Ohio’s new state funding formula.  His efforts contributed to the Fair School Funding Formula being included in the 2022-2023 Biennium Budget.

Ryan is a Leadership Akron Class 32 graduate and dedicated to serving the community, in particular the students across Ohio. Prior to working at North Coast Shared Service Alliance, Ryan was the CFO/Treasurer of Akron Public and Barberton City Schools and worked previously as a financial advisor.  

Ryan earned a BA in Business Administration from Malone College and an MBA from Cleveland State University.  

Jenny started at Columbus City Schools in December 2014.  Jenny has over 20 years of experience in school finance.  Prior to her time at Columbus City Schools, she served as the Treasurer/CFO of Licking Heights Local School District and as an assistant to the treasurer at Southwest Licking Local Schools.  Jenny holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Mathematics, with a minor in Business Administration from Ohio University.  She holds a Master’s in Business Administration from Capital University.  In February 2022, Jenny completed her black belt training in Lean Six Sigma.

Matt Stout is a partner in Bricker Graydon's Public Finance group and practices in the areas of public finance and public law, emphasizing school and local government law. He assists and advises with the documentation and issuance of general obligation and revenue bond transactions for municipalities, school districts, and other political subdivisions; assists and advises municipalities, school districts, and other political subdivisions with tax-exempt lease purchase financings; and provides general counsel assistance to political subdivisions.

Becky started her career as the assistant treasurer for her Alma Mater, Martins Ferry City Schools. After 12 years, she accepted the treasurer/CFO position for the Wellsville Local School District. Her love of the Central Ohio area found her accepting the assistant treasurer position at the fastest growing school district in the state of Ohio - Olentangy Local Schools. After a year and a half she was promoted to the Treasurer/CFO role. The district grew over twice its size to over 16,000 students under her financial leadership. After nine years with Olentangy Schools, she was recruited by the New Albany-Plain Local Schools and has been with this district for ten+ years. Becky has had the fortune of leading districts considered both wealthy and poor which gives her a unique perspective on the various challenges diverse districts face.

During these career transitions, Becky also helped lead OASBO. She held the offices of Board Southeast Region Director, Vice-President, President Elect, President and Immediate Past President. Through the years she has served on numerous committees and continues to serve on the Legislative Committee as well as many focus committees. Becky is also asked to speak on a variety of topics not only for OASBO seminars but other state organizations as well. 

Cynthia Ritter is a School Business Consultant with K-12 Business Consulting, Inc. and Grant Consultant to Envision Ed Plus. Cynthia has served as a consultant to Ohio Department of Education with the Academic Distress Commissions and Education Reform. She has over 32 years of successful leadership and management experience as treasurer/CFO for several school districts.

She has been a member of the Education Standards Board Ohio Department of Education, OASBO Board President, served on the Auditor of State Regional Advisory Committee, Board member and treasurer of the Pickaway County Employees Benefit Program, speaker and presenter at numerous OSBA, BASA, OASBO and ASBO seminars.

She has received many awards and recognitions including the Rich Unger Professionalism Award, Distinguished Service Award and was a Herb Brum Scholarship recipient.

Dawn is the Treasurer/CFO for Van Buren Local School District.

Jacobs had been Treasurer/CFO for Huron City Schools since August 2014 before joining Van Buren Local in November.

Jacobs began her career in educational finance as assistant treasurer for Anthony Wayne Local Schools in 1993 and has worked in finance for a variety of Ohio school districts since, including the Lucas County Educational Service Center, Bucyrus City School District and Otsego Local School District.

Jacobs earned a bachelor of science degree in business administration and a master’s of business administration from Heidelberg University. She also holds an Ohio School treasurer’s license from the Ohio Department of Education and a School Finance and Operations Certification through the Association of School Business Officials International.

With many years of experience in the investment industry, Joe has had exposure to both equity and fixed income markets. Much of this time has been spent working with fixed income products and portfolios. He brings a focused and detailed approach to portfolio management.

Much of his day-to-day involves working closely with current clients and fostering new relationships. His experience in portfolio management combined with the knowledge of relevant sections of Ohio Revised Code gives him the ability to serve RedTree’s clients to the fullest.

Originally from Tampa, FL where he spent most of his childhood, Joe now resides in Northern Kentucky with his wife, Rachel, their daughter, Rosie, and two dogs, Overton and Sable. He enjoys spending time with friends and family, hiking, golfing, and when time allows, traveling the world.