Dr. Jenny Lind Withycombe, Assistant Director for Health and Physical Education in Portland Public Schools (PPS), has over 25 years of experience within the field of health, physical education, and PK-12 instruction.

Dr. Withycombe is responsible for ensuring quality, inclusive, Health and Physical Education implementation in a safe and supportive environment for all 50,000 PPS students PK-12. She has brought over $5.5 million in grants between 2017-2021 to support health and physical education in PPS.

Grants:
• Kaiser Thriving Schools Integrated Assessment    2021-2024
• Centers for Disease Control, Mental Health – COVID Response Grant    2021-2023
• Adolescent’s and Communities Together 2.0 (ACT)    2020-2023
• Campbell’s Soup Grant (Healthy Active Schools)    2020-2021
• ISC – Professional Development Task Force    2020-2021
• Centers for Disease Control, Mental Health – COVID Response Grant    2020-2021
• Oregon Health Authority, HEALTH for K-5 Grant    2019-2021
• Centers for Disease Control, SAY Wellness Sexual Health Grant    2018-2024
• Advocates for Youth and the CDC Sex Education Grant    2017-2021
• Presidential Youth Fitness Program Grant    2017-2018
• Erg Ed Grant, George Pocock Rowing Foundation    2016-2020
• Adolescent’s and Communities Together 1.0 (ACT)    2016-2020

Service:
• USRowing Grievance Panel, 2022-Present
• Health Content Panel Advisory, Oregon Department of Education, 2022-Present
• PE Content Panel Advisory, Oregon Department of Education, 2022-Present
• SHAPE America Conference Reviewer, 2021-Present
• SHAPE America Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee, 2020-Present
• USRowing Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee, 2020-Present
• School Health Advisory Council Planning Team, 2019-Present
• Urban Wellness Coalition, Action for Healthy Kids, 2016-Present
• Adolescents and Communities Together, Educational Subgroup, 2016-Present
• Family Violence Coordinating Council, Prevention Subgroup, 2016-Present
• Wellness Advisory Council, Coordinator, 2016-Present
• Health and PE Curriculum Analysis Group, Oregon Department of Education, 2017
• Health Curriculum Evaluation Development, Oregon Department of Education, 2016
• Health Content Panel Advisory, Oregon Department of Education, 2016-2019
• PE Content Panel Advisory, Oregon Department of Education, 2016-2019
• Erg Ed District Coordinator, George Pocock Rowing Foundation, 2016-2019
• Editorial Board, Women’s Sport and Physical Activity Journal, 2012-Present

Dr. Withycombe is a competitive Master’s Rower and Women’s Team Captain for Willamette Rowing Club. She has over 100 medals earned throughout her 20+ years of rowing. Her most special gold came from stroking the 2013 Head of the Charles Mixed Quad. Dr. Withycombe lives in Portland, OR with her husband, two daughters, boxers, cat, and bearded dragons.

Susannah Lightbourne-Maynard previously served as a K-8 TOSA-IC. She is currently serving as the Program Manager for a number of Health-related grants, and continuing her work supporting K-12 Health & PE teachers across the district. She began teaching over 15 years ago as a 4th and 5th grade teacher with Baltimore City Public Schools. She joined the PPS Health and Physical Education team in 2019.

Susannah's background includes several years teaching and writing curriculum with Expeditionary Learning (EL Education), as well as working as a content editor with Great Minds. Susannah began working in Elementary Health Education when she became the Elementary Health Specialist Program Manager for the North Clackamas School District in 2017.

Susannah enjoys playing music and adventuring outdoors with her family!

Vanessa Peña-La Torre, MPH, CHES® (she/they) is a Program Manager at Portland Public Schools, overseeing 5^th-12^th grade sexuality education programming, training, evaluation, and parent engagement under the Adolescents and Communities Together (ACT) grant.

Vanessa is a bilingual, first-generation Peruvian-American with a diverse multicultural background, and a lifelong interest in cross-cultural communication, cultural-responsiveness, and equity and inclusion. Combining her interest with her family traditions and practices around health promotion, Vanessa found her way to the field of public health.

With over 20 years’ experience as a sexuality educator, Vanessa centers her work in providing education that is inclusive of diverse cultural experiences, including the diversity within and intersectionality across cultural groups. This includes ensuring that learners receive LGBTQ+ inclusive, culturally responsive, and trauma-informed (or healing-centered) educational instruction that is developmentally and age-appropriate. Her experience ranges from providing workshops and training to youth, families and educators in diverse multicultural communities, such as LGBTQ+ and Latina(e/o) communities, to participating on state and national health advisory panels.

Vanessa holds a Master of Public Health from Portland State University, and is a Certified Health Education Specialist (CHES®) through the National Commission for Health Education Credentialing. In 2019, she was recognized as a Queer Hero by GLAPN (Gay and Lesbian Archives of the Pacific Northwest). When not working, Vanessa enjoys spending time being a happy wanderer and exploring the beauty of the PNW. 

Anna Bledsoe (she/they) is the SAY Wellness Grant Program Supervisor, committed to creating safe, affirming spaces for young people, ensuring they have access to inclusive resources and support systems within Portland Public Schools. With a background in public health, she is passionate about fighting stigma, overcoming barriers associated with health and social issues, and centering young people in initiatives that impact them and their peers. Anna believes that prevention is the first step in reducing the impact that behavioral and social challenges have on communities and enjoys collaborating with others to promote positive health outcomes for youth. As a parent to three young kids, Anna has honed the art of adapting to unpredictable situations, negotiating with highly emotional tiny humans, and staying resilient – powered by leftover snacks and a soundtrack of potty training songs. These same skills fuel her passion for creating safe, supportive environments for young people, ensuring they feel heard, valued, and empowered—whether at home or in the communities she serves.

Rachel Toback (she/her) works in the HAPE department overseeing the Mental Health Supplement for the Schools Advancing Youth (SAY) Wellness Grant Program funded by the CDC. This work focuses on all grades with the goals of increasing student and family access to mental health services,  increasing staff capacity, comfort and knowledge regarding mental health topics such as suicide prevention and cultivating safer and supportive environments for all students at PPS.  Rachel holds a Masters degree in Teaching which she has used for the past four years at PPS as a High School Health and PE teacher (Go Riders!). When she is not reading the ODE Health Standards (again) you can find her baking cakes for her friends, taking a long walk through Forest Park,  riding her bike to the river or gym or reading a memoir while snuggling with her grumpy cat.

Elena Beeck (they/them) is the Business Operations Specialist for the Health and Physical Education department. They are a graduate of the University of Portland’s School of Social Work, and have been working for Portland Public Schools since the 2020-21 school year. They supported the initial launch of Summer Acceleration Academy, and then transferred to the HAPE team at the beginning of the 2022-23 school year. Elena lives downtown with their wife and two cats; most weekends they can be found playing DND or hiking in Forest Park.