Faith Network East Bay President Randy Roth Retires in June

Press Release (ePRNews.com) - OAKLAND, Calif. - Jan 31, 2017 - After 16 years under the continuous leadership of its founder, Faith Network of the East Bay, which provides tutors and other learning resources to underfunded Oakland public schools, is searching for a new president.

Faith Network’s Randy Roth, the visionary leader who grew the organization from a handful of volunteers to over 300 volunteers, 20 congregations and 38 diverse community partners, has announced his retirement effective June 30, 2017. Providing ample time for Faith Network to conduct an extensive executive search, Roth has paved the way for a seamless leadership transition.

Roth, a 2016 recipient of the prestigious Jefferson Award, made the decision to retire after a distinguished career of continuous service to the City of Oakland for over 30 years. He served for 13 years as Senior Pastor of First Covenant Church in Oakland. In July 2001, he left the pastorate and founded Faith Network of the East Bay as a way of mobilizing community support for urban schools.

Jonathan Mayes, a member of the board of directors, will lead the executive search team. An announcement will be made about Roth’s replacement prior to his June departure.

“We are indebted to Randy, whose remarkable leadership and vision guided Faith Network since its beginning,” said Mayes. “We are also grateful that he has provided a sufficient window of time for an orderly leadership transition. Our mission is to find a new executive director who shares our goals and principles, while continuing the work of closing the achievement gap in our urban public schools.”

Roth started Faith Network as a way to align a network of churches and communities of faith with at-need urban public schools. The agency now offers an array of services to 36 under-resourced public schools in Oakland, Alameda, Berkeley, Hayward and San Pablo. Services include reading and math intervention tutoring, library support, science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) labs, and career workshops and internships. Roth also developed a staff of education professionals who provide training and supervision to schools and volunteers to more effectively meet the needs of the schools.

“Through Randy’s leadership, Faith Network has played a meaningful role toward closing the opportunity gap in Oakland public schools,” said Jody London, Oakland Unified School District Board of Education Director, District 1. “We look forward to our continued partnership as Faith Network transitions and continues to serve the children in our community.”

About Faith Network of the East Bay

Faith Network of the East Bay is an Oakland-based 501C(3) non-profit organization founded in 2001. The agency focus is to build healthy families, schools and neighborhoods by rallying community support for under-resourced urban public schools. Today, Faith Network offers an array of services to under-resourced public schools in 4 main program areas – Career Bridge, Health4Kids, Science Horizons, and Succeeding By Reading. More information can be found at www.Faith-Network.com.

About Jefferson Awards

The Jefferson Awards Foundation is a non-profit organization that “recognizes, inspires and activates volunteerism and public service in communities, workplaces and schools across America.” The Institute was founded in 1972 by Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, U.S. Senator Robert Taft, Jr. and Sam Beard.