Phyllis Gutierrez Kenney

Community Member - at large | Retired. Former Representative, WA State House of Representatives, 46th District

Phyllis Gutierrez Kenney was born to migrant farm workers and grew up in the Yakima Valley, where she began her career as a community activist. Ms. Gutierrez Kenney was appointed to the Washington State Legislature where she served for 16 years in the House of Representatives. She chaired and served on multiple committees that addressed issues of housing, education and healthcare access. This led to her appointment by the governor to serve on the Governor’s Aerospace Council and the Western Interstate Commission on Higher Education.

Ms. Gutierrez Kenney is a former small business owner and has served on local, state, and national boards and commissions regarding education, economic development, and national and global health. She has always championed higher education efforts by supporting programs and funding streams that provided educational opportunities for minority students. In 2005, Ms. Gutierrez Kenney sponsored a bill that allows branch campuses to offer four-year degrees and another that offers undocumented students in-state tuition for their education. She was instrumental in getting the REAL Hope Act (aka Dream Act), paving the way for Opportunity Grants that provide training for low income students in high demand fields, and the I-BEST Program that helps ESL students learn a trade while learning English, which was nationally highlighted as a model program by President Obama.