Our Board

Tiffani McCoy is the Advocacy Director at Real Change and Campaign Co-Chair of House Our Neighbors. She was the campaign manager for Seattle's I-135, the first citizen’s initiative to create a Social Housing Developer in the United States.

Dr. Ruth Fruland received her PhD in education (University of Washington, 2006). She became an advocate for public banking in Washington State after a career as a NASA geologist (1970-1984, Johnson Space Center) and environmental geologist for Battelle Northwest at the Hanford Site in Eastern Washington (1985-1997). Previously, she taught at Seattle area colleges, including Bellevue College until 2013.

Ben Steele holds an MPA specialized in public financial management from the University of Washington. He has years of experience in community healthcare, centering on HIV services. Ben's work is focused on ensuring dignified and guaranteed public services.

Naishin Fu is a former public health and health technology professional who left the private sector in 2021 to focus on policy and advocacy. In addition to public banking, she is involved with advocacy and organizing various housing, land use, and progressive revenue efforts.

Martin Talarico graduated from the University of Montana with a degree in Business Administration with emphasis in Management and Finance. He has worked with several investment firms for over 25 years in the Seattle investment community and volunteered with local nonpartisan grassroots organizations, including the Public Banking Institute, Seattle Indivisible, and a Pacific NW Advisor for the Coalition for the National Infrastructure Bank.

John Burbank received a master’s degree in public administration from the University of Washington. He is currently a clinical instructor at University of Washington School of Public Health,a former political director of the Washington State Labor Council, and former executive director and founder of Economic Opportunity Institute, an organization responsible for groundbreaking progressive legislation throughout Washington state.

Frank Thomas is currently senior staff to the Washington State Supreme Court's Minority and Justice Commission. Frank has a B.A. in finance and marketing from the University of Washington, and a JD from the University of California, Irvine School of Law. Frank became passionate about public banking while studying banking regulations during law school under CA State Senator David Min.

Micah Sherman is the co-owner and operator of Raven, a cannabis farm, and has been an advocate for cannabis reform in Washington state. Prior to moving to Washington in 2013 to found Raven, he worked in design and development in residential construction based in New York City. His interest in public banking lies in creating tools for local communities to address the housing affordability and infrastructure investment crises. 

Marco Rosaire Rossi received his PhD in political science from the University of Illinois-Chicago, and currently teaches at Cascadia Community College and Olympic Community College. Throughout his years of public service, he has served on the board of several nonprofits and been active in the labor movement.