Who We Are

The Ohio Workforce Association supports and represents local workforce development boards across Ohio. The Workforce Development Board (WBD) system with its eighty-eight OhioMeansJobs Centers is the state’s premiere asset for developing a skilled, modern workforce that meets Ohio’s immediate business needs. The WDB system is governed locally, specifically designed that way to make sure that there is an independent broker that will deliver workforce services wanted and needed by local employers and employees.

What We Do

Ohio’s public workforce system is helping Ohio move forward by bringing our local connections to 245 Ohio businesses. These 245 local businesses are represented across Ohio's 20 local Workforce Development Boards, with 28 Business Organizations and more than 40 labor representatives also serving on local workforce boards.

The following are the largest business sectors that are represented on our Boards:

  • Manufacturing (62)
  • Business Services (31)
  • Financial Services (30)
  • Healthcare (29)
  • Construction and Skilled Trade Companies (25)

Lisa Patt-McDaniel

Chief Executive Officer (CEO)
ASPYR (Workforce Development Board of Central Ohio)
President, Ohio Workforce Association


Becky Ehling

Executive Director
BCW/Workforce
Legislative Committee Chair, OWA

Crystal Keaton - Vice President

Crystal Keaton

Director
Area 1 Workforce Development Board
Vice President, OWA

Christine Marshall - Executive Director

Christine Marshall

Executive Director
SAMWACOG & Workforce Area 2 Board
Treasurer, OWA

Rick Szabrak - Secretary

Rick Szabrak

Director
Economic and Workforce Development, Fairfield County, Area 20 Workforce Development Board
Secretary, OWA

Craig Sernik

Executive Director
Northeast Ohio Consortium Council of Governments - Area 19 Workforce Development Board
Policy Committee Chair, OWA 

Jennifer Meek Eells - Secretary

Jennifer Meek Eells

Executive Director, OWA