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Eliminating sex discrimination through research, education and legal activities
Panera Bread
4519 North High Street
Columbus, OH 43214
Sandy Theis serves as Executive Director of ProgressOhio, a post she assumed in March 2015.
In her short tenure, she is most proud of exposing a series of charter school scandals that led to passage of a charter school reforms; helping pass legislative redistricting reform; and managing to sneak and unfurl a banner into the Ohio House of Representatives on the day the chamber voted to defund Planned Parenthood.
The banner said: Protect the Living Fund Planned Parenthood (House rules don’t allow signs; Sandy thought a little civil disobedience was in order.)
Prior to taking over the state’s largest progressive advocacy organization, Sandy managed a public relations firm for 6 years. She spent the 25 previous years as a journalist covering Ohio government and politics. She is a past Statehouse Bureau Chief for The Plain Dealer of Cleveland and Cincinnati Enquirer and a statehouse reporter for the Dayton Daily News and now-defunct Columbus Citizen-Journal.
Sandy has served as an adviser to former Gov. Ted Strickland, and to former Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner and worked for coalitions promoting the passage or defeat of statewide ballot issues. In 2014, she joined the board of NARAL Pro-Choice Ohio where she helps with media and legislative strategy.
Under her leadership, ProgressOhio is maintaining its commitment to promoting policies that give all Ohioans an opportunity to succeed.
Sandy is a native of Warren, Ohio, and a graduate of The Ohio State University. She lives in Columbus with Truman the Wonder Dog.
ProgressOhio is the state’s leading progressive organization, composed of two non-profits: ProgressOhio.org, a 501 (c) (4) organization formed in 2006 to promote progressive causes, and ProgressOhio Education, a 501 (c) (3) organization.
Affiliated with ProgressNow as an earned media hub and USAction as a field and coalition leading organization, ProgressOhio has fought privatization and public access issues; serves as a leader on Ohio issue coalitions on voter suppression, redistricting reform, revenue enhancement, women’s rights issues, payday lending reform, and health care issues.
In addition to communicating directly with our 300,000+ members, we serve as coalition partner to hundreds of mission aligned groups operating out of the State of Ohio. Our mission is to promote progressive solutions, correct rightwing misinformation, and hold public leaders accountable, helping to make an Ohio that works for everyone.