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Contact Di Saunders, Cell: 971-219-6869; Office: 503-725-5714

PORTLAND, October 8, 2009 – Governor Kulongoski’s appointment of Allyn C. Ford, president and CEO of Roseburg Forest Products, to serve on the Oregon State Board of Higher Education (the “Board”) was confirmed last week by the Oregon State Senate. Ford’s term on the Board began on October 1 and will continue through June 30, 2013, at which time he will be eligible for re-appointment. He is replacing Board member John von Schlegell of Portland, who served on the Board from 2004 to 2009.

Paul Kelly, president of the Board, said, “Allyn’s commitment to education access and his lifetime support of Oregon and Oregonians in getting into and through college will make him a wonderful addition to the Board of Higher Education. His knowledge of work force needs, the challenges and strengths of rural Oregon, and the connection between quality higher education and a strong, competitive economy will make him a valuable resource to the Board, to students across the state, and to meeting the postsecondary needs of Oregonians.”

A native Oregonian and resident of Roseburg, Allyn Ford is president, treasurer and secretary of RLC Industries Co., and president and CEO of Roseburg Forest Products (a subsidiary of RLC), which is one of the largest private lumber companies in the United States and a major supplier of engineered wood products. Ford is also secretary and treasurer of the Ford Family Foundation, a nonprofit started in 1957, and which now manages large, internal initiatives and makes grants to public charities predominantly benefiting communities in rural Oregon and Siskiyou County, California.

Ford currently serves on the board or as a member of several organizations, including: chair and director of Umpqua Bank; director of the World Forestry Center; director of Doernbecker Children’s Hospital Foundation; and Douglas Co. coordinator for the Fundraising Campaign of the Oregon Trail Council of the Boy Scouts of America. Past work on boards and organizations by Ford included: member of the Bureau of Land Management Advisory Board, the Oregon State Board of Forestry, Umpqua Community College Foundation, Douglas Community Hospital Board, and chair of the National Forestry Association, among other positions.

Ford earned a B.S. in Industrial Administration from Yale University, and an MBA from Stanford University. He lives in Roseburg with his wife Cheryl Ramberg Ford, and has three grown children.

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