What Marilyn Believes

Marilyn believes that doing good can and should also mean doing well. She has brought this philosophy with her as Commission President in 2008, 2011, 2014, and 2015.

Marilyn has worked closely with the County’s Department of Economic Development, County and Township planning boards, and business organizations such as chambers of commerce, the Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission (MORPC), and others to attract new jobs and retain existing jobs here in Franklin County. She is a former Board Chair at MORPC, and serves on the Boards of Columbus 2020 and the US Global Leadership Coalition.

Marilyn is taking an active leadership role in the planning of the County’s new Public Safety Center, and her work as chair of the Franklin County Reentry Coalition and the Chemical Emergency Preparedness Advisory Council (CEPAC) underscores her focus on community safety and security. Marilyn’s stewardship of the construction of Huntington Park, the Common Pleas Courthouse, and the Franklin County Dog Shelter, and the renovation of the Judicial Services Building, have led to national recognition of these projects for job creation, quality contracting and construction standards, and award-winning design, construction, sustainability, accessibility, and fiscal stewardship.

She recognizes the importance of community enrichment – especially the arts. Marilyn was re-elected to a second term on the board of the Columbus Association for the Performing Arts (CAPA) in 2013. She was named as one of the 25 Most Influential by Shadowbox Live in 2014.

On issues of human rights and equality, Marilyn carries her family’s long tradition of Tikkun Olam, or Repairing The World, with her as she works on behalf of women’s rights, diversity and inclusion for all people, and open and accessible access to education, housing, and government. She is a vocal advocate for social justice and progressive issues, serving on the Board of Directors of the Center for Family Safety & Healing and the advisory board of CHOICES for Victims of Domestic Violence, and is a leader against family violence in all its forms. Additionally, Marilyn is active as a leader in the movements for GLBT and marriage equality, for women’s reproductive and educational freedoms, for the reintegration into society’s fabric for ex-offenders, for protection of workers’ safety and right to organize, for an ongoing commitment to the care, safety, and education of our County’s most vulnerable