|
Ann Womer Benjamin was elected to an at-large seat on Aurora City Council in November, 2011. A 27-year Aurora resident, she served as State Representative in the Ohio House of Representatives for Aurora and most of Portage County from 1995-2002. While in the Ohio House, Ms. Womer Benjamin saw twenty of her bills become law, was a member of the House Finance and Appropriations Committee for eight years, and chaired the Criminal Justice Committee for more than four years. Following her service in the Ohio House, Ms. Womer Benjamin served four years in the Governor’s Cabinet as Director of the Ohio Department of Insurance, a state agency with a $30 million annual budget and staff of 265. While there, she stabilized Ohio’s medical malpractice market, for which she received Ohio University’s Phillips Medal of Public Service in 2004, and led implementation of Medicare Part D in Ohio, receiving a commendation from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in 2006. She continued her public service as a member of the State Board of Education from 2007-2010, where she served as Vice President.
As the Executive Director of the Northeast Ohio Council on Higher Education (NOCHE) since 2007, Ms. Womer Benjamin is leading the organization in its mission to bring higher education and business together to advance economic development in the region. NOCHE represents the region’s two- and four-year public and private universities and colleges whose presidents, together with regional business leaders, serve on NOCHE’s board. Active in the Aurora community, Ms. Womer Benjamin is completing a two-year term as Moderator of The Church in Aurora and is a trustee of the Aurora Community Theatre.
Ms. Womer Benjamin received her Bachelor of Arts degree magna cum laude from Vanderbilt University, where she was elected to Phi Beta Kappa, and received her Juris Doctor from Case Western Reserve University School of Law, practicing law for more than twenty years with law firms in Canton and Cleveland. She and her husband, David Benjamin, have two daughters, Katherine and Johanna.
|