BTA deputy director will leave organization at the end of this week

Stephanie Noll plans to leave the staff of the Bicycle Transportation Alliance this Friday.

Noll is the organization’s No. 2 employee and has been on the staff since 2007, longer than all but one other employee. She began her tenure as part of what was then a fairly new Safe Routes to School team and is currently serving as the BTA’s deputy director.

Noll’s departure comes a few weeks before the BTA announces a new name at its Aug. 10 members meeting that will mark a new, broader focus on walking and mass transit as well as bike transportation.

“Steph has had an amazing impact on the BTA,” Executive Director Rob Sadowsky said in an interview today. “She has expanded our support base with foundations, allowing us to expand our staff. She launched our Women Bike program, took the Bike More Challenge and Vision Zero to new levels and helped launch Families for Safe Streets.” Sadowsky added that the BTA will evaluate all staffing needs after their strategic planning reboot and big fundraising event in the fall.

Here’s the email Noll sent out to friends and colleagues this morning:

Dear Friends,

At the end of this week, I’m leaving the staff of the BTA.

It has truly been a joy to work alongside the passionate, hard-working staff (past and present!) of this organization.

I also am grateful to have gotten the chance to work with and learn from all of you. Thank you so much for your dedication to a better future for our communities and for your leadership, partnership, advocacy, volunteerism, support, and mentorship.

I am excited about what’s ahead for the BTA, and about being a part of that work from a different vantage point, as an engaged member and volunteer.

In the near term, I’m particularly excited to see the BTA and other partners build on the recent success of the For Every Kid Coalition by launching a campaign for Safe Routes to School For Every Kid statewide: work that is near and dear to my heart. You can provide crucial support for the great team at the BTA to keep doing that work by donating at https://btaoregon.org/saferoutestoschool

I hope to see many of you at the BTA Member meeting August 10th. I’ll be there to raise a glass to the future and to the awesome staff, volunteers, partners, and supporters boldly reimagining our streets to better serve the people that use them.

In gratitude!
Steph

Reached today via email Noll said she plans to continue working in the community as a volunteer for the grassroots group Oregon/SW Washington Families for Safe Streets and other related causes. She didn’t outline any future career plans but did say her immediate plan is, “To spend some quality time with my kids in the month before they start kindergarten.” Noll had already been working four days a week since her twin boys were born.

— Jonathan Maus, (503) 706-8804 – jonathan@bikeportland.org

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