Welcome to the Teachers Retirement Association
TRA is managed by a board of eight trustees. The board consists of five elected trustees and three statutory members representing the Minnesota School Boards Association, the Commissioner of Education and the Commissioner of Minnesota Budget and Management. Four of the five elected trustees are active members of the Association and one is a retiree of the Association. The administrative management of the Association is the responsibility of the Executive Director who is appointed by the Board of Trustees.
The Board of Trustees meets approximately six times per year to oversee the administration of the pension fund. Although the State Board of Investment manages all retirement investments, the trustees are required to become knowledgeable in both pension administration and investments under state law. The trustees annually elect a president and a vice-president.
As fiduciaries, trustees are held to a standard of care called the prudent person rule under which they must exercise their decisions in the same careful manner that they would use in making their own retirement decisions.
Trustees are also obligated to consider the benefit needs of all pension fund participants regardless of any individual constituency that may have been instrumental in their election. As public officials, they are subject to ethical practices outlined in state law.
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Martha Lee (Marti) Zins, President
Elected Trustee (Retiree) 17509 Saddlewood Lane, Minnetonka, MN 55345 952.935.4976 martizins@comcast.net Martha Lee (Marti) Zins, Board President and Elected Trustee (Retiree) of the Minnesota Teachers Retirement Association (TRA) was a media specialist, then media director for the Hopkins School District. Marti was elected to her sixth term on the Board of Trustees in 2009. She is a past president of the Minnesota Education Association (MEA), and represented Minnesota teachers as a director of the National Education Association (NEA). A TRA trustee since 1989, Zins serves the needs of Minnesota teachers with a special emphasis on the expansion of automated services that increase accessibility of information to members and retirees throughout the state. She works to maintain the funding stability of TRA and of defined benefit public pension plans. Term expires: June 30, 2013 |
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Mary L. Broderick, Vice-President Elected Trustee 1003 - 31st Avenue N, St. Cloud, MN 56303 320.493.7396 maryb@cloudnet.com Mary Broderick, a teacher in St. Cloud since 1977, and president of the St. Cloud Education Association since 1996, was elected to her first four-year term as a member of the Board of Trustees in 2007. Mary also serves as president of the East Central Area Labor Council, sits on the Executive Board of the Minnesota AFL-CIO, and is a member of the Education Minnesota Council of Local Presidents. Mary is committed to helping retirees and active members increase their awareness, understanding, and involvement in pension issues, as well as working to maintain and improve teacher retirement benefits in Minnesota. Term expires: June 30, 2015 |
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Leighton M. Fritz Leighton Fritz, an accounting teacher at Southeast Technical College in Winona, was elected to his first four-year term as a member of the Board of Trustees in 2011. Leighton has owned an accounting business since 2001, and has 30+ years of accounting experience in public, private and tax accounting. Leighton is committed to using his professional experience to try and maximize the assets of TRA for current and future retirees. |
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Robert J. Gardner Term expires: June 30, 2013 |
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Mary B. Supple Term expires: June 30, 2013 |
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Bob Lowe, Assistant Deputy Director - Management Services MN School Boards Association Representative (MSBA) Visit the Minnesota School Boards Association web site. |
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James Schowalter, Commissioner
Minnesota Management & Budget |
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Brenda Cassellius, Commissioner Department of Education
Visit the Department of Education web site. |
Public Participation at Board Meetings
Members of the public wishing to address the board shall arrange to do so by giving notice (preferably in writing) to either the board president or executive director in advance of the meeting. The board provides members of the public with opportunities to address the board at the conclusion of the agenda. Members of the public should limit their comments to three (3) minutes and confine comments to matters under the board’s jurisdiction and authority. Stakeholder groups who wish to speak to the board shall designate a spokesperson.
| Meeting | ||
| Wednesday, April 18, 2012 | ||
| Wednesday, May 16, 2012 | ||
| Wednesday, June 20, 2012 |
Minutes are posted once they are approved at the following Board of Trustees meeting.
