About the Board

Jason Rae, Milwaukee, President
Nancy Nusbaum, De Pere, Vice-President
Glenn Carlson, La Pointe, Treasurer
Laurie Guilbault, Wauwatosa, Secretary
Dick Wagner, Madison
Ross Draegert, Fox Point
Mark Webster, Madison
Heather Colburn, Madison
Doug Burnett, Madison
Dennis Kohler, Germantown
Kristen Dexter, Eau Claire
Laura Goetz, Wisconsin Rapids
Katherine M. Templeton, MD, Madison
Laura Gutknecht, Madison

Doug Burnett joined the AFSCME International staff in Madison in November of 2007.  He serves as political director and manages AFSCME’s legislative and communications staff.
Burnett has decades of experience making a difference in and around Wisconsin’s state capitol. From 1988 to 2002, Burnett worked as a top aide in the State Assembly and State Senate. He also worked on numerous state legislative races, managing key Assembly and Senate campaigns. In 2003, Burnett went to work for Progressive Wisconsin as its executive director, a statewide progressive advocacy organization.  He joined Progressive Majority Wisconsin as its state director in February of 2004, helping create its groundbreaking candidate recruitment and development program, which has helped elect dozens of worker-friendly candidates to all levels of Wisconsin government. He now serves on the board of Wisconsin Progress, which is pursuing a similar mission in Wisconsin.

Glenn Carlson has served on the boards of some of the most effective LGBT organizations in the country: as Treasurer of the Los Angeles Gay & Lesbian Center - the largest LGBT social services agency in the world, from 1992 to 1997; as Treasurer of the National Gay & Lesbian Task Force from 2004 to 2006; and in various board or executive leadership positions with Fair Wisconsin since 2006.  He joined the campaign to elect Tammy Baldwin to Congress in 1997, and has served as one of her senior advisers since then.  A retired CPA, Glenn was a tax partner with both Price Waterhouse and Arthur Andersen in Los Angeles.

Heather Colburn is the National Women’s Vote Director for President Barack Obama’s re-election campaign.  Heather previously served as a political consultant for progressive non-profits, political organizations, campaigns and candidates for public office. Before arriving at the campaign, Heather worked on the historic Wisconsin Senate recall elections and was the lead rally planner during the 2011 labor protests.  She also worked at EMILY’s List, Planned Parenthood, the DSCC and Tammy Baldwin for Congress.  She is an established trainer, having trained over 3,000 people in the fundamentals of campaigns and fundraising. Heather graduated from the University of Wisconsin.

Kristen Dexter and her husband are the parents of 3 teenagers.  Her public service began in 2002 when she was elected to a local school board and was actively involved in several referenda campaigns.  In 2006 Kristen became the volunteer coordinator for a successful state senate race and two years later she ran for the state assembly, beating an incumbent.  Kristen served one term as State Representative for the 68th Assembly.  She was recently elected as co-chair of the Eau Claire County Democratic Party and is very involved in progressive efforts throughout west central Wisconsin.

Ross Draegert lives with his life partner in Fox Point, Wisconsin. He has served on the board of Fair Wisconsin since 2007. He has been on the board of Cream City Foundation, southeast Wisconsin’s LGBT charitable foundation. He currently is on the board of Adoption Resources of Wisconsin.

Laura Goetz is a Social Worker, trained Mediator and LGBT advocate.  She is the founder of the Stevens Point PFLAG chapter.  As an outgoing community activist, Laura has worked with various advocacy groups including the UW-Stevens Point Gender and Sexuality Alliance, and her local high school GSA.  Laura has worked as a university continuing education instructor and presented numerous workshops on a variety of topics including the PFLAG’s Safe Schools training.

Laurie Guilbault has over 20 years of experience with political, electoral, and advocacy groups.  She has organized fundraising events for candidates, organizations, and Political Action Committees.  She has participated with progressive advocacy groups and candidates to promote positive change for Wisconsin citizens.  Laurie was one of the founders of Action Wisconsin (predecessor to Fair Wisconsin) in 1994 and part of the Milwaukee LGBT Center Project in 1995 to create a safe environment for LGBTQ people in Milwaukee.  Her political experience is as paid staff in seven local and state political campaigns and five congressional races across the nation 2001-2007.  Laurie staffed Dorothy Dean, the first woman to run for Wisconsin Lt. Governor in 1992.  She was Congressional Staff to Congresswoman Tammy Baldwin, the first out lesbian in Congress, in 1999-2001.  Recently, Ms. Guilbault received her Masters of Public Administration and will be starting the position of Program Assistant with the City of Milwaukee’s Department of Public Works Operations.

Laura Gutknecht is currently the Chief Engineer for WORT, a community radio station in Madison, WI. She is an accomplished public speaker who has presented to many businesses and community organizations, as well as to colleges and universities. In 1996, Laura started the Madison Area Transgender Association and helped to amend Madison’s Equal Rights Ordinance in 2000 to include protections for transgender people.

Dennis Kohler lives in Germantown, Wisconsin with his partner and their four children.  He runs a small business and is a stay-at-home dad.  He served on the HRL PAC (Human Rights League Political Action Committee) board for five years.

Now retired, Nancy Nusbaum was Brown County Executive, De Pere Mayor and Director of Wisconsin Crime Victim services. A mother of two children, one gay and one straight, she’s determined to fight for the day when they will be treated equally under law. Her son, Joe, serves on the Vermont Freedom to Marry Task Force.

Jason Rae, from Rice Lake, Wisconsin, is a recent graduate from Marquette University who serves as a member of the Democratic National Committee and as a member of the Wisconsin Governor’s Commission on the United Nations. He currently works as an associate at Nation Consulting.

Kate Templeton serves as an ER Physician with Remedy Medical Services.  She received her BA from Lawrence University in 1978, graduated from the UW Medical School in 1983, completed an internal medicine residency with the UW from 1983-1986, and has served as a Clinical Assistant Professor at the UW Medical School since 1991.  She is Board Certified in Internal Medicine.  Kate and Suzanne Hartman, her partner of 20 years, reside in Madison; they have 4 children and 2 dogs.

Dick Wagner is a retired Senior Budget and Management Analyst from the State Of Wisconsin Department of Administration, and as a former Chair of the Dane County Board of Supervisors, he was one of the first out elected officials in the country in the early 1980s.  Currently he researches and presents on Wisconsin gay history.

Prior to being an independent public relations consultant, Mark Webster managed Strategic Communications at Emerson Human Capital –a San Francisco based consulting firm that works with Fortune 500 companies on their change management, marketing and public relations challenges.  Previously, Mark ran the Congressional offices of U.S. Rep. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisconsin) and U.S. Rep. Les Aspin and worked in the State Senate for several lawmakers.