Beth Wanless joins Ohio REALTORS Public Policy team
Please give a warm Ohio REALTORS welcome to Beth Wanless, the newest member of organization's Public Policy team. Beth will be serving as our Government Affairs Director, filling an important role of advocating the organization’s policy positions with members of the Ohio General Assembly and the state's Congressional delegation.
Beth comes to us after serving as the Government Affairs Director & Regional Manager of Member Outreach with Illinois REALTORS since June 2017. In her role, she advocated on behalf of 47,000 REALTORS in Illinois, directly representing 30,000 REALTORS in Cook County, including more than 14,500 REALTORS in the city of Chicago.
Previously, Beth worked for the Institute of Real Estate Management (IREM), an affiliate of the National Association of REALTORS, in a variety of capacities including as the organization’s Senior Manager, Government Affairs. She led the government affairs program for the international professional association, including determining and monitoring policy priorities and advocacy strategies on federal, state and local levels, as well as managed the program's annual budget.
She has deep Ohio roots, including serving as a Senior Legislative Aide to the Majority Whip between 2005-2007. Perhaps most interesting, her grandmother, Helen Price, worked for the REALTORS for many years in the 1950’s and 1960’s for what was then called the Ohio Association of Real Estate Boards!
Beth earned a bachelor’s of arts from Denison University and masters of arts in public policy and administration from Northwestern University. She was named as a recipient of the Association Forum's Forty Under 40 in 2018, a select group that demonstrates high potential for continued success in leadership roles and exhibit a strong passion for -- and commitment to -- the association management and nonprofit industries.
Beth and her husband, Brock, have three children. She's been active with Refugee One Project, an Associate Board Member with Make-A-Wish Foundation of Illinois and a President's Club Member with the Chicago Council on Global Affairs.
Ohio REALTORS, with more than 33,000 members, is the largest professional trade association in Ohio.
