Cheryl Jenni papers, 1950-2023

Cheryl Jenni was born on June 24, 1948, in Lewistown, MT. She graduated from Fergus County High School and Montana State University. In 1969, while teaching at Lincoln Junior High School in Billings, MT she married her high school sweetheart, Dennis Skovgaard, initially taking his last name. By 1976 she ended her career as an educator, citing dissatisfaction with the job.

After a brief stint with the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, in 1977 she began training to be an air traffic controller at the Federal Aviation Administration Academy in Denver, CO. She completed the program in 1979 and began working as an air traffic control specialist in Billings in November 1980, where she became a member of the Professional Air Traffic Controllers union (PATCO). In early 1981, PATCO began a new collective bargaining agreement with the FAA. It soon became apparent the FAA would not grant most of the requests made by PATCO. Although illegal, the union began discussions around a potential strike. This carried on from March and into the summer. Finally, on August 3, 1981, 13,000 PATCO members struck, resulting in the firing of those who refused to return to work as ordered by U.S. President Reagan.

Following her termination, Cheryl and others appealed to the Montana Board of Labor and Industry to receive benefits which were denied on the grounds that they had broken the terms of their employment by participating in an illegal strike. The case eventually made its way to the State Supreme Court where they ruled in a 4 to 3 decision against the appellants.

She later return to school, became a Certified Public Accountant (CPA), and joined the YWCA [Young Women's Christian Association] as fiscal manager.

Beyond her professional career Cheryl was also very active in the social justice community. She was a member of the Billings Coalition for Women's Rights; a founding member and president of the Yellowstone Valley Chapter of the National Organization for Women, lobbying for the passage of the Equal Right Amendment; and a founding member of the Montana Women's Lobby. She also served two terms as chair of the Billings Rape Task Force.