Skip To Main Content

Board of Trustees

Ruffing Montessori School is operated by the Fairmount Montessori Association and governed by a Board of Trustees.

Board of Trustees Mission Statement/Purpose:

The Ruffing Board of Trustees is a group of alumni, educators, parents, grandparents, and community members elected to oversee the long term well-being of the school. Ruffing’s Board of Trustees is responsible for setting the strategic direction of the school, ensuring its financial health, and hiring and supporting the Head of School. The Board of Trustees works to maintain the unique character of Ruffing in alignment with its Mission and Core Values, and to develop and implement Ruffing’s Strategic Plan.

Board of Trustees 2022-2023

Rebecca N. Holland, President
John Newman '86, Vice President
Keven Larkin, Treasurer
Sonal Moratschek, Secretary
Stephanie Adams
Natalie Bluestone, AMI
Seth Engstrom
Melanie Knowles
David H. Lavelle
Mike Sebold
Stefanie Sugar
Sydnia DeFranco Tcheurekdjian
Katie Wozniak

Ex Officio
Kathie Freer, Head of School
Gretchen Haremza, President, Family Association
Liesl Stalzer-Callahan, Faculty Liaison

Trustees Emeriti
Julie Comber-Martin
William Gaskill
Teresa Karlovec
Charlotte Newman
Amy Pinkerton
Michael Shaut
Hugh Slater

Ruffing 101: The Board of Trustees

Q – What does the Ruffing Board of Trustees do?
A – The Ruffing Board of Trustees oversees the long-term well-being of the school. The Board is also responsible for setting the strategic direction of the school, ensuring its financial health, and hiring and supporting the Head of School. Finally, the Board works to maintain the unique character of Ruffing in alignment with its mission and core values, and develops and implements Ruffing’s Strategic Plan.

Q – Who serves on the Board?
A – The Board is composed of individuals with diverse experiences and backgrounds and includes alumni, educators, parents and former parents, grandparents, and community members.

Q – How often does the Board meet?
A – The Board meets 10 times per year. There are also a number of committees that meet outside of the monthly meeting. These committees include: Executive, Finance, Leadership, Advancement, and the Committee on Trustees.

Q – How does the Board select its Trustees?
A – The Committee on Trustees works to ensure the Board has support from stakeholders with diverse backgrounds and relevant expertise such as finance, law, development, communications, human resources, Montessori pedagogy, education, child psychology, architecture and real estate. The Committee on Trustees identifies areas of required expertise based upon near-term strategic initiatives and seeks out engaged community members with a demonstrated commitment to the school. Candidates go through an interview process and are ultimately submitted to the Board for a vote.

Q – Can you give examples of the kind of work the Board does?
A – The Board of Trustees approves the annual budget for the school, sets tuition rates, hires and supports the Head of School, and approves other strategic initiatives and policies of the school including its Strategic Plan. Recently, the Board approved the addition and renovation of the Outdoor Learning Environment (OLE), the construction of the three Toddler Community classrooms, and the adoption of Ruffing’s Diversity, Equity, Inclusion & Belonging (DEIB) Statement.