Board of Trustees

Kat considers herself the first of three generations at the Friends School. She moved to State College in 1983 and taught 4-6th grade at SCFS for two years. Both of Kat’s daughters attended and her two grandchildren are currently enrolled at SCFS. Kat has taught in public and private schools, founded and ran an environmental center in Spring Mills which transitioned to being the summer camp for Upper Susquehanna Quarter of the Philadelphia Yearly Meeting. She was instrumental in founding the Nittany Valley Charter School in State College and directed the Cooperative Playschool at Friends Meeting for 11 years. An avid hiker, environmental activist  and gardener, Kat finds deep alignment with the Quaker testimonies and is proud to support a school where children are exploring through the lenses of these guiding values.

Katy is a life-long Quaker (since the age of 5). She grew up mainly in Ohio and Pennsylvania. She graduated from Olney Friends School, a 9th-12th grade Quaker boarding school in Barnesville, OH. She is a member of the State College Friends Meeting, spending many years on the Religious Education Committee. She also was the Meetinghouse scheduler for many years and was a member of the Care & Concerns and Buildings & Grounds Committees. She works at Tait Farm Foods, is married with three children and four grandchildren. Her happy place is anywhere she can weave, knit or sew.

Lam retired from Penn State in 2002 after a 34 year career in teaching/research and administration at Cornell and Penn State.  Lina and he are blessed with three children and ten grandchildren.  His love of agriculture and belief in Quaker principles are grounded in having grown up at and attending George School (father was the farm manager). After the war, George School established an affiliation with two German schools that resulted in exchange of students and summer workcamps in Germany.  Participating in a workcamp and observing the hideous impacts of war fostered a lifetime of  service and caring for others. Lam is a Rotarian and attends University Baptist and Brethren church.

Paul could not be happier to re-engage with Quaker education after graduating from a Quaker college (Earlham College '79), teaching at Friends Central in Philadelphia for eleven years, and serving as Head of School Tandem Friends School in Charlottesville, Virginia. At Tandem Friends, Paul was lucky enough to hire a brilliant middle school math and science teacher... Joe Doherty. Paul is currently a school head at The Hudson School in Hoboken, New Jersey and in his 44th year of school work as a teacher, coach, and school administrator. He is so excited for Joe and his family and for the State College Friends School community as it seems to be a perfect match of school and school leader. Paul says, "So much good work awaits us all!"

Lauren is an alumna of the State College Friends School and a parent of two Friends School alumni. She has a bachelor’s degree in Environmental Science and a master’s degree in Spiritual Psychology.  Lauren has worked and volunteered at Shaver's Creek, taught environmental education, worked in multiple levels of management and human resources in various fields, built and managed multi-use trails, worked at the White House, and is a local business owner.