Community » Board of Trustees

Board of Trustees

 
​State College Friends School is governed by a Board of Trustees whose responsibilities include supervision of the Head of School, financial oversight, strategic planning, and institutional advancement. The board has a fiduciary responsibility to uphold the mission of Friends School in service to today's children and to ensure a vibrant Friends School for future generations.​

The Board consists of 10-13 members, the majority of which are members of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers). Other trustees are SCFS parents, alumni, and individuals with experience in Friends education. Trustees are nominated by the Governance Committee and approved by the Board. Each trustee serves a term of three years. Members may serve no more than two consecutive terms but may be reappointed after a one year absence. 
 
 
Meet Our Trustees
 

KatKat 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.

Bio coming soon!
SethSeth grew up in suburban Boston, but has spent time living in Portland, Oregon; Stowe, Vermont; an arroyo on the outskirts of Tucson; Pittsburgh and the back of his Toyota before settling in Central Pennsylvania in 2007. He and his family live outside of Millheim on a hilltop property overlooking East Penns Valley. Seth co-directs the Center for Energy Law and Policy at Penn State and also does research with the Santa Fe Institute in New Mexico. In those few moments when he is not working, Seth enjoys hiking, rock climbing, skiing, cycling and fishing. He and his wife Erin have two children at State College Friends School.

Lam

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.

MardiMardi’s connection with the Friends School began in 1991, when her oldest son, Paul, started  kindergarten. His younger brothers, Ellis and Michell, joined him two and five years later. During part of that time, Mardi was a teacher at the Friends School, teaching 2nd and 3rd grade for three years. After the Friends School, Mardi taught in the State College Area School District for 27 years in a variety of settings. She was a grade-level teacher, a learning enrichment teacher and, most recently, an elementary librarian. Mardi looks forward to being on the Board and reconnecting with the Friends School.

LamLam 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.

MirandaBio coming soon!
DanaDana L. Mitra is a Professor of Education Policy Studies at the Pennsylvania State University. Dana also works as a leadership coach, as well as offering workshops and coaching faculty on finding one’s purpose as an academic and navigating the unspoken rules of the profession, including publishing and career advancement. She is a member of the State College Friends Meeting. She has served on the board of Trustees since 2019 and was Clerk of the board from 2020-2022.
Paul

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!"

LaurenLauren 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.

RobinRobin is a Friends School "lifer," having attended the school kindergarten through 8th grade. She graduated from SCFS in 2004 and then from Westtown School in 2008. After a gap year working with adults with disabilities in Yorkshire, England, Robin came back home to State College and graduated from Penn State University in 2013 with a BS in psychology. She now works in pulmonary and sleep medicine at Geisinger Lewistown Hospital. Robin lives in Boalsburg with her husband and their 3-year old son, Elliot, and two beloved cats.

 

Robin is so excited for this new era at the Friends School as we welcome Joe Doherty as our new Head of school. Much learning and joy awaits us!