West Chester Friends School

Board of Directors

 

Founded in 1836 by West Chester Monthly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), West Chester Friends School is a separately incorporated, not-for-profit school governed by a Board of Directors (School Board).  The School Board is responsible for general oversight of the school.  Members are nominated by the Committee on Trustees, brought to the School Board for approval, and to the Meeting for affirmation.  The School Board is presently composed of fifteen volunteers, eight of whom are Quakers.  Faculty representatives, PTO officers, and members of the administration attend regular meetings of the Board.

The School Board is responsible for appointing and evaluating the Head of School, setting policies and guidelines of operation, and maintaining the stability of the school through fiduciary responsibility, stewardship of resources, and providing leadership in development and strategic planning.


Board of Directors 

2012-2013

Jamie McVickar, President
Gwenn Knapp, Vice-President
John Rudibaugh, Treasurer
Lindsey Franklin, Secretary

Penelope Boyd, Idna Corbett, John Diffey, Geraldine Gibson, Julie Grear

Susan Kelley, Deborah McKenty, Deborah Novak, Leslie Rahling

Arlene Rengert, Christina Roberts, Joyce Sanyour

Robert Sparre, Cathy Toner, David Wickard


JAMIE MCVICKAR (2007) of Chester Springs is the Controller and Assistant Secretary/Treasurer of North American Land Trust in Chadds Ford, an environmental conservation organization.  He is a lifelong resident of Chester County and has been a member since he was two months old of Downingtown Friends Meeting where he is a past treasurer as well as member of a variety of committees.  He and his wife, Cheryl, are parents of four children and host an exchange student from Iraq who has been with them for five years and is currently a pre-med student at Bard College.  He is a graduate of Downingtown Friends School, Westtown School and Earlham College.  In his free time, he enjoys playing soccer and ice hockey.  His father, Paul McVickar, was the art teacher at WCFS during the 1960s.  Jamie serves on the Finance and the Head Support & Evaluation Committee and as Board President.


GWENN KNAPP (2007) is a Magisterial District Judge of District 15-1-04 in West Chester.  Prior to being elected to this post in 2005, she owned and operated a graphic design and fine arts firm.  She is an accomplished portrait artist.  She is active in the Greater West Chester Sunrise Rotary Club, Greater West Chester Human Relations Council and serves on the Chester County Drug and Alcohol Advisory Board. She is a member of West Chester Monthly Meeting of Friends and is an alumni parent.  Her children Elias and Emily graduated in the WCFS Class of 1990,  Emily from sixth, and Elias from eighth grade.  Her son Andrew attended WCFS, as well.  Gwenn is a graduate of Bucknell University.  She serves on the Committee on Trustees and as Board Vice President.


LINDSAY FRANKLIN (2008) is a graduate of Westtown School an Dickinson College, where she majored in English and minored in Fine Art.  She has taught at Wilmington Friends School and Fairville Friends School.  She is currently a kindergarten teacher at William Penn Charter School and completed her master's degree in Applied Teaching and Learning at West Chester University.  She is an active member of the Westtown School Alumni Association Board of Managers, and an enthusiastic participant in Barley Sheaf Players (community theater), both on and off stage.  She serves on the Advancement Committee and as Board Secretary.


JOHN RUDIBAUGH (2007) is a grandparent of eight WCFS students and alumni.  He is the CEO and founder of Pennsy Corporation of West Chester, a design and engineering firm focused on meeting the needs of the railroad industry, both locally and internationally.  He is an engineering graduate of the Virginia Military Institute, and holds an MBA from Xavier University and Franklin Law School.  He has four children and thirteen grandchildren and enjoys golf, tennis, fishing and sailing.  John serves on the Finance Committee and as Board Treasurer.


PENELOPE BOYD (2011) is the mother of Anne '01 and an attorney in private practice in West Chester.  She has been practicing law in education law, civil rights, including rights of individuals with disabilities and women, immigration, family law, and appellate work in the state and federal courts.  She and Anne are members of West Chester Monthly Meeting where she served five years as Clerk of the Meeting.  She is a 1976 graduate of the Pennsylvania State University, and received her J.D. from the Villanova University School of Law in 1979.  She has been seen frequently at Citizens Bank Park for any Phillies game she can attend as well  as for the Flyers Winter Classic.  She serves on the Trustees Committee.


IDNA M. CORBETT (2012) is Dean of Undergraduate Studies and Student Support Services at West Chester University.  She has worked at WCU since 1992, when she began her tenure as director of the Learning Assistance and Resource Center.  Idna earned degrees from Goshen College, Michigan State University, and Temple University.  She is President and Chair of the Chester County Women’s Commission, serves on the board of the Chester County Migrant Ministry, and is a member of the Greater West Chester Sunrise Rotary Club.  She is a native of Honduras.


JOHN DIFFEY (2011) has served as President & CEO of The Kendal Corporation, based in Kennett Square, since 1992.  Kendal is a Quaker-related  system of not-for-profit communities, programs, and services for older adults, with locations in eight states.  In 2006, John was accorded his field’s highest recognition—the Award of Honor—from its 5500 member national association, Leading Age.  John has served on numerous boards including the Chester County Historical Society, Continuing Care Accreditation Commission, Friends Services for the Aging, Leading Age, and the Vestry of the Episcopal Church of the Advent in Kennett Square, as well as on governing boards of other organizations in both the not-for-profit and for-profit sectors.  John has been a Rotarian for 25 years and is a current member of the Greater West Chester Sunrise Rotary Club.  He is the parent of Matt '97, an MBA student at Duke University, and Louisa '02, at student at the University of Denver.


GERRI GIBSON (2005) is the parent of two children, Carol and David, both of whom are graduates of West Chester Friends School.  She has a Bachelor of Arts degree from Temple University and a Master of Arts from Immaculata University.  She taught at WCFS from 1964 until her retirement in 2005, and continues as a substitute.  Earlier employment includes Atlas Chemical Company and E.I. DuPont de Nemours Company.  She has been a member of the American Chemical Society, the Scottish Historical Society, the Buchanan Society, The Wilmington Power Squadron and The Four Seasons Garden Club.  She serves on the Advancement Committee.

 

JULIE A. GREAR (2012) is the mother of WCFS alumni Franklin, '12 and two current students, Benjamin who is in the class of 2013, and Lana who is in the class of 2017. A graduate of Henderson High School and Shippensburg University,  Julie had a 17 year career in advertising and marketing at various firms including Vice President in Account Services at MBNA America Advertising. Now home with her children, Julie is an active volunteer on the school campus, having co-chaired the WCFS  PTO, and will serves as the 6th grade parent clerk at Westtown.


SUSAN KELLEY (2004) served on the Board in the 80s and 90s.  She is the parent of  Erin '90 (8th grade) and Alison '90 (6th grade) and Jon '94.  Susan worked for 35 years as a manager and social worker with Chester County Children and Youth Services.  She has retired and now works part-time teaching parenting at Bridge of Hope, Chester and Lancaster Counties.  She has a Masters in Social Work from Bryn Mawr College, and is a member of the Downingtown Friends Meeting.  She serves on the Head Support & Evaluation Committee.


DEBORAH MCKENTY (2011)  has practiced law in Chester county for 23 years, specializing in Family Law, Real Estate Law, Civil Litigation and Estates.  She is a longtime Board member of the Maternal and Child Health Consortium and a previous board member of Planned Parenthood and two Chester County title agencies.   Debbie is a member of First Presbyterian Church in West Chester.  Her son Andrew is a member of the WCFS Class of 2000, and she serves on the Facilities Committee.



DEBBIE NOVAK (2010) is the parents of three WCFS alumni, Sean '04, Jeffrey '07, and Kate '09,  and Timmy '13.  A graduate of  Westtown School and William Smith College, Debbie's background is in math and computer science.  She serves as the Treasurer of both the Westtown Middle and Upper School PTOs, and is a member of Westtown Monthly Meeting.  She enjoys playing tennis, reading, and vacationing in Nantucket with her family.  Debbie is the Clerk of the Advancement Committee.


LESLIE RAHLING (2012) is the Development and Communications Associate at the ARC of Chester County and an active community volunteer.  She is a member of Downingtown Monthly Meeting and was the Development Associate at WCFS from 2005-2011.  She is an alumni parent to Michael '05 and Philip '06, and was the chair of the WCFS PTO>  A graduate of the Agnes Irwin School and Northwestern University, Leslie enjoys traveling, reading, gardening and tracing her family history.


ARLENE RENGERT (2010) is parent to Roger '97 and Graham '98, as well as three older children.  She is retired from the geography faculty at West Chester University, where she chaired the department and other campus bodies.  Originally from Illinois, she attended Cornell College (Iowa), Indiana University, Ohio State University and the University of Pennsylvania.  She is co-author of a middle school textbook and has held various regional and national leadership positions in geographic education.  She coordinates the Travel Adventure film and lecture series at West Chester University, and is a Board member of HomeAID for Africa and of the retired WCU faculty organization.  Her favorite activities include travel, gardening and reading.  Arlene serves on the Committee on Trustees.


CHRISTINA ROBERTS (2011) is the Head of Education and Master Printer at The Fabric Workshop and Museum, Philadelphia. As an educator, she specializes in contemporary art making practices, collaborative experimental processes, and textile printing techniques. She co-founded Marafiki Arts, a non-profit organization that works with community groups in Kenya and facilitates collaboration with artists and designers in the US to produce environmentally friendly textiles and promote economic development. Christina taught at Moore and has lectured and conducted workshops throughout the world.  She is the alumni parent of Mary '11, and serves on the Head Support and Evaluation Committee.

JOYCE SANYOUR (2012) attributes her adult son's academic success to his early Quaker education.  She is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania and Widener Law School.  She has headed a consulting firm with a focus on health care fraud and patent practice.  From 2001 to 2011, she served West Chester as commissioner on the Planning and Human Relations Commissions.  She is currently the recording Secretary for the Board of Directors of West Chester Dance Works, and serves on the WCFS Advancement Committee.

ROBERT SPARRE (2012) is president of Dorset Connects, an IT consulting firm in Chadds Ford. Rob has a bachelor’s degree in music and an associate’s degree in electronics. He is a 1973 Wilmington Friends School graduate where he attended for 13 years as a “lifer”. He plays keyboards and is a composer in several jazz and dance bands in the area. He has attended Birmingham Friends Meeting since 1995. He has a daughter Kati, and is married to Debra Sparre who has two daughters Linda and Liz Donatoni who are both graduates of WCFS.


CATHY TONER (2011) is the Director of Communications and Marketing  at the Villanova University School of Business.  Before joining Villanova, Cathy was a senior manager and attorney in Vanguard Strategic Retirement Consulting, in corporate communications at CIGNA and in human resources at CoreStates Financial Corporation.  She holds a Master of Journalism and a Juris Doctor from Temple University School of Law, and is a member of the Pennsylvania Bar Association.  She has past board service on Women in Transition, the Central Philadelphia YMCA, the Upper Main Line YMCA, and the Women's Resource Center.  She is the parent of Abigail '13 and Catherine '15, serves on the Facilities and Investment Committees and chairs the Diversity Group.


DAVID WICKARD (2012) is the Controller at Ashford Capital Management in Wilmington.  His degree in Accounting is from Franklin and Marshall College.  A member of West Chester Monthly Meeting of Friends, he has a previous six year term on the WCFS Board. He resides in West Chester, and is President of the West Chester Borough's Southwest Association of Neighbors. He also chairs the Franklin and Marshall Delaware Alumni Chapter Council. He has a very active volunteer life, and also enjoys gardening and travel, most recently a bike tour through scenic Puglia, Italy.

 


Click here to view the West Chester Friends School By-laws