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Board Roster
Board roster and biographies.
| OFFICERS | |
| Chairperson | Dennis Madsen |
| Treasurer | Ed Thomas |
| Executive Director | Ben Klasky |
| Secretary | Martha Kongsgaard |
| Mary Armstrong | Vice President, Environment, Health and Safety, Boeing |
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Mary Armstrong is vice president of Environment, Health and Safety for Boeing, responsible for developing and implementing enterprise strategies, objectives, systems and standards to address current and potential future environmental, health and safety issues. Prior to this assignment, Armstrong was president of Boeing Shared Services Group (SSG), responsible for leading a 10,000 person, multi-billion business unit that provides cost-effective services across Boeing's global enterprise. Armstrong has a Bachelor of Science and Master's degree in chemical engineering from the University of Washington and University of Rochester, New York. She serves on the Board of the Puget Sound Blood Center as a member of its Strategic Planning Council. She is an immediate past Board member of the Point Defiance Zoo Society, in Tacoma, Wash. Armstrong and her husband have five sons, and together they enjoy boating, fishing and other outdoor activities. |
| Steve Arnold | Co-Founder and Venture Partner at Polaris Venture Partners |
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Steve is a Co-Founder and Venture Partner at Polaris Venture Partners, a diversified venture capital partnership that manages over $3 billion dollars. Prior to starting Polaris, Steve held a number of executive positions in software companies and the digital media industry. Steve served as vice president of Broadband Media Applications at Microsoft, as President and CEO of Continuum Productions (now Corbis), as vice president and general manager of LucasArts Games and Learning divisions, and as vice president of the New Media Group at Lucasfilm Ltd. He is co-founder and vice chairman of the board of directors of the George Lucas Educational Foundation (GLEF). Steve holds a BS with honors from Macalester College in St. Paul, MN, and MA and PhD degrees from the California Institute of Integral Studies (CIIS) in San Francisco. He serves on a number of corporate and non-profit boards including Impinj, Noetix, ePals and CASEL. |
| Debbi Brainerd | Founder, IslandWood |
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Former Special Events Manager for Nordstrom, she founded IslandWood in 1997. Debbi is a member of the Washington Women's Foundation and Social Venture Partners and on the board of the Arbor Fund (Bloedel Reserve). A past board member of the North Cascades Institute and Cancer Lifeline, Debbi continues to support many organizations in the Pacific Northwest focused on disadvantaged youth, education and the environment. |
| Ken Bunting | Associate Publisher, Seattle PI |
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Kenneth F. Bunting came to the Seattle Post-Intelligencer in November 1993, and was named Executive Editor in January, 2000. Prior to his arrival at the P-I, he was senior editor at the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. Bunting also spent nine years at the Los Angeles Times. He has a bachelor's degree in journalism and history from Texas Christian University; and completed the Advanced Executive Program at Northwestern University's Kellogg School of Business. He is on the boards of the American Society of Newspaper Editors, the Alfred Friendly Press Fellowships, (Seattle) Alliance for Education, SDX Foundation, P-I Charities, Washington Coalition for Open Government, and the Woodland Park Zoo Society. |
| Ty Cramer | Community Volunteer |
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Ty is a community activist and volunteer. A mother of 6, she has devoted much of her time volunteering for various school efforts, recently chairing the Nominations Committee for the Parent Association, a Mission Focus Campaign volunteer and member of the Board of Trustees for Lakeside School. She is on the Chief Seattle Club advisory committee and serves on the board of Claeson LLP. Previously a certified Childbirth Educator, doula, pre-postnatal fitness instructor and PEPS Board Member, she continues to support maternal and family health through the Seattle Midwifery School. For recreation she enjoys triathlons and completed her first Ironman in August 2006. Ty holds an MA from the Maxwell School of Public Administration, Syracuse University. |
| Elizabeth Jones | Investment Advisor |
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Elizabeth is an independent investment advisor to foundations, non-profits, and families. Previously, she was a Managing Director at Putnam Investments in Boston, and also served as Global Head of Marketing for Morgan Stanley Capital International in New York, where she advised international fund managers and foreign governments on global investing practices. As a Vice President at Goldman Sachs, she managed portfolios for pension funds. A CFA, Elizabeth is a graduate of Carnegie-Mellon University and holds an M.B.A. from New York University. She has served on the Board of Overseers for Stern School of Business at NYU, and was active with the United Way of Massachusetts Bay. |
| Bob Karr | Retired Attorney |
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Retired lawyer and board member at Karr Tuttle Campbell. Elected to the International Association of Defense Counsel (IADC) and served as member of the Executive Committee. Mr. Karr is an author, contributor and speaker for numerous continuing education seminars and served as an instructor at the IADC Trial Academy. He currently serves on the board of the Bainbridge Community Foundation and recently chaired IslandWood's Capital Campaign West Sound Steering Committee. As a volunteer at IslandWood, he co-designed and constructed the floating classroom and built most of the benches at IslandWood. |
| Norma Klorfine | Trustee of the Bellevue Arts Museum, Director of the Klorfine Foundation |
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A community advocate and patron of the arts, Norma is a Trustee of the reopened Bellevue Arts Museum, an active member and past President of The Woman's Committee of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, and former Chairman of the Directors of the Philadelphia Museum of Art Craft Show. She is currently involved in "Bandstand on Broad" for the University of the Arts, the only institution in the country offering both undergraduate and graduate degrees in all arts, performing and visual. She is a current Director of the Klorfine Foundation. A native of the Philadelphia area, Norma and husband Leonard have two grown children, Melissa and Stuart and three grandchildren. Norma holds an English/Journalism degree from the School of Education at Pennsylvania State University. |
| Martha Kongsgaard | President, Kongsgaard-Goldman Foundation |
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Formerly a criminal-defense lawyer, Martha founded the Kongsgaard-Goldman Foundation with husband Peter Goldman to fund non-profit environmental, social justice, and arts organizations. She is also an active board member for the Bailey Boushay House and the Washington Environmental Council. |
| Kathie Lindemann | Senior Vice President, Store Operations Services, Starbucks |
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Kathie Lindemann joined Starbucks Coffee Company in 1990. During her tenure, she has held a variety of roles within Starbucks US and International businesses, in operations, store development, training and business unit strategy and leadership. In 1995, Ms. Lindemann was a founding member of Starbucks Coffee International. She served as Managing Director of Starbucks UK in 2000-2001. In October 2004, Ms. Lindemann transitioned back into the US business as Senior Vice President of Store Operations Services, leading the operational planning and support for the retail business, while driving strategies to improve operations and the customer experience. In March 2007, Ms. Lindemann moved into the role of SVP, General Manager of Starbucks Foodservice, specializing in the delivery of beverage solutions outside of Starbucks retail stores, in lodging, healthcare, airlines, restaurants, etc. |
| Dennis Madsen | Retired, President and CEO, REI Corporation |
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Dennis brings his experience as former President and CEO of Recreational Equipment, Inc. He is a board member of REI, Western Washington University Foundation, Trustee of Western Washington University, Director of Alaska Airlines, and the Board Chair of SeaTab Software. An avid outdoors person, Dennis is passionate in his pursuit of outdoor activities, including bicycling, heli-skiing, snowboarding, backpacking, and sailing. |
| Beth Bryson Morgan | General Manager, Morgan Partners; IslandWood Co-Chair |
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Beth is General Manager of Morgan Partners, a real estate investment firm. She has also held the positions of Marketing Manager at Nestlé USA, CFO for an importer of antique building products, and various finance and accounting functions at the Clorox Company. She currently serves on the board of the Bainbridge Public Schools Trust, and volunteers in her children's schools. |
| Carla Santorno |
Chief Academic Officer, Seattle Public Schools |
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Ms. Santorno takes on responsibility for all learning and teaching activities for the district. Her responsibilities include supervision of schools as well as direction of curriculum and instruction; professional development; student services (bilingual, advanced learning, special education); and student support services (counseling; prevention and intervention; health services). Santorno’s primary goal is to make system-wide changes that result in increased student achievement for all students, and that eliminate the achievement gap between white students and students of color. Carla Santorno has a life-long passion for education. Born in Kansas, she attended Denver Public Schools, where she later spent 28 years of her career as a teacher, principal, and area superintendent. Santorno is married with three children. The first person in her family to graduate from high school, Santorno has learned personally how powerful education can be, and she wants to ensure all children have the same opportunities. |
| Katherine James Schuitemaker | CEO, The Resonance Group; IslandWood Board Co-Chair |
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Katherine serves on the boards of WSA (formerly Washington Software Alliance) and Washington Technology Center, and is CEO of The Resonance Group, a business strategy and marketing consultancy to technology companies around the globe. Her IslandWood-related board and commission appointments have included the Governor’s Digital Education Taskforce, the Governor’s Advisory Council on the Internet, Washington Economic Development Commission, The Learning Space, Digital Blackboard Foundation, and Coyote Junior High, a year-round grassroots arts, community and skills development program serving youth in Central Seattle. |
| Al Smith | Partner, Perkins Coie, LLP |
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Partner in Perkins Coie, LLP, focusing on finance and restructuring transactions. He is a graduate of Princeton University and University of Chicago Law School. He is currently active with Page Ahead, the Seattle Sports & Events Fund, and United Way of King County, and has counseled a number of nonprofits on various financial and business issues. He lives on Mercer Island with his wife Barbara Potashnick. |
| Jon Snare | Vice President, Wells Fargo Private Bank |
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Jon is the Vice President and Director of Investment Consulting Services for the Private Asset Management group of Wells Fargo Private Client Services. He is responsible for managing portfolios of individual high net worth clients, including establishment of investment policy, asset allocation analysis, money manager selection and evaluation. He was formerly a Senior Manager for Deloitte & Touche Investment Advisors, where he was the Director of Investment Consulting Services for the Central and Western Region of the US. He established investment consulting practices managing in excess of $400 million in assets. He holds both the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) and Certified Financial Planner (CFP) designations and is a graduate of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln with a degree in Finance and holds an MBA from Wayne State University. In January 2008, Jon will also join the board of the Public Education Network, a non-profit organization that promotes the reform of public education nationally through local education funds. Jon lives on Bainbridge Island with his wife, Jane, and their two children, Allison and Jason. |
| Dale Sperling | President and CEO of Unico Properties LLC |
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Dale is the President and CEO of Unico Properties LLC, which oversees 6.5 million square feet of office and retail space. Sperling is a Certified Public Accountant with a Master’s degree in Finance from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. Active in Downtown Seattle Rotary, Sperling is also a member of the Urban Land Institute (ULI) and serves on the Boards of the Pacific Real Estate Institute, the Downtown Seattle Association, the Greater Seattle Chamber of Commerce, the Rainier Club, and SAFECO Field’s Public Facilities District. In addition, he has been active for many years with the Chief Seattle Council of the Boy Scouts of America and is currently on the Boards of the Children’s Hospital and Regional Medical Center and Seattle’s world famous Woodland Park Zoo. Dale Sperling and his wife, Carol, reside on Bainbridge Island, WA. They have two sons, Erik and Andrew, and one daughter, Anna. |
| Paula Stafford | Executive Vice President, Callison |
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Paula Stafford, IIDA is Executive Vice President for Callison and serves on the Board of Directors. She works with fashion business and industry leaders in the creation of new brands as well as repositioning existing brands. Paula has been involved with design education for two decades as a board member for FIDER (Foundation for Interior Design Education Research) and NCIDQ (National Council for Interior Design Qualification) and serving on the board of advisors for Washington State University interdisciplinary design institute. She has been named one of the top twenty most influential people in retail for the last two years by Display & Design Ideas magazine. |
| Dwight Sutton, Ph.D. | Retired Mayor, Bainbridge Island |
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Dwight is the former Mayor of Bainbridge Island and continues to serve on various city commissions as well as serving as member of the Board of the Kitsap Economic Development Council. He is a retired professor from the University of Washington School of Medicine and a retired director and senior scientist from the Virginia Mason Research Center. |
| Edward Thomas | Partner, Deloitte Tax LLP |
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Tax Partner-in-Charge of Pacific Northwest Cluster, Deloitte & Touche, LLP. Prior to joining Deloitte & Touche more than eight years ago, he was a tax attorney with two New York law firms. More recently, Ed worked in the Office of the Managing Partner on Strategy, Global Management and a wide variety of special projects. Ed and his family recently moved to the Seattle area from New Jersey, where Ed served as the President of the Ridgewood YMCA. |
| John D. Warner | Retired Senior Vice President and CAO, The Boeing Company |
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John is retired Senior Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer of The Boeing Company, and is a Trustee of Western Washington University, as well as an active board member of the Pacific Science Center, KCTS, and the Seattle Alliance for Education. John also serves on the Board of Schools First, and is a member of the Grants Committee for the Seattle Foundation. John earned his doctorate in Aerospace Engineering at the University of Michigan, and was elected to the National Academy of Engineering. More importantly, he and his wife live in Seattle and have two children and six grandchildren, all of whom either have or will experience IslandWood. |
| Patricia Wasley | Dean of the College of Education, University of Washington |
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Dean of the College of Education at the University of Washington since 2000, Dr. Wasley has been an ardent and tireless advocate for the College and public education in general. Working with the faculty as well as with colleagues across campus and with the P-12 community, Dr. Wasley has demonstrated creative, vigorous leadership to ensure that the College continues to expand its capacity to improve public education in Washington State, through its research, teaching, and its partnership activities. Dr. Wasley began her education career 25 years ago as a public school teacher and administrator. Today she also serves on several national and state education advisory boards and committees. |
