More information on MBEF Board Members
Lisa Angstreich will be serving on the Grants Committee in her first year on the MBEF board. Lisa’s background is in urban redevelopment where she focused on helping low-income communities across the country develop strategies to improve education, health, and economic development outcomes. She currently works as a consultant providing strategic planning and grant writing services for private and public institutions. Lisa received a Bachelor of Arts in History from Washington University and a Master of Social Work from the George Warren Brown School of Social Work. Lisa and her two daughters moved to Manhattan Beach in 1999; her daughter Madeline is a seventh grader at MBMS and her daughter Emily is a fifth grader at Robinson.
Edie Babbe joined the MBEF board in 2004 serving on the Grants Committee and helping with special projects. She served as Grand View’s MBEF Site Rep from 2005 to 2007. She was President of the MB Council of PTAs 2006-2009 and Grand View’s PTA President 2004-2006. She has played a substantial role in MB PTA advocacy efforts since 2004. Edie has served on numerous MBUSD committees, is the volunteer support for the Greater South Bay Education Coalition and serves on the Board of the Friends of South Bay Youth Project. Prior to becoming a Mom, Edie worked for Hughes Aircraft Company (later Raytheon) designing and managing electronic warfare systems for military aircraft. She has also taught high school math at Chadwick. Edie received a B.A. in Mathematics from UC Irvine. From UCLA she has received an M.A. in Mathematics, a Clear Single-Subject Mathematics Teaching Credential and an M.B.A. Edie and her husband, David, have two children. JT is a sophomore at Costa. Kate is a 7th grader at MBMS.
Geoff Bremer joined the MBEF board in 1992. Over the past 18 years, he has seen the Foundation grow from a small organization that raised a few thousand dollars to being one of the largest education foundations in the state. During that time, Geoff has served on many committees and held numerous positions on the board including Treasurer and Chief Investment Officer. Currently, he is a member of the investment committee. Geoff is a CPA and is the founder and owner of G.M. Bremer and Associates in El Segundo, a tax and business consulting firm. Geoff earned an undergraduate degree in economics from UCLA and an MS in Tax from Golden Gate University. Geoff and his wife Chris have lived in Manhattan Beach since 1987 and have two children. Their daughter Tracy attended the Manhattan Beach schools before moving on to Washington University. She is currently completing her master’s degree in architecture at Rice University. Their son Jordan is a freshman at MCHS. Besides his work with MBEF, Geoff is an active member of the Manhattan Beach Rotary and is a past president of the Los Angeles Chapter of the California Society of CPA’s.
A member of our board for many years, Tami Brothers serves her 10-11 term on our board as the president of the Mira Costa High School PTSA (all of the MBUSD schools’ PTA president also serve on the MBEF board of directors.) Prior to becoming PTSA president Tami served on the boards of the PTAs at her sons’ elementary school (Pennekamp) and the Manahattan Beach Middle School. Tami specializes in technology issues on our campuses, having been employed in the tech field at Microsoft and other corporations. She is a proud graduate of UCLA. Her sons attend MBMS and Mira Costa.
Michelle Cormack, Assistant Treasurer: Michelle has over 14 years of experience as a financial and accounting professional in the public and private sector including financial and SEC reporting, consolidations, external audits, initial public offerings, mergers and acquisitions, company reorganizations and system implementations. Michelle began her career at Arthur Andersen, LLP and subsequently served as Senior Manager of Corporate Accounting and Reporting at Tenet Healthcare, Assistant Corporate Controller of Dole Food Company, Vice President and Corporate Controller of LTC Properties, Inc. and Corporate Controller and Senior Director of Finance at ExcrypTix, Inc. A member of the MBEF board since 2009, Michelle currently serves as Vice Treasurer. Michelle and her husband, Dave, have four children: Andrew (Grand View), Catherine (Grand View), Peter (Grand View) and Michael (Manhattan Beach Preschool).
Christine Cronin retired from the Capital Group in 2009, where she was a Senior Vice President and bond portfolio manager. While at Capital for 12 years, she was an analyst covering various industries and most recently worked with large institutional clients and foreign governments. After retiring, Christine joined Grand View’s PTA Executive Council as MBEF site rep. She joined the board in 2010 and is a member of the Business Sponsorship Committee and the Endowment Committee. She also is the Grand View Legislative Rep for 2010 and is involved with the Catholic Education Foundation of the LA Diocese, the American Red Cross and the Museum of Latin American Art in Long Beach. Christine and her husband Mark (also retired) have a 4th grade son at Grand View and a 3 year old daughter at the Manhattan Beach Pre School.
Christine graduated from Columbia College with an undergraduate degree in economics, and after working for Morgan Stanley for two years in New York City, continued to get an MBA in Finance and Marketing from The Wharton School and the University of Pennsylvania. She is a Chartered Financial Analyst and passed the CPA exam.
Brian Currey is Counsel to the Mayor of the City of Los Angeles. Previously, he was a partner at the downtown Los Angeles office of O’Melveny & Myers, LLP, with a practice focusing on complex litigation. He founded and chaired Safe and Sound Schools!, leading the successful campaigns to pass the 1995 and 2000 school bond measures, which funded the construction of MBMS, renovation of the elementary schools, and various projects at Mira Costa. Brian also played an active role in the most recent successful bond campaign. He has served on various district committees, many of which have dealt with facilities planning and finance, and represented the district on the Parks and Recreation Commission. He also is a director of the Manhattan Beach Athletic Foundation. A member of the MBEF board since 2004, Brian currently serves on the Investment Committee and works on special projects. Brian and his wife, Gail (a college counselor at Mira Costa), have three sons: Kevin, Sean, and Brady. Kevin and Sean are Costa grads. Kevin is a graduate student at Yale, while Sean attends Dartmouth College. Brady is a sophomore at Costa. All three boys attended Pennekamp and MBMS.
Pam Damarillo is looking forward to serving her first year on the MBEF Board. Prior to becoming a board member, Pam was one of three School Site Representatives from Grand View Elementary. Pam has been an active volunteer at Grand View (GV), serving as VP of Communications from 2006-2009. During her tenure she spearheaded online communications at GV, transitioning to paperless communications and revamping the PTA website. Pam also rolled out the on-line volunteer sign-up, communications and payment program “The Groupery.” She was also involved in many PTA projects and events, most notably in the growth of the Science Program at GV. She enjoys Broadway musicals, traveling, and cooking. Pam and her husband Winston have a son, JD, attending MBMS.
Cindy Ellenberg has been on the MBEF board of directors since 2006. Since retiring from Sun Microsystems, after over 20 years in the technology industry, Cindy has worked as a classroom assistant and reading remediation teacher and has been involved with the PTAs and school site councils at her sons’ schools (Pennekamp, MBMS, and Mira Costa). Currently she serves as President of the Manhattan Beach Council of PTAs. Cindy and her husband, Abe, have two sons – Jason a junior at USC and Michael a junior at Mira Costa.
Grettel Fournell will serve her second term on our board as the president of Manhattan Beach Middle School PTA. She has served on the boards of the PTAs at her children’s schools since 1999 in various capacities. Grettel is an active member of both Sandpipers and Neptunians and is also a Girl Scout Leader. Grettel has over 17 years of experience as a financials, technology, and systems analyst. She retired from Ernst & Young/Cap Gemini in 2001 where she was a Senior Manager specializing in Systems Development and Implementations for various industries and clients. Grettel and her husband Bill have four children. Lauren is a sophomore at Mira Costa, Nicole is an 8th grader at MBMS, Renee is a 5th grader at Grand View and Robby is a 1st grader at Grand View.
Eric Gist is the Chief Operating Officer at The Next Level Sales Consulting headquartered in El Segundo. Prior to working at The Next Level, Eric was a partner at Accenture, a global management consulting firm working with Fortune 500 companies to improve their sales and marketing capabilities. Eric led Accenture’s Customer Relationship Management practice focused on sales and marketing strategy, operations, technology enablement, incentive compensation, and training. Eric joined the MBEF board in 2010 and looks forward to working on the Business Sponsorship Program to increase our donations for large corporate sponsors. Eric and his wife, Lori have a daughter, Allison attending MBMS and Alex, attending his last year at Meadows.
Mike Gleason is Founder and Principal of Next Point, a provider of financial consulting and payroll services. He works closely with venture-backed technology startups as well as emerging and medium size businesses as a CFO consultant specializing in the areas of raising capital, cash-flow management, mergers and acquisitions, international operations and information technology. He is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame and is a CPA. Mike served on the Grand View PTA board prior to joining the MBEF Board, where he served as Secretary for two years and is now Chairman of the Audit Committee. He also was co-chair of the most recent successful bond campaign. Mike and his wife, Sandi, have a daughter, Madeline, at Mira Costa, a daughter, Brooke, at MBMS, and a son, Troy, at Grand View.
Adam Goldston, Vice President of Events: Adam is the senior vice president, corporate development for Prospect Medical Holdings, Inc. which provides hospital services and health care management services to affiliated physician organizations that operate as independent physician associations (IPAs) or medical clinics. Prior to this position, Adam spent 12 years as an investment banker, primarily serving health care companies. During his tenure on Wall Street, Adam executed virtually all types of debt and equity financings and completed numerous mergers and acquisitions and other advisory services. Adam has served on the MBEF Board since 2009 and is its vice president of events having co-chaired the MBEF’s 2009 Manhattan Wine Auction fundraiser. Adam and his wife Rita have two children, Joshua and Lauren. Adam has a BA from Claremont McKenna College, an MBA from the Anderson School of Management at UCLA and is a Chartered Financial Analyst.
Lori Keenan has been a very active school volunteer with children at the same time in Elementary, Middle & High school. She has been on the Robinson Elementary PTSA Board for the last 8 years serving as fundraising chair, special projects chair, auction chair and finally PTSA President for 2 years. She served on School Site Council at the High School for 4 years and is currently co-chairing the MBEF site rep position. Lori graduated from UCLA and is now back in the workplace as Director of Client Services for inAssist, an insurance brokerage company that specializes in medical benefits and employee health advocacy. She and her husband have resided in Manhattan Beach for 25 years. Currently their oldest daughter Amanda attends the University of Santa Barbara, daughter Ali is a senior at Mira Costa and son Nicolas is in 5th grade at Robinson.
Sheri Lietzow, co-Chair Endowment Fund: Sheri has been an MBEF Board member since 2004. Sheri’s current “job” is proud mother of second grade twin-boys Steve & Derick who attend Peninsula Heritage School. Prior to her job as mom, Sheri was the Deputy Director of Scheduling and Advance and the Government Liaison for President Ronald Reagan from 1988 until his death in 2004. In this role, she was responsible for coordination and planning of the Presidents schedule and travel, including his trips to Japan, Europe and the Soviet Union. Sheri worked directly with the Development Director coordinating the fundraising activities of President and Mrs. Reagan for the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library. She also coordinated President Reagan’s funeral and internment on June 6, 2004 at the Presidential Library in Simi Valley. She has also worked in Advance for Lady Margaret Thatcher. Sheri was born and raised in Torrance; attending Hickory Elementary and graduating from Torrance High School. Sheri earned a B.S. in Business from the University of Southern California and an MBA from Babson College in Massachusetts. She is a member of the Junior League of Los Angeles, loves to travel and is currently training for the Paris Marathon…
Cindy McMahon logged her first volunteer hour in MBUSD 13 years ago making potato latkes in her son’s kindergarten class. She was hooked. An award-winning magazine journalist, Cindy put her writing career on “the back burner” in order to fully embrace stay-home motherhood. Of course, that didn’t mean the end of writing – just a change of the compensation package! Cindy continues to use her journalistic talents to inform the community as part of MBEF’s communications team. After six years as a Young at Art docent at MBMS (and several more at Meadows), and various leadership positions at MBMS and the Meadows PTA Board, Cindy has a unique year ahead — both kids are at one school — a freshman and senior at MCHS. In addition to logging in numerous hours of cheering at her sons’ track meets and hockey games, Cindy is active in her church as a women’s group leader, speaker, and newsletter editor, as well as an active supporter of the Mira Costa Media Arts Foundation and Track and Field Boosters. She also cheers on her husband, Joe, in his marketing and communication endeavors for several non-profit organizations.
Mitch Ozawa is a Senior Vice President and Senior Client Manager for Bank of America Merrill Lynch. In this role, he serves as the bank’s primary relationship manager for a number of privately-held and publicly-held companies located in the South Bay. Mitch has served on the MBEF Board since 2009. Mitch and his wife Ann have three children, Hayden (MCHS), Camryn (RHP) and Chasen (Meadows Elem). Mitch has a BS in Business Administration (Finance) from Cal. State University Long Beach and an MBA from USC. Mitch also serves on the Board of Trustees for Rolling Hills Prep, has served on the Meadows PTA for the past 7 years, served on School Site Council for Meadows from 2007-2009 and is serving one last year for the 2010-2011 school year, and is on the Advisory Board for the Skechers Pier-to-Pier Friendship Walk.
Nina Patel, Vice President Fundraising: Nina is serving in her second year as vice president of fundraising for MBEF. Previously she managed MBEF’s appeal as a site representative at Pennekamp Elementary for one year. She has been a Manhattan Beach resident for 15 years. She graduated with a degree in chemistry from Cal. State Northridge. She worked as a pharmacy technician and owned and operated a specialty card and stationery business for three years. She sold the business to raise a family and now has three sons, Arjun, Jayin and Bhavin. The boys attend Pennekamp and MBMS. Nina has been a Young at Art docent for the past seven years and served on her elementary school’s PTA board for two years.
Leslie Payne, Secretary: Leslie been on the MBEF board for two years. Leslie has worked as a buyer at Marshall’s and as a senior executive at Intercontinental Art, a home decor company, and as a fundraiser in the development office at the University of Richmond. She has been a parent volunteer at both Grandview Elementary school and at MBMS. She was actively involved in supporting Measure BB. Leslie and her husband, John, have one son, Jack, a student at MBMS.
Missy Ready Up until 2008, Missy Ready had been a Senior Vice President, Group Director at a global advertising and media agency, MediaCom, managing accounts such as Warner Brothers, Hallmark, and new business aquisitions, domestically and internationally. Her 18 years of experience in the marketing arena have provided her the tools necessary to navigate the complex spectrum of public education. After retiring from MediaCom, Missy became the Scrip Committee Chair for Pennekamp and from there became the co-PTA President. She is now serving her second year as co-PTA President and is excited to begin her first year on the MBEF Board. Her daughter, Carolyn, is in the 5th Grade at Pennekamp.
Jonathan Schleyer is an Associate Planning Director at Avrett Free Ginsberg, an advertising agency. He has over 10 years of advertising experience in multiple agencies including TBWA\Chiat\Day. Originally from France, Jonathan has a Bachelor of Science in Economics from the London School of Economics and a Masters in War Studies from King’s College London.
Jonathan has been involved in improving education for several years. He has been part of PTAs during his son’s early elementary years in the Wiseburn School District. He contributed to the founding of the project based learning Da Vinci Schools in Hawthorne where he led the development of the school’s strategy, naming and logo. Today, he is excited to join the MBEF.
Another way Jonathan has been improving quality of life in South Bay is by teaching Meditation, Qi-Gong and Yoga every Saturday morning at Harmony Yoga in partnership with Dr John Kim – acupuncturist. He also helps conduct regular retreats to Sedona, Az.
Jonathan, and his wife Laine Sutten, have a son, Leo, who is attending Grand View Elementary as a 3rd grade student.
Lan Shirazi, Treasurer: Lan is serving in her second year as the Treasurer for MBEF. She has served on the MBEF board since 2005, chairing the Compliance and Audit Committee from 2007-2009. Lan, a graduate of UCLA, became a CPA in 1992 worked in banking and public accounting for 12 years before dedicating her time volunteering in her community. She is on the executive boards of Grand View Elementary PTA, serving as treasurer from 2007 to 2009, and as a vice president 2009-2010. She and her husband Desmund have an 8th grader at MBMS and a 5th grader at Grand View.
Tina Stout, Vice President Communications: Tina is serving in her second year as the VP of Communications for MBEF. Previously she served on the Pacific PTA board, where she led Pacific’s efforts to increase electronic forms of communication. Tina also serves as part time faculty at Loyola Marymount University teaching Management and Organizational Psychology. Prior to having children, Tina was a manager with Andersen Consulting, now known as Accenture. She worked in Andersen’s Change/Talent Management practice helping global Fortune 500 clients align their workforce with their strategic goals. Her work focused on assessment, communication and leadership development. She holds an MA in Organizational Psychology from Cal State Long Beach, and a BA in both English and Psychology from Loyola Marymount University. She and her husband Jeff have a 6th grader at MBMS and a 3rd grader at Pacific.
Margo Thole, Director of Business Development: Margo oversees the newly launched Business Sponsorship Program and all MBEF fundraising events. Margo served as MBEF Administrative Director from 2007-10, Restaurant Chair of the Manhattan Wine Auction (2006 and 2007) and MBEF site representative for Pacific Elementary School (2003-05). Prior to joining MBEF Margo worked as a federal criminal prosecutor at the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Los Angeles and practiced law at O’Melveny & Myers. She is a graduate of NYU Law School and NYU College. Her daughter Suzanne is a junior at Mira Costa and active in Model UN, and her twins Frances and Camille are sixth graders at MBMS. In addition to her work and family, Margo is an avid runner and race enthusiast.
Jean Van Zanten, co-Chair Endowment Fund: Jean has been on the board of MBEF since 2005, and is in her first year as Co-Chair Endowment Fund following three years as the Vice President of Operations. She is the co-owner and managing officer of e-escrows, inc. an independent licensed real estate escrow company in Manhattan Beach. Prior to the opening of e-escrows in 1999, Jean spent almost 20 years in the aerospace workplace holding positions in pricing, contract administration and business management at AlliedSignal Aerospace (now Honeywell). Jean completed business undergraduate studies at UCLA and Long Beach State and her MBA from Loyola Marymount University. Jean has been active in the local PTAs serving as treasurer and president at Meadows, recording secretary and president at MBMS, and continues to serve as co-vice president membership at Mira Costa. She has served on the Manhattan Beach Council of PTAs, School Site Council at Meadows and MBMS, District Advisory Council and as a parent volunteer on the WASC accreditation committee at MCHS. Jean and her husband Jim have one son Eric who is a senior at Mira Costa. Jim is serving his third year as MCHS Band Booster president.
Susan Warshaw, Executive Director: Susan has been the Executive Director of MBEF since July 2007. Previously she served on MBEF’s executive board as vice president of communications from 2006-2007 and prior to that she held a seat on the general board as president of Pennekamp Elementary’s PTA from 2004-2005. Susan’s background is in community relations and public relations which she has practiced in various capacities for over 20 years. Originally from the Washington, DC-area, Susan and her husband Chris, a Manhattan Beach native, have two daughters. The eldest is a sophomore at MCHS and the youngest is in eigth grade at MBMS.
Rich Weiss, Chief Investment Officer: Other than currently serving as the Chief Investment Officer, Rich has been an active member of the Education Foundation and the wine auction committee for ten years. Rich is a senior portfolio manager and manager of asset allocation for American Century Investments, a $90 Billion investment management organization. Rich has been in the investment field for over 26 years, holding senior positions at City National Bank, Sanwa Bank California, PaineWebber and Mellon Bank. He is a magna cum laude graduate of the Wharton Business School and the University of Chicago. Rich and his wife of twenty years, Virginia, have three girls: Chloe (MCHS), Caroline (Meadows), and Carmen (Meadows). ”
Erika White, co-President: Last year she served as President and for the previous two years as Vice President of Fundraising, overseeing the Annual Appeal. She has been a member of the MBEF board since 2005. Erika has held numerous positions in the PTA’s of three Manhattan Beach schools. These positions include Legislation Representative (MCHS), Membership Chair (MBMS), Treasurer (Pacific), Scrip Chair (Pacific) and Book Fair Chair (MBMS & Pacific). She is currently the MCHS Volleyball Representative to the Manhattan Beach Athletic Foundation. She also serves on the Learning Rights Law Center Board, an organization dedicated to ensuring that all students have equitable access to the public education system. Erika has a BS from UC Berkeley and an MBA from UCLA and worked in non-profit/public finance. Erika and her husband, Paul, have a daughter, Emma, a senior, and son Alex, a sophomore, who both attend Mira Costa.
This is Leslie Whittet’s second year on the MBEF Executive Board. She is responsible for a new program within MBEF, Stewardship, which will highlight to parents and the community what MBEF provides for the students in Manhattan Beach. This program will reach out to thank parents and the community for their support. Leslie has been active in the Manhattan Beach schools for the past 9 years. She was VP of Student Services for 2 years and the PTA President this past year at Pennekamp Elementary School. She has also enjoyed being the leader of two Girl Scout troops, been involved in the Young At Art program and helping out at the schools. This year she is the VP Operations at Pennekamp, Historian for the PTA Council and responsible for Stewardship at MBEF. She is a graduate from UCLA with a Mathematics/Economics degree. She has a daughter in fourth grade at Pennekamp and daughters in sixth and eighth grade at MBMS this year.
Jennifer Williams, Vice President of Operations: Jennifer has been on the MBEF Board of Directors since 2006. She was PTA Co-President at Pacific School 2008-2010 and managed the MBEF Annual Appeal at Pacific School as the MBEF Liaison the two years prior. Through her work with the Manhattan Beach PTA Council and MBEF, she has also participated in education advocacy efforts directed towards the California legislature and the local Manhattan Beach community. Her professional background is in advertising sales and media planning as well as marketing and communications. She holds a bachelors degree from the University of Missouri – School of Journalism. She has two children, a daughter, Audrey, at Pacific School and Ethan, at MBMS.
Laurel Wright: A member of the MBEF board since 2005, Laurel currently serves on our grants committee. She is also serving as Chair of the 2011 Mira Costa High School G.R.A.D. (Graduates Resisting Alcohol & Drugs) Nite for our graduating seniors. Laurel and her husband, George, have three children: Megan, Connor, and Declan. Megan, a Costa grad is currently a sophomore at Connecticut College. Connor is a junior at Costa and Declan is in 7th grade at MBMS.
Marla Zaslansky, Co-President: Marla has been the Co-President of Pacific PTA for the last two-years. Previously, she worked as a General Manager in the Direct Marketing and Television industries. She has 5 children: 3 step, one grown and one that is in 4th grade at Pacific Elementary. She has a BA from the University of Northridge, a Professional Designation in Certified Financial Planning from UCLA and an Executive Education Degree in Management from UCLA. Marla and her husband are passionate advocates for education.