Board of Trustees

List of 18 members.

• 

  Valla Vakili 

  Bio

  Valla Vakili joined the EB Board of Trustees in 2022. He is a digital executive and entrepreneur, with a career spanning technology, digital media, and financial services.
  
  Valla is a graduate of Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service, and conducted doctoral research at St Antony’s College at the University of Oxford. He and his wife, Sheida Vakili, have two children at EB.
• 

  Xavier Quan 

  Bio

  Xavier joins the EB Board as a parent of two children in the Maternelle. He has a strong connection to EB as an alumnus, having undergone his primary and secondary education within its bilingual curriculum. His academic journey maintained an international focus, culminating in a bachelor's degree in international studies from the University of California, Irvine.
  
  Before his return to the Bay Area, Xavier gained experience in accounting and finance in southern California, which now complements his role as the proprietor of a small business in Oakland.
• 

  Roxanna Ahlbach 

• 

  Ghessycka Bennett 

  Bio

  Ghessycka Lucien Bennett serves as the Chief Compliance Officer and Chief Operating Officer for the U.S. arm of Generation Investment Management and joined the EB Board in 2025.
  
  Ghessycka received a BA in International Affairs and French Literature and Language, and an MA in Higher Education Administration from the Elliott School of International Affairs at the George Washington University. A graduate of Deerfield Academy, Ghessycka also studied at the Université de Haute Bretagne and speaks French and Haitian Creole.
  
  Ghessycka is passionate about inclusivity, equity, nature and climate, and is proud to serve as a member of the Board of Trustees for both EB and the Generation Foundation, as well as serving as a National Board Member for NatureBridge. She lives in the Bay Area with her husband and three children (two are current EB students and one is an EB graduate).
• 

  Robin Brewer 

  Bio

  Robin Brewer joined the Board in 2023 as the Co-president of the Parents’ Association. Robin is a partner at Perkins Coie LLP in San Francisco specializing in patent litigation. She received her law degree from The George Washington University Law School in Washington, D.C. Following a childhood dreaming of all things French, Robin received a Fulbright scholarship to spend a year in Lyon, France studying mechanical engineering at Institut National des Sciences Appliquées, from which she received a D.E.A. She also earned a Bachelor of Engineering in biomedical engineering and a Bachelor of Arts in engineering science (high honors) from Dartmouth College. Robin and her husband have two children at EB.
• 

  Thierry Durandard 

  Bio

  Thierry joins the Board of Trustees in 2022.  He retired as Lower School Head from EB in 2018 after working for 30 years at the school as Teacher and Director of Admissions and in his last position as Lower School Director from 2001 to 2018. Thierry is passionate about education, and firmly believes in educating the whole child in his/her academic, physical, social and emotional dimensions in becoming a well-rounded and balanced individual who can adapt to any environment.  Education is a journey with its joys and at times its struggles, which are actually learning opportunities with proper support and encouragement.   Thierry lives with his partner Rick, two dogs and three horses and spends most of his time caring for the animals and experimenting with permaculture on his property in the Oakland Hills.  He is the Godfather of two EB students.   
• 

  Anne-Sophie Giordani-Annibali 

  Bio

  Anne-Sophie has been the science teacher at EB's Lower School since 2021. Originally from Marseille, she completed her studies in biology and geology there, while earning the French national teaching qualification known as the agrégation in Life and Earth Sciences.

  
  Before teaching the primary level, she taught at both the high school and university levels. She now brings her expertise to younger students, with the goal of sparking their interest in science. She particularly enjoys their natural curiosity and enthusiasm, which continue to inspire her teaching every day.
• 

  Jason Harm 

  Bio

  Originally from the Philadelphia area, Jason attended Tulane University in New Orleans where he received a Bachelor and Master of Architecture. After joining sports & entertainment architecture practice, HKS, in 2005, he began his design career in Dallas then moved to San Francisco, London, Perth, and finally Melbourne before returning to the Bay Area in 2018. He then joined real estate management firm JLL in 2021, where he manages ground-up development and existing building due diligence projects primarily in Northern California. Jason looks forward to helping the Board push forward initiatives as a part of the Buildings & Grounds committee and as a member of this amazing community. Jason and his wife Katie are proud parents of two EB children.
• 

  Paola Meta 

• 

  Gregory Nemitz 

  Bio

  Greg Nemitz is a San Francisco Bay Area native with over thirty years experience managing local and national media sales teams at Disney/ABC, Viacom/CBS (now Paramount), and Audacy/Entercom.  Since Greg’s exit from Audacy in December 2022, he has been building an advisory practice with Mahdlo Executive Advisors.  In addition to serving on the board of trustees for EB, he is a board member for the Bay Area Chapter of Autism Society of America (SFASA), and he is on the Advisory Board for the Bay Area Chapter of Multiplying Good. He is the father of four, ages 12-33. Greg resides with his wife Sarah and youngest daughter Ella, an EB student, in Oakland.
• 

  Andre Parris 

• 

  Vincent Salimi 

  Bio

  Vincent joined the EB family in 2021 and the board in 2023. Vincent has 20 years of construction management experience and has served on multiple public agencies' boards. He served as the Mayor of Pinole in 2021-2022 when he inaugurated the opening of the new $200-million Pinole Valley High School. Vincent studied business and civil engineering in the California state universities. He also holds a commercial pilot certificate. Vincent and his wife have two children at EB.
• 

  Laura Spiekerman 

  Bio

  Laura is the Co-Founder and President of the identity risk management company, Alloy. Prior to Alloy, Laura led Business Development & Partnerships at a payments startup, where she first met Alloy co-founders Tommy Nicholas and Charles Hearn. Today, nearly 600 banks and fintechs turn to Alloy to take control of fraud, credit, and compliance risk, and grow with the clearest picture of their customers. Laura has been recognized by American Banker as one of 2023’s Most Influential Women in Fintech and by Crain’s New York as a 2021 Notable Woman on Wall Street. Laura is a proud EB and Barnard College alumna and lives in Berkeley, California. She has one son at EB.
• 

  Micah Stilwell 

  Bio

  Joining the Board in 2023, Micah Stilwell is an educator and leadership coach based in Oakland, California. Her passion for fostering transformative adult learning spaces is evident in her approach to instructional coaching and leadership development. As the Director of Leadership Development at KIPP Public Schools Northern California, Micah is at the forefront of leading the Principal in Residence program, designed to train and support new and aspiring school leaders across 23 campuses and 7 school districts. Her expertise in K-12 instruction, change management, and educational equity empowers leaders to drive sustained organizational growth.
  
  

  Beyond her professional commitments, Micah cherishes quality time with her family. They enjoy taking long walks along the coast, camping amidst the redwoods, and savoring tasty treats in their backyard. With one child at EB, Micah's dedication to education extends to both her professional and personal life.
• 

  Fabrice Urrizalqui 

  Bio

  Fabrice is joining the Board in 2025. He currently serves as Middle School Principal and Assistant Head for French Affairs at the International School of San Francisco. Originally moving to San Francisco in 2004 as a Lower School teacher “for just a couple of years,” he has now built a 20-year career in bilingual and multicultural education and deep roots in the Bay Area. A graduate of Sciences Po, Fabrice believes that the purpose of school is to emancipate young minds and foster engaged citizens. A proud parent of two bilingual students, he lives in Oakland and enjoys reading, cooking and catching live jazz.
• 

  Veronica Volny 

  Bio

  Veronica received her Ph.D. in Biological Sciences from Stanford University in 2003. For a decade, Veronica organized and taught an undergraduate marine ecology class at a field station in the Gulf of California, and now serves on the Board of the Vermilion Sea Institute. Her deep interest in ecology led her into the world of local and sustainable food. In Boulder, Colorado, she started Meadow Lark Farm Dinners, hosting weekly dinners at a long table set in a field, among the rows of crops. Here in Berkeley, Veronica has linked her commitment to good food with issues of social justice. She is co-founder of Dandelion Kitchen, a non-profit that uses recovered food to prepare meals for people in our community who are in need of food assistance. Veronica and her husband, Aaron, have two children: one a current student, and one an EB graduate.
• 

  Kelsey Vrooman 

  Bio

  Kelsey is the Co-Founder and Partner of Mission & Data. Her data models and integrated dashboarding systems have been implemented in membership organizations, independent schools, and international schools. In her previous director role at the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS), Kelsey managed the design of Market View, a market data visualization tool and partnered with the E.E. Ford Foundation and the National Business Officers Association (NBOA) on the Composite Financial Index. She is also the co-founder of the Association of Technology Leaders in Independent Schools (ATLIS).
  
  Kelsey has been a trustee and board officer for independent schools and organizations that serve the community, a director of educational technology, an instructional coach, and a faculty member. She received the Emerging Leader Award by the International Society of Technology in Education, was recognized as an NAIS Teacher of the Future, and holds degrees from Trinity University and Columbia University.
• 

  Patrice Zauret