The Stanbridge Board of Trustees
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The Stanbridge Academy Board of Trustee’s responsibility begins with supporting and furthering the school’s mission of providing a community and environment where students with learning differences and social communicative challenges can grow academically and socially. In connection with this broad responsibility, the Board has developed a long-range strategic plan through which they will conduct a complete review of the school from the services it provides and the way they are provided to its physical facilities.
The Stanbridge Board is also responsible for ensuring the financial stability of the school. Working with the Head of School and the CFO, the Board sets the annual operating budget, including tuition and overall tuition assistance, and oversees the school’s finances and assets. Closely linked to these tasks is the specific role of the Advancement Committee, which conducts the Stanbridge annual fundraising campaign. The Stanbridge Board recruits its own members and, in doing so, identifies individuals who they believe have the skills, background, and passion that will fit with the Board’s role and responsibilities. Under the bylaws, Board members may serve for up to three two-year terms. Our Board of Trustees is comprised of current Stanbridge parents, alumni parents, and outside community volunteers, striking a balance between those who know the benefits of Stanbridge firsthand and those who have more of a historic and outside perspective. Currently, the Board is comprised of individuals whose professional backgrounds include finance, legal, special education, technology, marketing, and board experience with other non-profit organizations. Our Board has grown significantly over the past three years, strengthening its perspective and diversity by considering prospective members’ affiliation with the school, experience or contact with the special education community, experience with non-profit institutions, and area of expertise, among other factors. |
The 2023–2024 Stanbridge
Board of Trustees
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The Stanbridge Board of Trustees
Kinga Czegeni, Chairperson (joined November 2019). Kinga is the mother of a current Stanbridge student. She is the co-founder, president, and executive director of The Avalon Academy, a model school founded in 2005 that provides multisensory and interdisciplinary curriculum for students (ages 5-22) with movement disorders, such as Cerebral Palsy. Kinga was a lecturer at San Francisco State University for more than a decade, where she taught a graduate course on the Implications and Management of Physical Disabilities and Sensory Impairments. In 2018, she founded Avalon Therapies, which created a way for more families to access the services of leading experts in the field of special education, Speech-Language Therapy, Feeding Therapy, AAC, Physical Therapy, ABM Functional Synthesis lessons, and Reflex Integration Therapy (MNRI) for all ages. Kinga brings more than 25 years of experience working with children with movement and sensory challenges. She is passionate about providing therapeutic services to newly-diagnosed babies and supporting their families throughout the process. Kinga holds masters degrees in both special education and the Anat Baniel Method, as well as a California Teaching Credential.
Cindy Kuehnle (joined March 2023). Cindy is the mother of a Stanbridge graduate (Class of 2023). She has been an active parent volunteer with the Stanbridge Parent Association, serving in many roles including as a member of the Stanbridge Gala Committee from 2016-2023, and as SPA Co-president from 2020-2023. Cindy has worked in event management and production for over 25 years and has experience with both small-scale events and major trade shows. She worked on a variety of events in her tenure as a Convention Services Manager at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in New York City, and as an Operations Manager for George Little Management, a tradeshow production company based in New York. After moving to the Bay Area in 2009, she worked for Freeman, a trade show, exhibit and event company in San Francisco. Cindy holds a bachelor’s degree in English Literature from The College of Saint Rose in Albany, NY. She also holds a certificate in Meeting, Conference and Event Management from New York University.
Nancy Lee, Treasurer (joined August 2018). Nancy is the mother of a Class of 2020 Stanbridge graduate. She is a General Partner and Chief Financial Officer of Alsop Louie Partners, a venture capital firm with an emphasis in early stage investments, located in San Francisco. She is a member of the executive committee and oversees the administration, finance and operations of the firm. Nancy was formerly a board member of Aim High; Community Educational Services; Youth Outreach in Hong Kong; and a founding board member of Presidio Knolls School. She also served as an officer in the parent associations of both Alice Fong Yu Alternative School and Sterne School in San Francisco. Nancy is a CPA and received her BS in Business from San Francisco State University.
Chris Mak, Vice Chairperson (joined August 2018). Chris is the father of a current Stanbridge student (Class of 2025). Chris possesses broad experience in operations, product development, and marketing from the tech industry. He is currently the CEO and Co-Founder of TechPRO, a data solutions provider which enables enterprise-level tech companies to sell their products and services more cost-effectively and at greater scale. Chris is also an active real estate investor in San Francisco. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree and MBA from the University of San Francisco. Chris joined the Stanbridge Board of Trustees in August 2018 and was the parent representative on the school’s Annual Fund Committee for the 2018–2019 school year.
Lynette Mullens (joined January 2022). Lynette is the Co-Founder and former Co-Executive Director of The Avalon Academy, a model school founded in 2005 for children and young adults with movement disorders such as cerebral palsy. She currently serves as Board Chair at Avalon. Lynette graduated with a degree in Medicine (M.B., B.S.) from the University of London, England, in 1987. She was awarded a Ph.D. from the same university in 1993 and subsequently joined the headquarters of GlaxoWellcome, a major multinational pharmaceutical company where she specialized in clinical research and development of drugs for the treatment of neurologic and psychiatric disorders. After moving with her family to California in 1999, Lynette’s focus pivoted to special education to help fulfill the needs of her eldest child who has cerebral palsy.
Sherrie Shagong (joined March 2023). Sherrie is the parent of a current Stanbridge middle school student (Class of 2029). Sherrie has over 20 years of experience in Strategy, Operations, Marketing, Product Development, and Entrepreneurship. She has worked across technology and financial services industries and brings a unique perspective on shaping growth at private equity and venture backed companies. Sherrie is currently the Strategic Initiatives Leader for Private Equity at Deloitte. During her tenure at Deloitte, she has also undertaken other leadership roles in building marketshare for global companies doing business in the Greater China market. Sherrie is a mentor at Alchemist Accelerator where she shares learnings and expertise with the next generation of start-up founders. Sherrie is passionate about staying involved in her children’s school communities and has served as a leader for the Art in Action program and Scouts BSA. Sherrie received an AB in Computer Science from Cornell University and an MBA from the Haas School of Business, University of California, Berkeley.
Ronn Uchihara (joined November 2020). Ronn is the father of a current Stanbridge high school student (Class of 2023). Since 2013, he has been in sole practice as an education attorney with an emphasis on autism, providing counseling and advocacy services to parents navigating the IEP process. His commitment to quality education for autistic children derives from his experience as the parent of two autistic boys. He also has had a private law practice in civil litigation and a career in broadcast journalism in the San Francisco Bay Area. He earned his B.S. in Psychology from UC Berkeley, and his J.D. from UOP-McGeorge School of Law.
Linda Waissar, Secretary (joined May 2023). Linda is the parent of two daughters, including a Class of 2017 Stanbridge graduate. She was a co-chair of two Head of School search committees, as well as the previous board chair and an active parent volunteer for the Stanbridge Parent Association. Linda is a consultant working with private fund managers in Silicon Valley, primarily in the venture capital sector. She was formerly an attorney focused on private fund formation and investment adviser regulation. She worked as an in-house attorney at HRJ Capital and practiced with the law firms Fenwick & West and Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati in the San Francisco Bay Area and Seward & Kissel in New York. She also serves as a vice-chair of Ascendigo Autism Services, an organization in Colorado that integrates people with autism into community life recreationally and socially. Linda has a JD from Georgetown University and a bachelor’s degree from Columbia College.
