Meet the Board
2022-2023 Board of Trustees
Joe Robbins, Chair
Lesley Ryan Miller, Vice Chair
Lesley brings to The Park School Board over 25 years of education experience both in the classroom as a teacher and as a school and district administrator. She is currently the Deputy Superintendent of Teaching and Learning in the Public Schools of Brookline. Prior, she served as the Principal of the Pierce School in Brookline. Before taking on the principal position at Pierce, Ms. Miller was Brookline’s Senior Director of Teaching and Learning, where she oversaw the K-8 curriculum in literacy, math, social studies, science, and world languages.
Lesley has also served as Director of Teacher Development and Advancement for the Boston Public Schools and spent 11 years as a Kindergarten and Grade I teacher. She earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Elementary Education at Boston University and her MEd from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Lesley is the parent of Laila (Grade 5).
Rahul Ballal, Secretary Nominee
Rahul was born in a small town in the UK and immigrated to the US when he was four. Growing up in Michigan and later Ohio, he attended a small independent day school similar to Park. He traveled east to attend Brown University to study biology and then moved to San Francisco to run a knowledge management startup, which eventually brought him to Washington DC. In DC, he met his wife Sonia and they together completed graduate work and moved to Boston for jobs and additional training. Rahul is currently the CEO of a biotech startup developing novel drugs for patients suffering from sickle cell disease. He has three children, Meenu '23, Shyla (Grade 5), and Saavin (K) and is always working on improving his jump shot in basketball.
Sara Leventhal Fleiss '95, Treasurer
After graduating from Park, Sara attended Milton Academy and Harvard College, where she studied applied mathematics. She then went on to receive an MBA from Harvard Business School, where she is now a Senior Lecturer of Business Administration. Sara was the co-founder and co portfolio manager of Emeth Partners, an emerging markets arbitrage hedge fund. Sara joined the Board in 2016 and currently serves as Treasurer and is on the Executive Committee and Investment Committee. Previously, she co-chaired the Head of School Search Committee and the Transition Committee. Sara has three children: Morris, Solomon '24, and Annabel (1).
Idris Abdur Rahim
The father of a current Park student and a successful Park alum now at Roxbury Latin, Sean is deeply familiar with schools through his work as Facilities Manager at the Benjamin Banneker Charter School in Cambridge. He appreciates the opportunity to give back to Park however his Board service will allow, and hopes to support Park with his experience in management of educational facilities as Park considers the ways in which its campus may evolve in the coming years. A native of Brooklyn, Sean’s family relocated to Cambridge, where he attended the Cambridge Rindge and Latin School and UMass Amherst. Sean and his wife, Nadia Fenton-Rahim, have been members of the Park community since 2012, serving together as Class Reps for their daughter’s Kindergarten class, in addition to Nadia’s many other volunteer roles. Sean believes Park students benefit from learning with an exceptional peer group, noting "My children are being shaped by the Park community, gaining the tools they need to grow as young men and women.”
Peter Barkan '86, Trustee Nominee
Peter leads The Barkan Companies, a regional competitor in multifamily real estate development, property management and affordable housing. Before joining Park's Board in 2016, Peter was an active volunteer, serving on the Alumni Committee and on the Buildings and Grounds Committee. Peter chairs the Buildings & Grounds Committee, led the Master Planning Committee and serves on the Executive Committee. He has a BA in urban studies and the history of architecture from Brown University and an MBA from Duke University. Peter has two children, Lila (Grade 8) and Seth '21.
Richard "Kent" Bennett, Trustee Nominee
Born in Virginia and living in Newton, Kent is a graduate of the University of Virginia and Harvard Business School. He is a Partner at Bessemer Venture Partners. Kent joined the Board in 2022 and serves on the Investment Committee. Kent and his wife Kate are the parents of three girls – Maxwell (Grade 4), Molly (Grade 1), and Charlie (2…aspiring Park student).
Lise Charlier
Nicole Danforth
Nicole graduated from Amherst College and soon after, competed around the world on golf tours in Asia, Europe, and the U.S. After several years of competing at an elite level, Nicole parlayed her curiosity and interest in young people and healthy development to attend medical school at Dartmouth. Following a fellowship in child psychiatry at the McLean/MGH program, Nicole worked as the Medical Director of the MGH Sports Psychology Program while serving as the psychiatric consultant to an outpatient addictions program. This has evolved into her dream job, where she wears three hats: as the Director of Outpatient Programs in the Division of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry at Newton-Wellesley Hospital; is a psychiatric consultant for local college and professional sports teams; and has a private psychiatric practice in Newton. Nicole and her wife Judy juggle two careers, three children – Elias (Grade 6), Jordan (Grade 6) and Sam '05 and their oversized well-loved dog, Moxie.
Ken Frieze
Ken and his wife Tamar have three daughters, Sloane (attending Park in Grade 7) and identical twins Avery and Marin (Grade 4 at another school). Ken is the past co-chair of the Major Gifts Committee of Park's Annual Fund and served on the SPARK Capital Campaign Planning Committee. When Ken can’t spend time with his family, he goes to work as the CEO of Gordon Brothers, a more than century-old global special situations investment company headquartered in Boston. He is a current member of the American College of Bankruptcy and a co-founder of the Boston Corporate Finance Community’s Gathers to Give Benefiting More Than Words. He holds a BA from Lehigh University and an MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.
May Hara
Raised in a State Department family, May attended international schools overseas before graduating from the National Cathedral School, Cornell University, and the University of Wisconsin, where she completed a PhD in Educational Policy. A former middle school English teacher in the New York City public school system, she is currently Associate Professor of Teacher Education and Director of the Center for Excellence in Learning, Teaching, Scholarship, and Service at Framingham State University. Her forthcoming book is a mixed-methods study of teachers' experiences as educational policy advocates. May, her husband Michael, and their children Margot (Grade 7) and Hugh (Grade 3) live in Jamaica Plain.
Tiffany Hogan, PA President & Trustee Nominee
Tiffany Hogan will serve the Park community for the 2022-23 and 2023-24 academic years as president of The Park School Parents’ Association and as a member of Board of Trustees. She has been an active parent volunteer since joining the Park community when her son, Xavier, now a rising seventh grader, entered Grade 1. She has led numerous parent committees at Park, including New Parent Dinners, Community Service, and Hospitality. Most recently, helping to create and co-chair the Antiracism Task Force of Park's Alumni and Development Office. It is important to her to be an active part of the Park community so that Xavier feels like he belongs.
A Boston native, Tiffany leads Diversity & Inclusion for Wolf, Greenfield & Sacks, a Boston-based intellectual property law firm. Prior, she managed Diversity, Employer Brand, and Diversity Recruiting at Akamai Technologies and the career development office at MIT Sloan School of Management. She is recognized for her strategic thinking, creative problem-solving, relationship-building skills, and sense of humor. She is personally committed to helping her community, specifically through educational opportunities, philanthropy, and service.
In addition to her full-time and community work, Tiffany is a yoga and tennis enthusiast. She teaches yoga part-time in Dorchester and plays tennis around Boston as often as possible. She holds a BS in Business Administration from UNC-Chapel Hill and an MBA from Simmons School of Management. Tiffany is a big proponent of community building and is excited about engaging with the Park community in person this upcoming school year.
Ted Noon
A native of Washington, DC, Ted Noon moved to the Boston area during his middle school years, and after graduating from Milton Academy, earned his BA in history and economics at Middlebury College. A graduate of Harvard Business School, he began his career in investment banking before joining Boston-based Acadian Asset Management, where he serves as Director of the Americas Group and a member of the firm’s Executive Committee. He and his wife, Michelle, whom he met at HBS, live in West Newton with their two children, Charlotte, Park Class of 2028, and Nick, Class of 2025. A devoted outdoor enthusiast, Ted enjoys endurance sports, including marathons and cycling, as well as skiing, and is especially passionate about the ways Park is able to take advantage of the many outdoor educational opportunities made possible by the School’s expansive campus.
Rebecca Nordhaus
Rebecca graduated from the Foote School in New Haven and Phillips Academy Andover. She received a BA from Yale and a JD from Harvard Law School. She is a partner at Finepoint Capital, a Boston-based private investment partnership. On the Park Board, Rebecca serves on the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee. Rebecca is married to Will Curry and they are the parents of three Park alumni – Alex '24, Margot '24, and Annabel '21.
Femi Obi
Rich Quincy, Trustee Nominee
Rich is a principal of Quincy & Company which is a regional real estate development and management company with a presence throughout New England. He is also a trustee of Bromley Realty Trust, which is the oldest continually operating business trust in Massachusetts, where he leads investment strategy. Rich was born and raised in the Boston area and attended Dedham Country Day, Noble and Greenough, Boston College and the University of Connecticut School of Law before beginning his investment career. He will be joining the Finance Committee and the Building & Grounds committee as co-chair in the Fall of 2022. Rich has two children at Park, Louisa (Grade 2) and Hannah (Kindergarten). His wife Eliza is a Park School alumna and active volunteer at the school.
Young Ju Rhee
Young Ju attended international schools in Kuwait, Cameroon, Tunisia and France amongst others and also attended public schools in her native South Korea. After further studying in England and the United States, she returned to South Korea to work at the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Seoul Office as a Public Relations Officer. Young Ju received her doctorate degree in international development from the University of Oxford, and now teaches in the Global Studies Department at Bentley University. She also serves on the advisory board of the Reves International Studies center at the College of William and Mary. While at Park, Young Ju has volunteered as a Class Rep, served on the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee as well as the Steering and Strategy Committee of the Parents’ Association. She has four children - Graham '19, Grayson ‘21, Griffin (Grade 4) and Gemma (age 3).
Steve Samuels
Steve Samuels is the Founder and Chairman of the real estate development firm Samuels & Associates, whose ambitious work in the Fenway and beyond seeks to cultivate and celebrate the flourishing of education and creativity alongside commercial growth. Samuels followed his interest in creative storytelling as the producer of 2007's Michael Clayton which was nominated for 7 Academy Awards, including Best Picture. From there, he co-founded the ever-growing FilmNation Entertainment, an independent film production and distribution company formed in 2008. Samuels serves on Park's Buildings and Grounds Committee and as a Trustee at Emerson College, where he has been an important supporter of the institution's expansion in downtown Boston and Los Angeles. He also holds an honorary Doctor of Human Letters degree from Emerson College. He lives in Brookline with his wife, Ami, and their children, Sofia '19, Carly '22, and Dylan '22.
Anna Sinaiko
Originally from Minneapolis, Anna attended Princeton University and earned a PhD in health policy from Harvard University. She is currently an Assistant Professor in Health Economics and Policy at the Harvard Chan School of Public Health. At Park Anna has served as a Class Representative and gives admissions tours. Anna is the parent of three children – Sasha '21, Talia (Grade 8), and Reid (Grade 5).
Amanda Teo, Trustee Nominee
A career prosecutor and public servant, Amanda currently serves as Counsel to the United States Attorney. She has an A.B. from Princeton University, an M.A. from Harvard University, and a J.D. from Harvard Law School. At Park, she has volunteered as a class parent, a co-chair of the PA DEI Committee, and a co-facilitator for the parent and caregiver SEED group. She and her husband, Stephen Gordon, are chaotically and delightfully outnumbered by their children, Ethan (Gr. 4), Jonathan (Gr. 2), and Mari (Gr. K).
Susanna Whitaker Waters '99, Alumni Association Rep & Trustee Nominee
After an amazing four years at Park, grades 6-9, Susanna continued on to Concord Academy and then St. Lawrence University, where she majored in history with a minor in Caribbean and Latin American studies and captained the women’s lacrosse team. After staying on at SLU to complete a M.Ed in Secondary Social Studies, Susanna taught and coached at the Holderness School, before moving to Brooks School in North Andover. Susanna currently serves as the Associate Head of School for Academic Affairs and teaches history at Brooks. She coordinates the Davis Scholars & Fellows Programs, enjoys serving as a faculty advisor for WINC (Women’s Incorporated), and is a longtime member of the Diversity Leadership Council. Waters recently completed a fellowship with Leadership + Design, and is currently working toward a M.Ed in Private School Leadership at Columbia University, which includes coursework in finance, law and governance. Her practicum research project is titled “Building for the Future: Reimagining 21st Century Learning” and she chairs the Architectural Task Force at Brooks. After a term as Fundraising Director on The Village School board of trustees in Boxford, Susanna has been excited to participate in the Park Alumni Board and to join the SPARK Campaign as a co-chair. Her husband Willie works in Admissions at Brooks, and they have three children, Ainsley (9), Callum (5) and Camilla (1). Ainsley and Cal attend the Pike School in Andover, which provides Susanna with another window into the primary independent school experience. Susanna is looking forward to serving a term on the Park board and being even closer to a community that launched her on a life trajectory in independent schools.
Greg Woods
