2009-10 Board of Trustees
Seated, L to R: Ed Zimmer (Vice Chair), Kelli Fulton, John Paschke, Nellie Baker, and Geoff Black
Standing, L to R: Ben Quintana, John Stevens (Chair), Michael Tapia, Jennifer Swartz (Secretary), Milt Gillespie (Treasurer), Hillary Roth (Development Chair), Michelle Sabick, and Claudia Day
Board of Trustees
The Foothills School Board of Trustees, the School's governing body, consists of volunteers representing various constituencies including parents, past parents, educators, and community members from the greater Boise area. In order to maintain the Board's independent structure, the Foothills School Bylaws state that the composition of the Board will be a majority of non-current parents.
The Board meets monthly and works with the school leadership to set policy, ensure financial stability and guide the school into the future. In addition to their regular board duties, trustees lead several committees involving other members of the Foothills School community in such critical areas as education, development, building, financials, and mission.
If you would be interested in learning more about the Board, or how to get involved with Board committees, contact John Steven, Board Chair for 2008-10.
Board Members for 2009-10
Nellie Baker became the Executive Director of the Treasure Valley Institute for Children's Arts in February 2008. She joined TrICA after serving as the founding head of school of the West Sound Academy in Poulsbo, WA. In her tenure there, Nellie had the privilege of building an innovative educational program from the ground up - a diverse community immersed in the arts, academic inquiry, and integrated learning. In addition, she has multiple years of managerial experience in policy and strategic planning, budget design and analysis, marketing, promotion and public relations. She has served as the Head at several schools in the Southwest, has been the Director of the United Way for Yvapai County, AZ, and the Director of the Westside YMCA in El Paso, TX. Nellie is an accomplished weaver, showing her works in galleries and juried competitions and regional craft shows.
Dr. Geoff Black received his Ph.D. in economics from the University of Washington in 1995, with specialties in public finance and environmental and natural resource economics. He also earned a Master of Science in Geology from Montana State University and a Bachelor of Science in Geology from the University of the Pacific in California. Dr. Black came to BSU in the Fall of 2000 from upstate New York, where he had been a professor at Marist College. He has also been a visiting professor at Bates College in Maine, as well as at Montana State University. Prior to pursuing an academic career, Dr. Black conducted analyses of the economic impacts of environmental legislation for the Washington State Department of Ecology. He also spent several years working as a geologist for major oil companies, copper exploration firms, and alternative energy development firms. He is currently on the Board of Directors for a California firm specializing in geothermal and biomass electrical generation.
Claudia Day is a current Board member for the U.S. Green Building Council, Idaho Chapter, and is Chair of their Programming and Events Committee. She also worked on the steering committee for the Idaho Green Expo in 2008. She obtained her Bachelor of Arts in Political Science at Boise State University, and is a LEED accredited professional. Claudia is married to Dan Rost, and they have two children, Keegan and Katrina, both of whom graduated from Foothills School of Arts and Science in 2007. Claudia, Dan, and kids lived in Japan and in Europe for three years, returning to Boise in 2000. Claudia is employed by Office Pavilion, a Herman Miller dealership, focusing on project management and sustainable solutions in corporate, government, and health care facilities. Claudia is attending the Sustainable Building Advisory course over the next nine months, with an anticipated completion/graduation date in June 2010. This course will further develop the knowledge and skills necessary to foster a more sustainable approach to the built environment.
Kelli Fulton is a senior copywriter at Oliver Russell, an advertising and marketing firm based in Boise. Her creative messaging for direct marketing campaigns, websites, and branding has garnered many awards, including both regional and national ADDY awards from the American Advertising Federation. An expert in the written word, Kelli plays an integral part in determining how to use creativity as a strategic asset to achieve desired outcomes on any given project.
Milt Gillespie, father of a Junior student, is the owner and president of Mariposa Labs, a personal care product design and manufacturing company located in Boise. Previously, he was a Director and Principal for McKinsey & Company, serving as an international business consultant in both Hong Kong and Los Angeles. Milt holds an MBA in Finance and Accounting from the University of Chicago, and a degree in Mathematics and Economics from Reed College. He is a member of the Board of the United Way of Treasure Valley and is a policy committee member for Voices for Idaho's Children.
John Paschke is the proud father of four children - three of them enrolled at Foothills and one that's already been identified as a "future Early Learner" student. John received his undergraduate degree in Electrical Engineering from the University of Illinois and a law degree from Harvard Law School. John is the Vice President of Business Development and Licensing at Keystone Technology Solutions, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Micron Technology, where he focuses on unlocking the value in Micron's patent portfolio. His wife, Ilana, is also an attorney locally, and the entire family is actively involved in Foothills School.
Ben Quintana has spent the majority of his life living in the great state of Idaho. Moving to Boise in 1996 after graduating from Mountain Home High School, Ben chose to attend Boise State University to pursue a B.A. degree in Communication with an emphasis in Training and Development. Spending time in several sales and management positions while attending college allowed Ben to gain valuable work experience and prepare for a career in business. Upon graduating from BSU, he was hired by the Boise Metro Chamber of Commerce, where he worked to build and retain corporate memberships and sponsorships. Since then, he transitioned to the Programs Manager position to oversee multiple volunteer activities and manage the prestigious Leadership Boise and Leadership Boise Academy programs. While in this position, Ben also led the efforts to develop Boise Young Professionals (BYP), a program that has grown to over 700 area young professionals. Ben has completed his M.A. in Organizational Leadership from George Fox University. Ben has been recognized as one of Idaho's "Accomplished Under Forty" by the Idaho Business Review and received a Community Service Award from the Boise Capital Lion's Club in 2007. Ben spends his free time with his beautiful wife Christine and their dog Charlie.
Hillary Roth has been a resident of Boise since the age of two, though she has spent part of her adult life in Wyoming and most recently Vail, CO. A graduate of University of Montana, she worked as Executive Director of the Saratoga, WY, Chamber of Commerce and served as the first president of the Platte River Rodeo Association. With less than 8 months to complete the entire project, she and the board were able to raise more than $40,000 and host their first rodeo on time; 11 years later the rodeo is still going strong! In 2002, she and her family (husband Chris, a veterinarian, and their two children) decided to purchase a veterinary practice in Vail, Colorado. With Chris as the doctor and Hillary managing the clinic, they were able to revitalize a declining clinic. During their time in Vail, Hillary became involved as a board member on the Children's Garden of Learning Parent Board, an Early Learner program. After the difficult decision to sell their practice, Chris & Hillary chose Boise as the place to raise their kids. Chris works for Intermountain Pet Hospital (Meridian) and Hillary is already passionately dedicated to Foothills School. They have two children in the school - one in the Senior class and one in the Juniors.
Michelle Sabick is an associate professor in the Department of Mechanical & Biomedical Engineering at Boise State University. She is director of the Intermountain Orthopaedics Sports Medicine and Biomechanics Research Laboratory and is also co-director of the Center for Orthopaedic & Biomechanics Research at Boise State, a consortium of several research labs on campus devoted to studying the human musculoskeletal system from a biomechanical perspective. Her primary research focus is in the biomechanics of sports injuries. Michelle earned her undergraduate degree in biomedical engineering from Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio before attending graduate school at the University of Iowa. Prior to joining the faculty at Boise State, she worked as a biomechanics researcher at the Steadman Hawkins Sports Medicine Foundation in Vail, Colorado and completed a postdoctoral fellowship in the Department of Orthopedics at the Mayo Clinic. A faculty member at Boise State since 2002, Dr. Sabick's teaching interests include biomechanics, biomedical engineering and undergraduate dynamics courses.
Jennifer Swartz is a Deputy Attorney General for the State Board of Education and Idaho Public Charter School Commission. Originally from Oklahoma, Jennifer moved to Boise with her husband, Eric, eight years ago to practice law. After five years in civil litigation, Jennifer segued her interest in education to a new career in the public sector advising state agencies on education law and related matters. Jennifer is also a professional photographer and owner of East End Portrait Photography; Eric maintains a civil practice at his firm, Jones & Swartz, PLLC.
John Stevens and his wife Jen have two children at Foothills - one in the Primaries and one in the Juniors. John is a partner at the Boise commercial real estate firm of Thorton Oliver Keller. At TOK, John has been involved in commercial sales and leasing on a local and national basis. Before moving to Boise in 2002, John worked in commercial real estate marketing and brokerage for Trammel Crow, and was the Northern California Director of Real Estate for a fiber-optic telecommunications company. John is a member of the Boise Metro Chamber of Commerce.
Michael Tapia is a graduate of Boise State University. Michael has had children at Foothills for the past 13 years and he and his family are among the longest in tenure at the school. He is a member of the Boise Workforce Housing Coalition, and co-owns Tapia Family Catering Company with his wife Anna.
Ed Zimmer recently retired as the Chief Executive Officer of ECCO Group, a post he held since 1998 after leading the company's aggressive marketing plan to a 40% growth in annual sales revenues. Prior to joining ECCO, Ed was the Olympic Coordinator for the USA Gymnastics team, and Head Gymnastics coach at University of Washington and Boise State University. Before starting his coaching career, he was in sales and marketing management and new product development for Porter Equipment Company in Chicago. Ed graduated from University of Illinois - Chicago in 1973. Ed is also extremely active in the non- profit sector, serving on boards both in Boise and throughout the region, including the Boise Ballet, Idaho Human Rights Center, BSU Foundation and the US Olympic Commmittee. Ed and his wife, Amy, have two children at Foothills School.
© 2009 Foothills School of Arts & Sciences. All Rights Reserved
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