about RPMS

board members 

2022-23

Ben Blair

RPMS Principal

Ben Blair, the Principal at Rogers Park Montessori School, holds a Bachelor's in Cultural Anthropology from the University of Illinois, a Masters of Arts in Teaching from Columbia College Chicago, and a Montessori I & II Elementary Credential. For the past 14 years, he has served the RPMS community, first as a classroom teacher and more recently as the Elementary Program Director. In addition to his work at RPMS, Ben has served as a site consultant for Montessori training centers. Montessori's focus on the whole child, coupled with her vision of children as humanity's best hope for peace, has imbued his life as an educator. He values the compassion, mutual respect, and adaptability of his staff and faculty above all else. In addition to serving as the school's principal, he is the parent of an Upper Elementary student and a first grader.

Paul Herbert

Board President

Paul and his wife Karen have been part of the community since 2012 and have three children at RPMS, Nora (Middle School), Josie (Upper Elementary), and Wes (Lower Elementary). Paul joined the RPMS Board in 2018 after working as a non-board member on the Business, Finance, and Audit Committee for a year. Paul is Managing Director at Harbor Capital Advisors, Inc., an investment management firm. Paul likes hanging out with the family, running, playing guitar and tennis.

Anand Swaminathan

Vice President

Anand joined the Board in 2019. He and his wife, Bethany, have a daughter Priya (Lower Elementary) and a son Pavanaj (Children’s House). Anand was a Montessori kid long ago, and these days spends as much time as possible on the ground with the kids. He also enjoys cooking, biking, basking in the sun, and buying books he never makes time to read. Anand is a civil rights attorney at Loevy & Loevy.

Melissa Douglas

Secretary 

A 2021 addition, Melissa brings her 20 years of client advocacy experience and relationship building skills to the board. She thrives in the fast paced Fintech industry, finding opportunities to help North America's largest retailers. Outside of work, Melissa enjoys spending time at her cottage in Southwest Michigan and riding the Peloton. She frequently participates in dance parties at the Douglas household with her husband, Ryan and daughters Norah (Upper Elementary) and Maddie (Lower Elementary).

Todd Schrade

Treasurer & Business and Finance Committee Chair

Todd Schrade joined the building and finance committee in 2019 and accepted a position with the RPMS board in 2020. He has been a parent in the RPMS community since 2012, and his son Henry is in the Middle School program. Todd is a partner at Midway Capital Research & Management, and he is a Certified Public Accountant. When he isn't reading or parenting, Todd enjoys competitive swimming, classical music, and Legos.

Miguel Cano

Miguel joined the RPMS Board in 2019. He along with his wife Lee and son Max (Middle School) have been members of the RPMS community since 2013. Miguel is a native Chicagoan who grew up in Albany Park. He is a business owner (The Coffee Studio) and designer (Design Union) who spends his free time drawing portraits, perfecting simple cocktails, and making music.

Yvette Gonzalez

Marketing Committee Chair 

Yvette joined the RPMS Board in 2018 and currently chairs the Marketing Committee. Yvette and her partner, Eileen Murphy, have two sons, Colin (RPMS Grad) and Emmett (Upper Elementary) and have been part of the RPMS community since 2010. Yvette is Senior Director of Data Science at Nuro Retention, a student success software company. In her spare time she enjoys biking, hiking and camping with her family. 

Kirsten Andersen

Alumni Committee Chair 

Kirsten joined the RPMS board in 2021. She and her husband, Phil, have two sons Kellen (Lower Elementary) and Harper (Lower Elementary) and have been members of the RPMS community since 2017. Kirsten has a PhD in Sociology and currently works as an independent researcher. She also has experience in nonprofit strategy, fundraising and alumni relations. When not working, Kirsten loves to travel, take bike rides with the family and do just about anything outdoors.

Kathy Barakat

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Chair

Kathy is an attorney licensed to practice law in Illinois since 1998. For the past 17 years, Kathy's practice has focused primarily on employment law. Most recently, Kathy held an Of Counsel position at Barakat Law Group and served as Senior Counsel in the City of Chicago's Department of Law Employment Litigation Division. Kathy was an active member of the RPMS Family Association, chairing the New Families Committee and co-ran Leadership Team from 2016-2019. Her son Omar is an 8th grader in Aspen.

Maggie Adams

Maggie and her husband Rod have been part of the RPMS community since 2013. Their daughters, Kayla and Siena are in Upper Elementary. Maggie is a Business Development Executive with Oak Point Partners and prior to that spent 23 years with PwC. In her free time she loves to travel, cook, play tennis and snowboard.

Timothy Dana

Tim joined the Board in 2021 after spending time helping on some Finance subcommittees. Tim, his wife Lindsey and their three children Nella (Aspen), Teddy (Upper Elementary) and Ruben (Lower Elementary) have been a part of the RPMS community since 2012. He graduated from the University of Michigan and currently serves as a Managing Director for BMO Financial Group. Tim loves watching his kids grow and play sports (sometimes coaching), beach & mountain vacations and finding time for golf, tennis or at least a run.

Beth Kronfeld

Beth Kronfeld started her career in investment banking in New York City and then pivoted to serve in the fundraising area of a non-profit where she traveled the world teaching the organization’s volunteers how to effectively fundraise. She currently manages the investments and financial activities of a private family office and is a member of the board of directors of ANDE, a global leader in rapid DNA technology. Beth graduated from Vassar College with a concentration in Economics and earned an MBA from The Wharton School. She loves theatre and previously served as a Trustee of Writers Theatre (Glencoe) and on the Board of Governors of the Stratford Festival in Canada. She’s been part of the RPMS community since 2017 and her youngest child is in Children’s House.

Jennifer Lakomy

Jennifer, a one-time sixth grade Montessori graduate, joined the RPMS Board in 2020 after working for a year as a non-board member on the Business, Finance, and Audit Committee and volunteering for several other roles within the school. Jennifer, her husband, Kevin and their two daughters, Avery (Class of 2022) and Madison (Upper Elementary) have been part of the RPMS community since 2012. Jennifer's experience includes various accounting and finance positions and she is currently a VP/Director at Diversified Financial Management Corp., a private family office. Outside of work, Jennifer enjoys spending time with her family, including cheering on her kids' sports teams, cooking, traveling, and playing tennis.

Scott Ginsburg

Scott joined the RPMS Board in 2022. He and his wife, Alison, have two daughters, Elliott (Lower Elementary) and Barrett (Children’s House). Scott is an attorney at a law firm that focuses on education law where he represents public schools throughout Illinois. Scott lives right around the corner from RPMS and in his free time he enjoys travel, reading, outdoor activities and running along the lakefront.

Nancy Nassr

Nancy Nassr is an experienced educator and Head of School at the Ancona School, a Montessori-inspired school in Hyde Park. Nancy joined the Ancona community in 2016 as Assistant Head of School and served as Ancona’s Interim Head of School during the 2017-2018 school year. Nancy has been an educator for over 15 years: as a classroom teacher, instructional coach, and school leader.

Nancy has presented at national and international conferences on issues of restorative practices; creativity in the classroom; and using games and digital platforms to engage, challenge and assess student learning. She is an active volunteer in several nonprofits serving the Muslim community. She believes that teaching and learning are fundamental human experiences and is dedicated to cultivating school environments built upon respect, collaboration, and educating the whole child. She is dedicated to social justice—both in and outside the classroom— and committed to the use of restorative practices for conflict management.

Dan Roberts

Dan is the Executive Director of a local youth development organization called CircEsteem. He brings with him over 15 years of experience in the non-profit sector both in Chicago and overseas, and is excited to support RPMS by serving on the board. Before moving to Chicago in 2016, Dan and his wife, Renny, founded and operated a non-government organization in Indonesia called Red Nose Foundation for 9 years. They have two children at school (Upper and Lower Elementary) who continue to grow and shine with the kind support and encouragement from their incredible teachers and school staff.

Lori Morlock

Past Board President

Lori joined the Board in 2015 after helping with the school’s Raising Our Future Capital Campaign. She and her husband, Lee, have three children: Taryn (RPMS Class of 2021), Emily (Aspen), and Tessa (Walnut). Lori graduated from Harvard Law School in 2004 and worked in private practice in Chicago before turning her attention to writing fiction. Her first published novel, "Among the Beautiful Beasts" was released in June 2021. When she's not writing or researching historical fiction, Lori can be found riding her horses, Bayou and Evera, or taking long walks with the family dogs, Lucky and Clementine.