BOARD OF TRUSTEES

The Oakwood School Board of Trustees serves as the guardian of our Statement of Philosophy and is accountable for the financial stability and future of the school.

The Board is comprised of Oakwood School parents, grandparents, alumni, and community members. Pursuant to the school’s bylaws:

• the Board can have no more than 33 Trustees, including no more than 5 General Members.
• Trustees serve 3-year terms with a 2-term limit (and after one year rotating off the Board, a trustee may be eligible for re-election to the Board).
• General Members serve renewable 10-year terms and provide continuity and/or special expertise to the Board.

The Board meets 6 times annually. In addition, Board members typically serve on two or more Board Committees, which include: Executive; Strategic Planning; Finance; Audit; Investment; Building; Committee on Trustees; Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Outreach; Communications; and Advancement.

To contact the Board of Trustees, email boardoftrustees@oakwoodschool.org.

Meryl K. Chae, Chair 
Partner at Skadden
Board Chair of Bet Tzedek Legal Services
Current Oakwood Parent
Trustee Since 2011

David Simon, Vice Chair 
Founder, BARDAS Investment Group
Current Oakwood Parent
Trustee Since 2013

Jeffrey Markowitz '82 , Treasurer 
CEO & Creative Director of Creative Compound
Current Oakwood Parent, Oakwood Alumnus
Trustee Since 2011

Nancy Carell, Secretary
Writer/Producer
Current Oakwood Parent
Oakwood Trustee since 2014

Jamie Bakal ‘92
Educational Consultant
Current Oakwood parent, Oakwood Alumna
Trustee since 2018

Bridget Baker
CEO of Baker Media Inc.
Trustee of Pitzer College (2002–present)
Current Oakwood Parent and Alumni Parent
Trustee Since 2012

Mitchell Butler ‘89
President, Basketball | First Picks Sports
Oakwood Alumnus
Trustee Since 2013

Brian Diamond
Owner, Diamond Landscaping, Inc.
Current Oakwood Parent
Trustee Since 2015

Ken Fritz, General Member
Former President, Talent Managers Association
Oakwood Alumni Parent & Grandparent
Trustee since 1979

Kourosh Ghassemieh
Director at First Credit Bank
Former Oakwood Parent
Trustee since 2013

Adam Goodman
Founder and CEO of Dichotomy and Invisible Narratives.
Current Oakwood Parent
Trustee Since 2013

Phyllis L Gottlieb, General Member
Urban Planner
Oakwood Alumni Parent & Grandparent
Trustee since 1978

Wendy J. Greuel
LAHSA Commissioner
Former Los Angeles City Controller and City Council Member
Trustee since 2016

Marta F. Kauffman, Past Chair 
Writer & Producer of Friends, Grace and Frankie, Seeing Allred
Alumni Parent
Trustee since 2003

Kaye Popofsky Kramer
Entrepreneur
Founder & National Board Member of non-profit Step UP
Current Oakwood Parent
Trustee Since 2016

Jen Lichtman
Founding Partner, IHPR
Current Oakwood Parent
Trustee since 2014

Barbara Marshall, General Member
Oakwood Alumni Parent & Grandparent
Trustee since 1970

Linda Wight Mazur
Senior Director, Trusts & Estates at Pomona College
Current Oakwood Parent
Trustee Since 2015

Elizabeth Hirsh Naftali ES ’76, Past Chair
Philanthropist & Investor, Board Member of The Representation Project
Co-Founder of the California Democracy Fund
Current Oakwood Parent, Alumna ES, & Alumni Parent
Trustee Since 2002

Ira Pianko, General Member
Vice Chairman, The Resmark Companies
Board Member, Stephen Wise Temple
Oakwood Alumni Parent
Trustee since 1992

Rey Rodríguez
Assistant Chief Counsel, Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
Board Member at Proyecto Pastoral at Dolores Mission, Foothill Family Services, and Western Center on Law & Poverty
Current Oakwood Parent
Trustee since 2015

Mark Roybal
Producer
Current Oakwood Parent
Trustee since 2018

William Sherak
President Post Production, Deluxe Entertainment Services
Current Oakwood Parent
Trustee since 2016

Greg Silverman
CEO and Founder of Stampede
Current Oakwood Parent
Trustee Since 2009

Monifa Sims 
Actor, Writer, Au Pair Specialist
Current Oakwood Parent
Trustee Since 2018

Andrew B. Sugerman
Strategic Media Advisor & Consultant
Former EVP at The Walt Disney Company
Current Oakwood Parent
Trustee Since 2014

Bonnie Vitti
President, The Louis & Harold Price Foundation
Board Member, The Harold & Pauline Price Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation (at UCLA’s Anderson School of Business Management)
Current Oakwood parent
Trustee since 2014

Laura A. Wasser
Managing Partner at Wasser, Cooperman & Mandles, P.C.
Founder & CEO of It’s Over Easy – Online Divorce
Loyola Law School Board of Trustees
Current Oakwood Parent
Trustee Since 2016

Executives
James A. Astman, Ph.D., Headmaster
Chris Thomas, Chief Operating Officer

Guest Members
William Perkins Tift, Secondary School Principal
Denise Ross, Elementary School Principal
Nancy Leptuch Virrey, Director of Advancement
Bret Nicely, Director of Communications
Anne Turk, President, Parent Organization
Ginger Sherak, President-elect, Parent Organization
Zach Suchin ’02, Chair, Alumni Association