Board of Directors - Monteverde Friends, U.S.
For Francie teaching 1st-2nd grade at MFS in 2000-2001 was one of those experiences where you say, “Yes! That changed my life.” The experience of welcoming community at the school and in the Friends meeting was powerful. Upon returning to the States, Francie became the principal of a very small kindergarten-8th grade school in Marlboro, Vermont. She maintained her connection with Monteverde by bringing 7th-8th graders from Marlboro School to Monteverde and San Luis (University of Georgia) every other year until she retired.. Serving on the board of directors offers her a way to stay connected to Monteverde and to give back to the community that gave her so much.
Jenny Rowe was director of Monteverde Friends School from 1999 to 2005 and recently retired as head of Friends School of Portland in Maine. She and her family retain close connections with friends and Friends in Monteverde and San Luis. She and her husband, Nat Scrimshaw, live in the White Mountains of New Hampshire.
Noelia is from Monteverde and graduated from the Monteverde Friends School in 2009. Since graduating from MFS, she got a Bachelor’s degree at Mount Holyoke College in Biology and Latin American Studies and an Erasmus Mundus Master’s degree in Environmental Science, Policy, and Management. In Monteverde, she has worked at several local organizations, including the Monteverde Community Fund. She is happy to stay connected as a board member to the school and community she grew up in.
Adair first visited Monteverde in 1991 as a graduate student. Subsequent visits to Costa Rica helped her become better acquainted with Monteverde and some of its inhabitants, especially Antonio, the youngest son of Wolf and Lucky Guindon- early Quaker settlers. Antonio and Adair married and built a house in Monteverde. Their twins attended the Monteverde Friends School for third grade and the whole family feels closely tied to the Monteverde community. Adair is the “tia” of a generation of Friends School students.
Katy VanDusen (Board Member): Katy first came to Monteverde in 1980. Since then she has continually focused on cultivating community through sustainable development, education, conservation, and spirituality. She has been coordinating the Monteverde Commission for Resilience to Climate Change (CORCLIMA) since 2016. She has served the meeting in many ways: as presiding clerk, as recording clerk, as clerk of the school committee, as treasurer, as an overseer, on the funeral committee, as liaison to Finca La Bella, on the nominating committee and by teaching yoga in the meeting house.
Jonathan Ogle taught in the colegio at the Monteverde Friends School from 2006 to 2015 and was active as a member of the Monteverde Friends Meeting. Those nine years in the Monteverde community have had a powerful impact on his teaching and his work on sustainability and community in the years since. Jonathan currently lives outside of Philadelphia and teaches at Westtown School in Pennsylvania. He returns to Monteverde when he can to reconnect and spend time with beloved friends.
Eliza lives in Brattleboro, Vermont with her family. She has been an educator in private and public charter schools for 22 years. She enjoys having adventures outside that include cooking local foods over a fire, biking, paddling, climbing on trails or running. One of her favorite spots to explore ecology is at the ocean. Eliza was a teacher at MFS from 1999-2001.
