Board of Trustees

Click here for the Seventh Restated and Amended Bylaws of Sun Valley Community School, Inc. 

Current Trustee and former Co-Treasurer and Finance Chair Will Hovey succeeded Steve Shafran as Board Chair in July, 2021. Will believes strongly that a private school can and should serve a public purpose. About stepping into this leadership position, Will says, "As a father of two Cutthroats and having served on the Board for the past six years, I know how the school can have a positive impact on individual students, but also on our local community as well as communities around the world. By empowering students—citizens—to be passionate about leading impactful, purposeful lives, SVCS can have a ripple effect that goes far beyond our classrooms and co-curricular programs. We have alumni around the world who are living that mission every day as they lead by example. The Community School graduates I have met throughout my life have not been afraid of the hard work or the hard questions, and they are some of the coolest and most interesting people I know. I know that Sun Valley Community School can be at the forefront of what needs to be happening in education right now and in the future." 

Will served as Co-Treasurer along with Steve from 2015 to 2019, and continued in this role 2019-2021. Throughout, Will worked diligently to attain and maintain a stable financial footing for the school. Will’s deep financial background and experience in addition to his commitment to the school’s mission will serve our Board well for generations to come. 

Sun Valley Community School first came to Will's attention while he was attending Middlebury College with several alums of the school. Since then, his dream was to live in the Sun Valley area and have his kids attend this incredible school.

After working as an equity research analyst for Brown Brothers Harriman and Credit Suisse in New York and London for eight years, Will moved to Ketchum in 2003. Today, Will and his wife, Brooke, have two children at the school: Taylor '25 and Tommy '27.

Will is a managing director at Greyhawk Capital Management, a private equity firm that he co-founded with former Cutthroat Board Chair, Jack Bunce in 2006. Will serves on the board of several of the firm’s portfolio companies. Will has served as Treasurer of the Pioneer Montessori School Board of Directors, was Chair of the Board of Higher Ground (then known as Sun Valley Adaptive Sports), and volunteered as development director of Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation.

Will is also a volunteer firefighter on the Ketchum Fire Department. He received his BA in American Civilization from Middlebury College in 1991.

Scott Albro '87 is a graduate of the Sun Valley Community School. He and his wife, Renee '86, recently returned to Sun Valley so that their youngest daughter (class of 2024) could attend Community School.

Scott spent the last 30 years living in the Bay Area where he worked in the technology industry. He specialized in early stage startups and software-as-a-service (SaaS) businesses. Most recently, he was the founder and CEO of TOPO, a research and advisory firm that helped hundreds of the world’s leading companies achieve scalable growth. Prior to starting his career, Scott received his BA from Duke University.

As a member of the Board of Trustees, Scott is a proponent of the guiding principles that have shaped the school since its creation in the 1970s. These principles, such as creating small, personal learning experiences and treating the outdoors as the ultimate classroom, allow the school to deliver a truly unique educational experience to its students.

Amanda Rising Black has more than 20 years of advertising, sales, and multimedia marketing experience, primarily within the ski industry. As a former junior ski racer and a graduate of Holderness School and the University of Vermont, Amanda has spent most of her life in the ski business. She is currently the Director of Development, Major Giving for the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Foundation. Previously, she was the publisher of Ski Racing Magazine, where she worked alongside her father, the late Gary Black, Jr., who was the longtime publisher and CEO of Ski Racing International and one of the four driving forces behind the genesis of the Sun Valley Ski Academy.

During her tenure at the magazine, which began at the age of 17, she worked her way up to Ad Director. She left in 2002 after the sale of the company to Velo News and spent four years in sales and marketing with Clear Channel Communications. In 2006, she returned to the publication in the role of publisher. She was recently named a managing partner of the larger company entity, rebranded as Ski Racing Media.

An outdoor and snowsport enthusiast, she relocated in 2016 to the Wood River Valley from York Harbor, Maine. She has a son, Harrison, who is in third grade at Sun Valley Community School.

Cynthia Carroll currently works as a managing member of Black Ranch, LLC, an agriculture and ranching operation, as well as vice-president and treasurer of The Chrysopolae Foundation, a philanthropic organization dedicated to education and conservation.

Ms. Carroll previously worked in education for fifteen years, both as a teacher and teacher trainer. She began her career teaching high school Spanish at St. Ann’s in Brooklyn, NY, and then worked for The Harvard Institute for International Development’s WorldTeach program as National Director in Ecuador.  She returned to the classroom in 1998, teaching middle school Spanish at three different private schools in the Bay Area until 2010.

She received her M.A. in Latin American Civilization from New York University and her B.A. in Cultural Anthropology from Hamilton College. Ms. Carroll is also a trustee of the Idaho chapter of The Nature Conservancy.

Ms. Carroll is a full-time resident of  Bellevue, ID where she lives with her husband and two teenage sons. Her eldest son is a graduate of Sun Valley Community School. 

Amanda Deaver joined Sun Valley Community School's Board of Trustees in 2022. She and her husband Thomas Andrews moved to Hailey from Washington, DC in 2018 with their daughters Charlotte (’24) and Isabelle (’27).  Amanda is president of Upstream Strategic Communications.  With more than 20 years of PR agency experience in Washington DC, she has developed and managed effective advocacy and public affairs campaigns as well as crisis and litigation communications programs for clients in nearly every sector. 

Amanda earned a B.A. in American Civilization from Brown University.  She has served on the Board of many national non-profit organizations, including American Rivers, Power to Decide (formerly the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy) and Advocates for Youth.  She also serves on the Board of The Hunger Coalition in Bellevue, ID. 

Frank Dulcich is the President and CEO of Pacific Seafood Group with more than 30 years of experience as a leader building successful enterprises. Dulcich and his team have grown Pacific Seafood from a retail market on 34th and Powell in Portland, Oregon to become the best vertically integrated seafood company in North America. This was accomplished by a commitment to their Diamond Philosophy and meeting their growing customer base, both nationally and internationally, by providing the healthiest protein on the planet to our customers. 

Pacific Seafood first began as a small, fresh seafood retail counter operation in 1941 and was established by Dulcich’s grandfather, Frank. Over the last 78 years, Pacific Seafood has grown to over 41 facilities. Much of this success and growth can be attributed to the Pacific Team’s commitment to The Diamond Philosophy coupled with excellent teamwork and operational efficiencies in harvesting, aquaculture, processing, distribution, and logistics throughout North America and more than 70 countries worldwide.

In order to continually develop, Dulcich frequently reminds his team that “stagnation is decline.” Pacific’s growth is dependent on team members growing both personally and professionally. Dulcich was past Chairman of the Young Presidents’ Organization, an active member of C.E.O., is Chairman for the National Fisheries Institute, and a member of the University of Portland’s Board of Regents. 

Oregon Restaurant Association, Better Seafood Bureau, West Coast Seafood Processors and Global Sustainable Seafood Initiative are among other notable groups Dulcich is a member of today. On his time off, Dulcich enjoys being outdoors and engaging in sports such as water and snow skiing. Philanthropy and giving back to our coastal communities is very important to Dulcich, and his personal contributions span a variety of charitable organizations around the country. 

Dulcich lives with his wife of forever and their 6 children, two of whom attend SVCS (’27 and ’29). 

Sameer Gandhi joined the Board of Trustees in 2021. Sameer and his wife Dr. Monica Lopez live in San Francisco, California, and have a home in Ketchum as well. Their son Kyan is a member of the class of 2024. Sameer understands two crucial components of SVCS through his son’s alpine racing and boarding experience. Sameer and Monica have a strong grasp of the needs of independent schools and have held board and fundraising committee positions at their children’s San Francisco schools.

Sameer is currently a partner at Accel specializing in early stage and growth equity investments. Formerly a partner at Sequoia Capital and Principal at Broadview International, he began his career at Oracle. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering as well as a Master of Science in Electrical Engineering degree from MIT and an MBA from Stanford Graduate School of Business.

Ruth Glass joined Sun Valley Community School’s Board of Directors in 2018 following a 46-year career as an independent school teacher and administrator, most recently as the Head of Lake Tahoe School in Incline Village, Nevada (2011-18).  
 
Over the course of her career, Ruth worked in schools around the country: Green Fields School, Tucson, Arizona; Colorado Academy, Denver, Colorado; Norwood School, Bethesda, Maryland; The Langley School, McLean, Virginia; Columbus Academy, Gahanna, Ohio; The Odyssey Program, Malibu, California; The Wesley School, North Hollywood, California; and Calmont School in Malibu. 
 
While Ruth was born in Connecticut, she claims native California status, having moved to Ojai when she was just a year old. She spent her youth shuttling between The Thacher School, where her father was a teacher, and Jackson Hole, where the family still has a ranch. School years were spent in Ojai and summers in Jackson. Between homes, the family drove with six horses, two dogs, and a cat, making most travel ever since a bit of a breeze. She attended Wells College in Aurora, New York before graduating from the University of Arizona with a B.A. in elementary education. She earned her M.Ed in curriculum and design from Ohio's Ashland University. She has been active and involved in regional associations, including serving on the Board and Accreditation Committee of NWAIS.
 
She and her husband, Wayne, reside in Incline Village, Nevada. They have two grown daughters, Hillary and Allison, and a granddaughter, Johanna. A life-long sports enthusiast, she looks forward to taking advantage of the opportunities to hike, paddle, ski, and otherwise explore and relax in the Lake Tahoe Basin now that she is officially retired. Long passionate about independent school education, she has accepted the position on the school's Board of Trustees as a way to remain involved and to give back a bit of the support and lessons that she has learned over the years.

Danielle Hansmeyer joined the Board of Trustees in 2021. She and her husband Kevin live in Ketchum. They have two daughters at Sun Valley Community School, Maeve and Mia, who are current 6th and 10th graders. Having experience with all three divisions at Sun Valley Community School, Danielle brings a range of educational perspectives and with her background in business and decades of experience in finance.

Danielle most recently held the role of President and Chief Merchandising Officer at Restoration Hardware, reprising her prior role of 16 years as Chief Merchandising Officer. Before assuming this role, she led multiple business categories for Restoration Hardware and previous to that, Pottery Barn. She holds a Bachelors of Business Administration from the University of Colorado Boulder.

Peter LaFleur joined Sun Valley Community School's Board of Directors in 2018. He is the managing member of Consilium Group, a Seattle-based management consulting firm which he founded in 2001. Additionally, Peter is a partner at LMC Consulting Group in Seattle, which he co-founded in 2005. Consilium and LMC provide management consulting services primarily to the healthcare and technology sectors. Prior to founding Consilium, Peter led the Deloitte middle market management consulting practice for the Pacific Northwest services industry sector. Peter began his career at Deloitte in 1989 as a CPA.

As a management consultant, Peter spends significant time working with, advising, and educating the boards of his clients. He has also voluntarily assisted various boards as they work through strategy and finance issues, including the Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation (SVSEF).  During his time in Seattle, he served as treasurer of the Seattle Fire Fighters Memorial Fund.

In the 2017-18 school year, Peter had the opportunity to work closely with the school’s administration and Board of Directors while co-chairing the Strategic Planning Committee. Having assisted in the development of the Strategic Plan, one of Peter’s primary goals as a Board Director is to help ensure that the plan is successfully implemented, and that the school continues to grow and thrive long into the future. 

As a parent of a competitive skier (son Alex competed for SVSEF for 10 years), Peter is also invested in the future success of the Sun Valley Ski Academy. “I believe the combination of Sun Valley Community School, SVSEF, and the Wood River Valley community provides an unmatched opportunity for student athletes, while also benefiting these stakeholders,” he said.

Peter has a degree in business administration from the University of Washington. Peter, his wife, Julie, and their children, Alex ’18 and Noelle ’21, have enjoyed a home in Ketchum since 2004. Julie has served in various leadership roles of the Parents' Association, while Alex has served as Student Senate President.

John Lee graduated from St. Lawrence University in upstate New York with a BS in Geology and moved to Ketchum in 1990. He met his wife Tracy (Grathwohl), who attended Sun Valley Community School from 1980-1983, in January 1991. They have two children, Tanner (Class of 2022), and Bodin (Class of 2025).

John is the co-owner of LeeGilman Builders, Inc. in Ketchum, Idaho, which he established in 2008 with his partner, Mike Gilman. LeeGilman Builders has grown to a firm of 50 full-time employees building 10 to 12 custom homes and remodels at any given time. Prior to LeeGilman, John’s passion for building and taking on large projects led him to focus on custom homes, building a number of spec homes with his wife, Tracy, and eventually co-founding JLC Construction. John started out, like many young people who move to the valley, as a ski tuner at Snug and broiler assistant/bartender at the Pioneer Saloon.  

Throughout what became a strong career in construction, John maintained an interest and commitment to youth programs in the valley. John spent seven years as the head of the Snowboard “C” Team for the SVSEF and nine years as a hockey coach for the Sun Valley Youth Hockey program. He remains an avid skier and outdoor enthusiast of all kinds.

Casey Lynch '99 joined the Board of Trustees in 2021. He and his wife, Dianne Dillingham, live in Ketchum; their son Hutch will be in ECC 2 and their daughter Cecily will be in 1st grade.

As a more recent alumnus, Casey provides valuable insight and connections with our Cutthroat community and is quick to credit SVCS as the formative experience of his educational career. With two children in the Elementary School, he brings new ideas and perspectives to the Board. Additionally, his background in sustainable design and building could help lead the school toward its aspirations of greener facilities management.

Casey founded and is currently the CEO of Roundhouse, a multi-family and community housing developer based in Boise, ID. He has expertise in developing innovative housing strategies and hopes to contribute solutions to the Wood River Valley’s housing affordability challenges. Casey began his career in finance and strategy consulting in New York.

After graduating from SVCS in 1999, Casey went on to earn a BA in Philosophy from the University of Pennsylvania and an MBA from UCLA Anderson School of Management. 

Tim Mott's vision, energy, and stewardship led to the recent founding of The Argyros where he currently serves as board Vice President and Executive Director. Tim is a serial entrepreneur, has been an independent private investor since 1994, and is also the Managing Partner of Blue Farm Wines.  

Tim co-founded Electronic Arts where he was a senior vice president from 1982-90 and a director from 1990-2007. He was a co-founder, CEO, and Chairman of Macromedia from 1990-94 and then he co-founded Audible where he was Chairman from 1994-99. Tim has been the founding investor and Chairman of several other technology companies including All Covered, Flixlab, and Futr. In addition to Electronic Arts, Macromedia and Audible, he has also served on other public company boards including Edmark and Globant. 
Tim was a trustee of the California College of the Arts from 2004-18 and has been a trustee on many other non-profit boards. His relationship with Sun Valley Community School is deep as he served as the board chair from 2002-03 and his children attended middle and upper school here. 

Tim earned his BS (with honors) from Manchester University in England and now splits his time between Ketchum, ID and Sonoma, CA. 

Michael Shapiro joined the Board of Trustees in 2022. Michael and his wife Berger moved to Sun Valley in 2021 with their three kids Paisley (‘24), Marley (‘26), and Slate (‘29).   

Michael is a Managing Director at the global investment bank Jefferies & Company, where he has spent over twenty five years working in various aspects of Leveraged Finance in both New York and California.  He’s an avid spear fishermen, snow enthusiast, weekend pizza chef, and Dad. 

Cordy Snyder '84 grew up in Sun Valley and is a graduate of Sun Valley Community School class of 1984. He earned his AB from Bowdoin College 1988.

Following his graduation, he worked at Montgomery Securities and its successor Bank of America Securities from 1989-2002, where he was Director of Nasdaq Trading. In 2002, Cordy co-founded BTIG, a brokerage firm focused on trading and fund services for hedge and mutual funds.

Cordy and his wife, Mary Ann, relocated to Sun Valley from Tiburon, California so their three boys, all alpine ski racers, could train with Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation.

Their three sons are all SVCS graduates: Will'16, Bennett '19 and Charlie '21.

Hollis Zimmer has been involved at Sun Valley Community School as a parent, Class Parent, Parents' Association Co-President and, most notably, Bingo caller.

Her background as a registered nurse allowed her to explore the mountains, living and working in ski towns, the Navajo and Ute Mountain Reservations, and California's Bay Area.  In California, she served as the Operating Room Director at Marin Specialty Surgery Center where she led the surgical team and the Surgery Center to its AAA Accreditation, the gold standard for the highest quality healthcare. 

Since moving to Sun Valley, Hollis has taught skiing, volunteered for Sun Valley Community School, and is presently working for Big Life Magazine.  She lives with her daughter, Eliza (Class of 2026) and husband Don.

Barbara W. Boswell has a love of and commitment to education. She holds a masters degree in administration and a doctorate in education and her teaching experiences spans third grade through college-level.

In addition to her role as a teacher and administrator, Barbara served on the board of the Paso Robles Joint Union High School District from 1981-1985 and was its chair for a period of time. She is a Life Trustee of Claremont McKenna College, an appointment she received in 2013 after serving as a Trustee for the college for 20 years.

Barbara moved to the Wood River Valley from Southern California in 1986 and has been a member of Community School's Board of Directors since 1993. She served two terms on the board before being appointed Chair of the Board and serving in that role from 1999-2001. During her tenure as Chair of the Board, Barbara led Campaign 2000, raising $6 million for the school, which funded the Student Activity Center, housing the gym and theatre. She has served as an emeritus member of the Board of Directors since 2001.

Michael Engl has been an active contributor to the arts and education for many years. He was Chairman of Board of Trustees of The Mountain School and was instrumental in the effort to merge that independent elementary school with Sun Valley Community School (at that time a Middle and Upper School) in 1988. He then served as the school's Chairman of the Board of Trustees for six years.

Michael has been actively involved with the Sun Valley Center for the Arts as a member of the Advisory Board and currently serves as President of The Lensic Performing Arts Center in Santa Fe. He also served on the Board of the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum in Santa Fe.

Michael was Dean and Chairman of the Visual Communications Division at New School University in New York and has spent many years managing and directing family trusts.

He received his BA from Williams College and completed graduate studies at Yale University and Columbia University.