Board of Directors

Jason Pressman, President, was appointed to the board in 2023, and re-appointed for a three-year term in 2024. He then ran for election in 2025 and was elected to the board.  He currently serves as the Board President, Chair of the Support and Evaluation Committee and recently served on the Committee on Trustees (CoT), chaired the Strategic Planning Committee and was also a member of the 2023 Head of School Search Committee. He is married to Jessica and their son Jack is currently in Betty’s class. This is their fifth year at Peninsula and the entire family loves the ethos of the school and is especially fond of the children-driven dynamics and deep commitment to progressive education. Jason attended a progressive school, The Park School in Brooklandville, MD, for middle and high schools and holds a strong belief that this type of education sets children up to have wonderful lives as adults and to be good stewards of the world. Jason earned his M.B.A. from Stanford Graduate School of Business and his B.S. in Finance from the University of Maryland, and is currently a managing director at Shasta Ventures and AZ-VC. In his free time, Jason is an avid scuba diver and a passionate supporter of ocean and shark conservation.

Nina Greenblatt, Vice President serves on the Executive Committee and as Chair of the Strategic Planning Committee, and was also a member of the 2023 Head of School Search Committee. Nina has extensive experience working with non-profits and consultancies in both professional and volunteer capacities, conducting community outreach, identifying opportunities to increase operational efficiencies, and overseeing learning and development initiatives to empower employee growth and to develop knowledge, skills, and capabilities to enhance organizational performance. She holds a B.S. in Psychology from Virginia Tech. As a Peninsula parent, Nina's contributions include co-chairing the Spring Fair in 2022 and 2023, serving on PoP as New Family Coordinator and as a Class Rep.

David Quinn, Secretary, serves on the Executive Committee and the Finance Committee and works as a facilities and operations professional in the biotech industry. David has been a member of Peninsula School's Board for over 20 years. In that time, he has served the school community as an involved and active participant in a number of committees including the Finance Committee, Building & Grounds Committee, Strategic Planning Committee, and the Executive Committee. Since 2018 David has served as the board-elected trustee of the Peninsula School Endowment & Trust Fund.  David’s two children, Caroline and Cole, are Peninsula alumni.

François Labonté, Treasurer, sits on the Executive Committee and the Finance Committee. François is a parent of a recent alumni and two children still going through Peninsula school. A native of Québec, he came to the Bay Area for his PhD in Electrical Engineering at Stanford where he met his wife, an educator, who introduced him to the benefits of progressive education. His wife, Jesse has been a head teacher in the Upper School at Peninsula since 2019. During the workdays he works on making networking gear that powers the internet. He has been a parent volunteer in the school investment working group since 2017.

Aileen Sweeney was appointed to the board in 2025 and serves on the Committee on Trustees. She is a current Peninsula parent and has been a member of the Peninsula Community since 2021 when her child Noah enrolled in kindergarten. Since then, Aileen, her spouse Fabio, and Noah have benefitted from the rich learning experiences facilitated by Peninsula’s dedicated, caring staff and the community of families and caregivers who are proactively engaged in creating a village of support and care for each other. Aileen earned her M.B.A. from Presidio Graduate School, a B.A. in Psychology and Political Economy from U.C. Berkeley, and has over 20 years of experience in marketing and engaging stakeholders to develop products and services. Aileen loves the sea, traveling, cooking, gardening, reading and taking notice of the small (and large) beauties around us.

Buddy James is a life-long educator and believes passionately in the mission of Peninsula School and power of a child-centered, diverse, and inclusive learning community. He holds a Bachelor of Music Education Degree, a Master of Fine Arts, and a Doctorate in Choral Music and has taught students at all levels, from kindergarten through graduate, in both public and private institutions. Buddy has served on many local and national boards, including a recent term on the school board of the Oakland School for the Arts, and is currently the Chair of the Department of Music at Cal State East Bay (formerly CSU Hayward) and conductor of the Schola Cantorum Silicon Valley and the San Francisco Bay Area Chamber Choir.

Casey Kellogg chairs the Development Committee and joined the board in 2023. A current Peninsula parent, her two children return home each day dirty and happy. Casey and her husband, Walker, were drawn to Peninsula for its child-centered pace and community values. Casey works in philanthropy, stewarding charitable gifts, facilitating global grant making, and managing high-performing teams. She grew up in San Francisco and made her way to East Palo Alto in 2013. Casey has an undergraduate degree in Creative Arts and a masters degree in Justice Studies, both from San Jose State University.

Davion Fleming was appointed to the board in 2020 and serves on the Support and Evaluation Committee and the DEIB Committee, and previously co-chaired the Head of School Search Committee. Davion has first-hand experience in the power of education and how it can change lives. A first-generation college graduate, Davion began his work in education at Northwestern University in admissions for 4 years. Davion has worked in progressive education for 6 years and currently serves as the Director of Admissions at Lick-Wilmerding High School. Davion believes a successful education should serve as a catalyst to change a student’s life and change how they engage in the world around them. Peninsula School’s progressive approach aligns well with this sentiment as Davion aspires change within himself but also for all students. Davion holds a degree in Philosophy and Religion as well as an advanced degree in Integrated Marketing Communication from Northwestern University, where he also played DIV-I football. Davion and his wife, Chynna, consider themselves amateur foodies and are ice cream enthusiasts who frequent Salt & Straw. When he is not gushing about his wife, Davion is gushing about his four-legged companion, Sophie. Davion is excited to be on Peninsula School’s board to help trail-blaze pathways to incite change and growth within the community.

Erik Beans is a dedicated member of the Committee on Trustees (CoT) and a proud parent to two Peninsula students. He and his wife sought out Peninsula School because of its progressive and independent education philosophy with an open play environment. Erik's educational background includes a B.S. in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from UC Berkeley and an M.B.A. from the UC Berkeley Haas School of Business. For over 23 years, Erik has excelled in the tech industry, serving as an engineering leader, most recently at Google. He has previous Board of Directors experience for the Italian American Heritage Foundation of San Jose and is interested in finance, software, real estate investing, and entrepreneurship. During his free time, he enjoys traveling with his family, watching movies, and gaming

Izumi Ueno joined the Board in 2024 and serves on the Committee on Trustees (COT). Originally from Japan, she graduated from Sophia University in Tokyo. She has gained extensive experience working in legal departments across Japanese, French, and American investment banks. She also dedicated several years to working as a fundraising officer for UNICEF. Izumi has been with the Peninsula Community since 2007 when her first kid started Nursery, and was a parent at the school until June 2023 when her youngest graduated. Izumi currently works as Office Manager at the school.

Justin McCarthy has been a member of the Peninsula Community since his son Kehau first rolled in the sand and mud of Nursery Green in 2011. Joining the board in 2023, Justin currently serves on the Strategic Planning Committee. Originally from Massachusetts, Justin attended Touchstone Community School, a progressive school founded by a passionate group of parents and educators who sought to create a learning experience that favored woodcrafts over worksheets. Professionally, Justin has always been a builder of products, teams, and businesses, most recently as the co-founder and CTO of StrongDM, creators of enterprise security software

Kathy Koo was appointed to the Board of Directors in 2023 and serves on the Support & Evaluation Committee. She is a proud parent of five Peninsula School alums, and has supported the school in a myriad of ways including as Interim Head of School (2012-2014), Business Director (2005-2012), Parent Board Member, Staff Representative to the Board, and on several committees including the Personnel Committee, Executive Committee of the Board, Facilities, Strategic Planning, and Development.
Kathy is Chief Financial Officer (CFO) at MedicAlert Foundation, and for the last 20 years has held leadership positions as CEO and/or CFO at both for profit and nonprofit organizations. She recently served as the Executive Director of Challenge Success, a nonprofit focused on research-based strategies supporting student well-being and academic engagement. Kathy holds a BA from University of California, San Diego, an MBA and Public Management Certificate from the Stanford Graduate School of Business, and a CPA from the California State Board of Accountancy

Keith Weng sits on the Finance Committee after serving on the Development Committee during his first year on the Board. Keith is a veteran of startups and corporate innovation, and grew up in British schools in Hong Kong with kids from 40 nations, and public schools outside Dayton, OH. He holds a B.S.E. in Computer Science from Princeton University. He co-founded two startups with exits, and has also survived startup failures and acquisitions, which fruitfully led to corporate innovation at Palm, LG and Silicon Valley Bank. Today he consults with startups and corporations, both directly and through venture studios.  He has worked as a professional photographer and sits on the board of his wife Philein's non-profit Ziru in the dance/arts world. Keith has volunteered previously with the Community Party and coordinating the Spring Fair Book Booth, and is grateful his son loves coming to school every day.

Lydia Meraz is a Peninsula School alumna (Class of ‘98) and current parent of an upper schooler and a preschooler who are both thriving at Peninsula School. She currently serves as chair of the Diversity Equity and Inclusion Committee and cares profoundly about Peninsula School, taking seriously the role of stewardship and bringing Peninsula forward into the next 100 years and beyond. She earned a BA from UCSC in American Studies with a minor in Education and Teaching and an MA from California Institute of Integral Studies (CIIS) in Counseling Psychology with an emphasis in Somatics. Lydia has been working at Peninsula School since 2020 first as an assistant teacher and now as the PK-8th grade Spanish teacher.  Before coming back to the Peninsula she lived in Mexico for 10+ years, the last 7 of which were spent teaching English and volunteering with migrants and deported folks at the US/Mexico border. Lydia enjoys teaching sewing during Summer at Peninsula and spends time reading, crafting and traveling whenever she gets the chance.

Maya Perkins has been a part of the Peninsula school community since starting Maida’s class (kindergarten), many years ago. Her daughter went to Peninsula and she was happy to see her child thriving in the same progressive educational environment she enjoyed as a child. Maya has professional background is in public policy, communications, and stakeholder engagement with an expertise in fostering understanding among diverse groups of people. Through her career, Maya’s worked in tech, nonprofits, and government. She is most fulfilled when addressing complex challenges, regardless of the sector. Maya, a native of both East Palo Alto and Palo Alto, holds a BA from Mount Holyoke College and a JD from Santa Clara University School of Law. She currently sits on the Committee on Trustees