Richard Vitale, President
Mr. Vitale was born and reared in Dallas, Texas and is a proud graduate Woodrow Wilson High School, Class of 1991. He earned his undergraduate degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Mr. Vitale joined a Bank of America predecessor company in 1994, and upon graduation, he returned to North Texas with the Bank. He currently is a Senior Vice President at Bank of America and leads the Bank’s Not-for-Profit Healthcare and Institutions Practice for North and Central Texas. He is Founding President of the Woodrow Wilson High School Community Foundation.
Gary Griffith, Vice President
Gary Griffith was elected to the Dallas City Council in May 2003 and served two terms through June 2007. He believes strongly in community service and gives his volunteer time by serving on a variety of boards for charitable organizations in Dallas. Mr Griffith grew up in East Dallas and is a proud graduate of Woodrow Wilson High School, Class of 1966.
Leigh Peden Straughn, Secretary
A longtime East Dallas resident, Leigh Peden Straughn attended Lakewood Elementary, K.B. Polk Elementary, J.L. Long Middle School and Woodrow Wilson High School (Class of 1991). Before leaving the workforce to spend more time with her family, Leigh worked as a management consultant in the Houston office of McKinsey & Company and as a director in the advertising department of The Dallas Morning News. In addition to keeping up with her four active sons and her spouse, she devotes significant time to activities and causes in support of public education. Leigh presently serves on the boards of the Lakewood Early Childhood PTA, the William B. Travis PTA, and Lakewood Elementary’s SBDM Committee and PTA. She also volunteers through the Children & Family Ministry at The Church of the Incarnation. She graduated magna cum laude from Rice University and holds an MBA from The Wharton School at The University of Pennsylvania.
Lauren Berryman, Treasurer
Lauren Berryman grew up in Lakewood and attended Lakewood Elementary, JL Long Middle School and Woodrow Wilson High School. She received an undergraduate and Masters degree in Accounting from Texas A&M University and is a licensed CPA. She spent 8 years at PwC in the tax department serving high net worth individuals and family offices before accepting a position as Tax Director for Petrus Trust Company, the family office for Ross Perot. Lauren lives in Lake Highlands with her husband, Ben and their 3 boys Luke, Beau and Banks. She enjoys spending time with her family, reading new books and exercising.
Dr. Kimberly Benavides
Dr. Kimberly Benavides is a passionate educational leader with over 20 years of direct experience in public schools as a teacher and elementary principal. Kimberly’s work with students, families, and the community is fueled by her unwavering belief that children are our greatest asset, and literacy is the key to self-confidence and opportunity. She holds a bachelor’s degree in education from Texas Tech University, a master’s degree in educational leadership and policy studies from the University of Texas at Arlington, and earned her doctorate of education in organizational leadership at Abilene Christian University where her research focused on the sustainability of school-community partnerships. As executive director of Reading Partners North Texas, Kimberly leads a highly effective team of staff, AmeriCorps members, and community volunteers who provide 1:1 literacy intervention across Dallas and Fort Worth in 21 schools.
Elizabeth Fritze Cheek
Elizabeth Fritze Cheek spent her childhood in East Dallas before moving out west. She returned home in 2009 to help open Teach For America – Dallas. She spent over a decade at TFA and then, UNT Dallas, working adjacent to Dallas public schools training new teachers and leading university-school-nonprofit partnerships. Today, she volunteers with Lakewood Elementary and Girl Scouts. Together with husband Jeff, she enjoys the sweet chaos of life with three young children and two crazy dogs.
Adam Flores
A lifelong educator and school leader, Adam grew up in Minneapolis, MN, and spent much of his youth trudging around the wilds of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area in Northern MN. He left the Midwest to earn his B.A. in History from Colorado State University, where he also obtained his teaching certificate. On the weekends and summers, he lived and worked in Estes Park, CO, where he further his love for adventure sports – rock climbing, mountain biking and back-country camping. As a teacher in Denver, Adam found any opportunity to get his students outside and into the mountains – going so far as to start a weekend club that brought students on ski and climbing trips. After some time as an administrator in Denver, Adam moved to Dallas to become the founding principal for Texas’s first EL Education high school. Seeing a need to provide more youth with the opportunity to get outside and experience the outdoors, Adam has spent the last few years getting Roam Wild up and running, while also continuing to support educational efforts in Dallas ISD. When Adam isn’t working for the district or on RW, he’s probably outside with his wife, Ashley, and newborn son, Arty.
Karla Guadalupe García
Karla Guadalupe García is proudly Dallas-born and a graduate of the Dallas Independent School District. The daughter of Mexican immigrants, she was the first in her family to attend college and studied public policy and entrepreneurship at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.Her experiences in the public school system and opportunities realized through higher education helped solidify her aspirations to address the inequities in education and to serve in public office. Upon returning to Dallas, Garcia joined the Dallas County Promise, an initiative working to make a college education possible for all students. From this experience, Garcia was inspired to run for the Dallas ISD school board to represent her local community. She was elected in June of 2019 and became both the youngest and first Latina Trustee in the history of Dallas ISD.
Garcia was honored as the 2020 Champion Volunteer by the League of Women Voters of Dallas and 2020 Young Leader by the Texas Women’s Foundation.
Jennifer Wheeler Hall
Jennifer Wheeler Hall is a Native Texan, born and raised in East Dallas, and is a 1993 graduate of Woodrow Wilson High School, where she was a proud member of the Choir, Variations, Musicals, Spanish Club, Key Club, Woods & Waters, Principal’s Council, and Captain of the beloved drill team, the Sweethearts. After attending Abilene Christian University, Jennifer began working alongside her parents, Susan and Larry Thompson, at their jingle recording studio, Thompson Creative. While at Thompson Creative, Jennifer was offered a position as a Media Buyer/Copywriter with The Northway Group/Core Group Advertising Agencies and became the youngest media buyer/copywriter in Firm history where she stayed for over 15 years. During this time, Jennifer was also on the Board of American Women in Radio and Television, as well as a member of SAG/AFTRA.
Jennifer’s next career endeavor came at a time when her four children were in elementary and middle school, and it became clear that she needed to work around their schedules. So, she decided to take a job as the Front Office Secretary at RISD’s Lake Highlands Junior High School in Northeast Dallas, which allowed her to pick up her children and spend time with them after school and in the summers. Jennifer stayed at LHJH for 6 years, until her oldest graduated from Lake Highlands High School in 2013.
In 2014, Jennifer and her husband, David, decided to move back to the Lakewood area of East Dallas, where her three younger children could attend Woodrow and its feeder pattern of stellar schools. Jennifer took a position, right in the heart of Lakewood, at McBee & Co., PC, a certified public accounting firm, as their Administrative Office Manager/Peer Reviewer where she is still employed today. Jennifer has been involved in numerous PTAs, committees, charity foundations, and organizations over the years, but those nearest and dearest to her heart are The Woodrow Alumni Association, where she currently serves as Board Secretary, and WoodrowFest, where she has been on various committees for over 8 years
Jeff Kitner
Jeff Kitner serves as the Chief Operating Officer of the North Dallas Chamber of Commerce. Prior to joining the NDCC, Jeff was a litigation/regulatory attorney and partner with Jackson Walker. Jeff is actively involved in local civic initiatives, including as the City Council District 11 representative to the Dallas Park and Recreation Board, President of Friends of the Northaven Trail, and with DISD on the Kramer Elementary SBDM. Jeff has been an active and engaged member of the Woodrow Wilson High School Community Foundation’s Scholarship Advisory Committee for a handful of years. A native of Dallas, Jeff is a graduate of Emory University and the University of Texas School of Law
Evie Krimm
Evie Krimm is a life long Lakewood resident, coming from a multi-generational family line of East Dallasites. She attended Lakewood Elementary School, J.L. Long Middle School, and Woodrow Wilson High School (class of 2006), as did her husband, two sisters, father, aunt, and grandfather. Evie attended the University of Texas where she graduated summa cum laude with a degree in Finance and Accounting. She has spent the last 14 years of her career in banking and is currently a Managing Director at Regions Bank in the Dallas office. She also serves on the board of the Lakewood Early Childhood PTA and is involved in the parent association of Incarnation Academy. Evie lives in Lakewood with her husband and high school sweetheart, Zach, and their two young boys, Henry and Joey. She loves spending time with family and friends, traveling, audiobooks, trying new local spots, and working on her boy mom skills.
Taylor Johnson
Taylor Johnson grew up in Lakewood and attended Lakewood Elementary, J. L. Long Middle School, and Woodrow Wilson High School. She received and undergraduate degree from Boston College and M.Ed. from SMU. Taylor has 12 years of experience in Dallas ISD as a teacher and instructional coach and currently works at SMU in the Center on Research and Evaluation. She lives in Lakewood with her husband and three young kids and enjoys spending time with family, reading, and cooking.
Alison Kreher
Alison Kreher serves as the Director of Investor Relations at United to Learn (U2L). Originally from Tampa, Alison moved to Dallas in 2018 to join the Teach For America (TFA). Alison worked with TFA for five years, first as a fourth-grade teacher and later on the recruitment team, before joining U2L. She is the proud product of K-12 public education and loves supporting community members in finding meaningful ways to engage in their neighborhood schools. A fun fact about Alison is that she dreams of one day becoming a contestant on Survivor.
Adam Miller
Adam Miller is currently the Chief Financial Officer for Matthews Southwest, a full-service private real estate development company with operations throughout the United States, Canada, and EMEA. He has been a member of the Woodrow Wilson High School Community Foundation Scholarship Committee for four years. Adam has a passion for education and an interest in supporting the DISD feeder system in East Dallas. He has a Bachelor of Science in Finance from Butler University and a Master of Science in Accountancy from the University of Notre Dame. He and his wife, Natalie, live with their two boys in East Dallas.
Lauren Miskin
Dr. Lauren Miskin is an eighth-grade English teacher and advisor at the Hockaday School in Dallas. At Hockaday, she sponsors the middle school literary club, Banner, and will be directing the creation of a middle school writing center next year. She has also reimagined the English curriculum as a social impact course that serves the broader Dallas community through partnerships with local elementary schools. Prior to Hockaday, Lauren was the Hughes Postdoctoral Fellow at Southern Methodist University where she designed and taught several literature classes, chaired a lecture series committee, organized annual events for the women’s and gender studies program, selected keynote speakers, and managed the events’ budgets and funds. She holds a PhD in English Literature from Southern Methodist University, an MA in English Literature from Drew University, and a BA in English Literature from the College of New Jersey.
Sarah Nicholson
Sarah Nicholson has worked in communications for nearly 20 years, promoting entities ranging from startups to well-known consumer brands. She’s specialized in communications strategy and copywriting, with an emphasis on media relations. Since returning to Dallas, her hometown, in 2009, Sarah’s worked within agencies and as a freelancer. Sarah and her husband live in East Dallas with their three daughters. As a volunteer, Sarah has been an active member her church, Vice President of then-Stonewall Gardens, and an executive board member of the PTAs at Mockingbird Elementary and JL Long Middle School. She is PTA President for JL Long for 2018-19, and from now until 2021, she will have children at Mockingbird, Long and WWHS. Sarah’s a graduate of Randolph-Macon Woman’s College in Lynchburg, Virginia, where she studied politics.
Eric Schenkelberg
Eric Schenkelberg is vice president of operations for the YMCA of Metropolitan Dallas. He began his career with the YMCA 26 years ago in a small town in Iowa and after several years of running youth sports, adult sports and summer day camp, Eric moved to Dallas and worked as a program director at the Irving YMCA (a branch under the umbrella of the YMCA of Metropolitan Dallas). He then worked as executive director in Abilene for four years, and later moved to Arlington to serve as vice president of the YMCA. While there, he opened a new building and renovated two others. After that, Eric moved to Houston for six years before returning to Dallas and the White Rock YMCA, which is also a branch under the umbrella of the YMCA of Metropolitan Dallas.
Leticia Tudon
Leticia Tudon leads The Concilio’s Programs team. Leticia is an immigrant who has resided in Dallas for over 25 years. During her time in Dallas, she has worked in the nonprofit sector for 10 years to improve student access to college, immigration advocacy, parental engagement, and community outreach. She is a UT Arlington Alumna with a degree focus in Social Justice. Through her work at The Concilio, she believes we support our families to plant the seed for brighter futures to help them and their next generation reap those benefits by meeting them where they are.
Liz Ward
Liz Ward grew up in Lakewood and attended Lakewood Elementary, J. L. Long Middle School, and Woodrow Wilson High School. She received an undergraduate degree in early childhood education from the University of Texas at Austin, and a M.Ed in early literacy from SMU. Liz was a member of Teach for America and has taught in public and charter schools for 12 years, most recently at Lakewood Elementary. She lives in Lakewood with her husband and new baby girl.
Sarah Weinberg
Sarah Weinberg was elected as the District 2 representative to the Dallas ISD Board of Trustees in June 2023. Sarah is a proud product of Texas public schools and has long been an education advocate. In addition to grassroots volunteer roles, Sarah has served in numerous governance positions for non-profit organizations. Her variety of experiences reveal a focus on education, including serving children from all socioeconomic backgrounds. In 2019, she served as Chief Strategy Officer for United to Learn, a non-profit connecting Dallas ISD schools to resources through public-private partnerships, culminating in the creation of a bold strategic plan to positively impact student math and literacy outcomes in over 50 neighborhood schools. Through the years, Sarah and her family have been committed volunteers in Dallas ISD schools. Sarah participated in the Leadership ISD Dallas Class of 2014 and received the 2014 Leadership ISD Dallas Community Fellow of the Year Award, as well as SMU’s Budd Center for Involving Communities in Education 2014 Community Builder Award. A graduate of the University of Texas at Austin, Sarah holds both Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designations. She had a career in investments prior to 2006, and is married with three grown children.
Kiley White
Kiley White is a true Dallasite as her family has been in the Lakewood area of Dallas for over 5 generations. She attended Lakewood Elementary School, J.L. Long Middle School and Woodrow Wilson High School following in the footsteps of her grandfather, father (Tom Crabb, class of ’71), aunt, and many cousins. Her daughter is now carrying on the tradition as a fourth generation DISD student and second grader at Lakewood Elementary. Post high school she attended Texas Tech University graduating with a degree in Public Relations and Spanish and settled in Dallas to pursue advertising. Kiley is an active member within the community, currently serving as Parliamentarian for the Lakewood Early Childhood PTA, Recording Secretary and Upper Grades Retention Chair for the Lakewood Elementary PTA and the Wishlist Chair for Lakewood Elementary’s SBDM Committee. In 2022/23 she served as President of the Lakewood Early Childhood PTA (LECPTA), which was extra special as her mother, Debbie Crabb, served as LECPTA President 30 years before in 1993. Kiley, her husband Jason, daughter Emma and puppy Lily love living and serving in Lakewood. While not volunteering, momming and wifing, Kiley stays busy as the owner of her own marketing consultancy business, Kiley White Marketing Consulting, cooking & entertaining for friends and family, and crossing off new countries on her bucket list.
Leah Ekmark Williams
Leah Ekmark Williams is a seasoned PR strategist and tactician, serving as president of Dala Communications, a full-service public relations agency. An accredited PR professional, Leah’s expertise lies in creating and implementing communications campaigns for B2B and B2C clients in industries ranging from real estate, construction and engineering to healthcare, financial services and retail. She excels at developing integrative media relations strategies that combine traditional communications campaigns with digital/social media plans. Named to the Dallas Business Journal Top 40 Under 40 2018 list, Leah is committed to giving back and mentoring others through her involvement in professional and industry organizations including Big Brothers Big Sisters, PRSA Dallas and Leadership Dallas 2019.