A little about my family & me.

My husband, Patrick, and I were both raised in Ohio. We met in college and moved to Boston to start our lives together. When our oldest entered kindergarten, we grappled with how to provide the best education for our boys. That brought us back to Ohio for a few years. I joined the school board, Patrick coached soccer, and we both volunteered wherever and whenever we could. But the draw of Boston - and professional opportunities - had us packing a moving truck and heading east again. In 2018, like so many families before and since, we chose Westwood for its great schools and strong community. And thriving nightlife ;-) … just kidding, it was really for the fantastic schools and welcoming community.

I’m proud of the public education my boys are receiving in Westwood, and I’m committed to building for the future while sustaining our academic excellence today.

Professionally, I’ve spent the last 25 years in higher education at Harvard and MIT, helping my colleagues share their stories and reach their communications goals. Every day, I see the end result: students who are relentlessly experimental, who challenge convention and tempt failure; students who seek out new, diverse perspectives; and who collaborate with respect and curiosity. Students like these come from places like Westwood.

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Experience & Achievements:

Elected Member, Westwood School Committee (2023–Present)

Selected Highlights:

  • Championed a transparent, community‑driven facilities planning process, engaging families, educators, and taxpayers to prioritize Thurston Middle School for MSBA submission

  • Appointed to the District Strategic Planning Team, helping shape a three‑year framework aligned with Westwood’s Portrait of a Graduate

  • Represented WPS in 2025 negotiations with the WTA, reaching a fair agreement that respects educators and ensures fiscal sustainability—without work stoppage

  • Restored travel‑ and service‑based learning, expanding global, experiential opportunities for students, and strengthening educator‑student relationships

  • Opened Pine Hill Elementary School, delivering a state‑of‑the‑art, sustainable learning environment

  • Strengthened district‑wide technology education through a cohesive K–12 curriculum and the restoration of the TMS librarian position

  • Advocated for World Language and Performing Arts curricula, with expanded programming to be considered in FY 2028

  • Guided the successful onboarding of WPS Superintendent Tim Piwowar and Assistant Superintendent Caitlin Ahern

Coach & Family Liaison, Girls on the Run, Downey School (2024, 2025)

Invited to provide testimony for MA House Bill H.535 on Neurodiversity in Education (June 2023)

Thurston Middle School PTO, Co‑Chair (2022–23), Secretary (2021–22)

Selected Highlights:

  • Revitalized the Friday Night Fun initiative, launching grade‑specific events that foster student social connection

  • Secured a Holocaust survivor speaker to deepen learning in the Grade 8 Holocaust curriculum

  • Expanded parent engagement and support, growing the PTO Facebook community from dozens to 400+ members, and doubling PTO annual dues contributions by 48%

  • Served on the hiring committee for the new Dean of Students position at TMS

Contributed as an editor to the Inclusive Westwood public comment (2022)

Served as a District Board Member, Portage Collaborative Montessori School (2015–2018)

Chaired the PCMS Spring Gala (2016, 2017), raising a record $40,000

Professional Experience:

  • Senior Director, Communications, MIT Sloan School of Management

  • 25 years of communications leadership at MIT and Harvard

For more details about my professional experience, read my LinkedIn profile.

Testified on the Hill to support neurodiversity education

Girls on the Run coaches JoAnna French & Karla Ruiz

The Frenches and Dori Parmelee at Westwood Pride

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