2008-2009 Board Bios
Mike Alsup is an Information Technology Manager at Kiku Obata & Company. He has a B.A. in International Relations and a M.S. in Marketing and Business Administration from Mankato University. Mike also has a Masters in Business Administration from St. Louis University. He and his wife Pier have a son Justice, who is a 10th grader at Crossroads College Preparatory School.
Dick Brickson served as a lawyer and executive at Macy's for over 35 years, until his recently announced retirement. Dick served as the Board Chair for 14 years, from 1990 to 2004. Dick's three daughters graduated from Crossroads College Preparatory School. Jennifer ('92) went on to earn a B.A.degree from Carleton College, an A.A. degree from the Culinary Institute of America and an MBA from Rice University. Kate ('96) attended Oberlin College, earned a B.A. degree from Washington University, served in the Peace Corps, and earned a Masters in Public Health degree from Yale University. Evan ('00) attended Scripps College, earned a B.S. degree from Washington University and the Barnes-Jewish Nursing School and is working as a nurse. Dick graduated from Wabash College and Georgetown University Law Center. He and his wife, Marilyn, live in University City.
Jerry Dobson is the managing partner of Dobson, Goldberg, Moreland & Berns. Jerry has a B.A. from Washington University and a J.D. from George Washington University School of Law. He and his wife Carolyn have two sons Joe and David. David is an 11th grader at Crossroads College Prep.
Clarence Dula is originally a native of Lexington, North Carolina. He has lived in several states in the U.S. and Okinawa, Japan, where he was the Facilities Engineer for Camp Lester (Kuwae), Naval Hospital. He is one of the Senior Supervising Plumbing Engineers for Parsons Brinckerhoff (PB) here in St. Louis, MO. He has been with Parsons Brinckerhoff for 16 years, designing Plumbing systems for Municipalities/governmental facilities, transit centers, garages, casinos, airports, correctional, educational, and health care facilities. He is an Eagle Scout and Cub-Master of Pack 214. Currently Mr. Dula is one of the Commissioners for the Board of Elections in the City of St. Louis, MO. He has an MBA in Marketing and Finance from Webster University here in St. Louis, a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Texas Southern University in Houston, Texas; an A.S. in Plastics Tool Design and Quality Control from Laney College in Oakland, California. Mr. Dula has been married to his beautiful wife, Dr. Alison Nash, for 29 years. They are the parents of four children: Courtney, class of ’02, and Carole, class of ’03, from Crossroads College Prep. Their son Will is currently in the 8th grade at Crossroads College Prep. Homer is in fourth grade at New City School.
Frederick Falker: Fred is a Crossroads College Preparatory School parent twice over as the father of alumna Erin ‘06, who is a junior at Stanford University, and Aja, a Crossroads College Preparatory School alumna of '01 and a graduate of Cornell University. He is the president of Falker Consulting Group, Inc., a human resource development training and consulting firm. Founded in 1988, FCG specializes in the design, development, and delivery of performance management, customer service, and cultural diversity training programs. Among the organizations FCG has served are Ralston Purina Company, Tenet Health System, Ancilla Health System, BJC Health System and others. Fred has a M.A. in psychology from Washington University, where he also earned a B.A. in Psychology in 1973.
Susie Feinberg: Susie and her husband Dan own Daniel B. Feinberg, a real estate business located in the historic Skinker-DeBaliviere neighborhood. Their granddaughter Sydney, class of ’07 at Crossroads College Prep, is currently attending Butler University.
Lynn Grossman is an architect with more than 15 years of experience. She and her husband Carter have a daughter Anna, who is in the 12th grade at Crossroads College Prep.
William B. Handmaker is the Head of School since 1996. He holds an MAT from Washington University in Teaching/History, was Middle East Studies Fellow from the University of Texas, and he has a BA in Political Science/History from George Washington University. He lives with his wife Betul Ozmat and they have two children, Simon and Lev. Billy is a resident of the Skinker/DeBaliviere community.
Irene Holubec is a community volunteer. Irene and her husband, Abe Gootzeit, have lived in University City since 1987. They have two children, Julia, Crossroads College Prep class of 2006, currently attending Oberlin College, and Josh who is a graduate of Brown University currently working on his PhD at the University of Iowa. Irene has a BS in Mathematics from Angelo State University and an MBA from the University of Houston.
Dan Jay is an architect and serves as a principal for Christner, a local design firm. Dan is the father of one Crossroads College Prep senior, Michael, and two alumni, David ’00 and Laura ‘03. He and his wife Mary Ann, a former board member, live in the Central West End and love Crossroads College Prep.
Mike Kneipman is Vice President of Employee Benefits at Holmes Murphy & Associates. Mike was the Principal and Owner of Corporate Benefit Strategies, which he founded as a partner until it was acquired by Holmes Murphy & Associates. He has an Masters in Business Administration from St. Louis University and a B.S. in Business Administration from Southern Illinois University. Mike is a member of the College Book Stores of America Board, CLO Management Board, Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Missouri Brokers Advisory Board, and United Healthcare Board.
Susan Lanigan: Susan is the Chair of the Board of Trustees, and she is the President of Susan B. Lanigan, LLC, a consulting firm. Susan has been a consultant to private industry for over a decade, and she has worked with a variety of organizations. She has also served on the board of other non-profit organizations. Susan holds a Masters Degree in Computer Resources and Information Management from Webster University and a Bachelors Degree in Sociology from the University of Missouri-St. Louis. Susan, her husband Ed, and their son Eric live in University City, and Eric, class of ‘06 of Crossroads College Preparatory School is currently attending the University of Puget-Sound.
Paula J. Lemerman currently represents the County Assessor and Collector in real estate and personal property valuation appeals before the State Tax Commission. She has served as an Associate County Counselor in the Office of the St. Louis County Counselor since 1984. Paula has a J. D. from St. Louis University and B.A. in political science and economics from the University of Vermont. Paula has served several terms on the Board of Trustees of her congregation, Brith Sholom Kneseth Israel, where she is a member and past-chairperson of the Ritual Committee. Currently, she coordinates the scheduling of the “Gliding Gabbai” volunteers, who organize participation during the weekly Shabbat morning service. Paula has served on many community boards in the last 35 years, mostly with groups concerned with housing and neighborhood redevelopment issues as well as the board of the Solomon Schechter Day School. In the past she informally chaired the Crossroads College Prep PRO’s “Caring Families Committee,” which involved coordinating the provision of dinners for families that were experiencing an illness or other crisis. Paula is the mother of two Crossroads College Prep students Micah, Class of 2008, and Rachel, a sophomore. Paula, her husband Stewart Shilcrat, and their children live in the Forest Park Southeast neighborhood of St. Louis City with their cat Rembrandt.
Barbara Little is a pension consultant with JPMorgan Compensation and Benefit Strategies. She graduated from the University of Missouri with a BS in Mathematics. Barbara has served Crossroads College Prep in various capacities from the Gala Committee to the Finance Committee. Barbara and her husband, Mont Little, have two children, Elle and Nicolas, a junior at Crossroads College Prep.
Anne Lowell is the Interim Executive Director of South Side Day Nursery, an early head start and head start program on the south side of St. Louis. She has a Masters in Business Administration from Yale School of Management and a B.A. in Economics from Oberlin College. Anne and her husband Jeff have two daughters, Rebecca a senior, and Johanna, a sophomore, both at Crossroads College Preparatory School.
Trudy Palmer is a senior writer and editor in the Marketing Department at Principia, a school for Christian Scientists serving pre-school through college students. She has also taught American literature at the undergraduate and graduate level, managed the editorial process at a weekly magazine, and worked as an Assistant Dean at Washington University. In her spare time, Trudy enjoys reading and writing personal essays, taking road trips, and spending time with her daughter, Grace, who is a member of the class of 2010.
Zoila Rendon-Ochoa is an alumna of Crossroads College Preparatory School class of ’96. Zoila has a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Spanish Literature from The University of Chicago. She is working on her Masters in Social Work at Washington University and working at The Hope Clinic for Women Ltd. She and her husband Tino live in St. Louis.
Stuart Slavin is Associate Dean for Curriculum at St. Louis University School of Medicine. He worked as a pediatrician at UCLA for more than 20 years before returning home to St. Louis in 2004. His wife Helene is an artist. The Slavins have two daughters, the older - Alana, is currently in the 9th grade at Crossroads College Prep, and Natasha is in the 6th grade at New City School.
Mark Waldman: Mark is President and CEO of Laurie's Shoes, founded by the Waldman family. He and his wife, Donna, have three children, including Marni, Crossroads College Preparatory School '03, and a recent alumna from Bradley University. Donna is the owner of Just Me Apparel. Mark and Donna were the chair and co-chair of Gala 2000.
Henry Warshaw serves on the Board of Directors, and he is the founder and president of Virtual Realty Enterprises LLC, a real estate operating company. Henry has been Chairman of the Board of Enterprise Bank in Clayton, MO and currently serves on the Bank's holding company (including the compensation committee, audit committee, and executive committee). Enterprise financial service company is a publicly traded company with assets of over $1.5 billion. Henry holds a MBA degree from Washington University. He serves as Chairman of the Temple Emanuel Investment Committee and as Vice-chairman of the Alumni Board of Governors at Washington University. Henry and his wife Susan live in St. Louis with daughter Ellie and son Jake, who is a sophomore at Crossroads College Prep.
Rob Wild is the Assistant to Chancellor Mark S. Wrighton at Washington University. Rob has a B.A. from Washington University in Biology and African and African-American Studies. In addition, he has earned a Ph.D. in Education from the University of Missouri - St. Louis. Rob spent two years as a middle school science teacher in New York City as a Teach For America corps member. However, he has worked most of his professional career in higher education at both the University of Wisconsin and Washington University. Rob and his wife Angie have three small children and live in Richmond Heights.