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Board of Trustees

Pine Point School is incorporated as an entity with all school parents, employees, and trustees as voting members of the corporation. The Board of Trustees is the primary governing body of Pine Point School and is charged with adopting, fulfilling, and promoting the mission of the School. The Board is comprised of devoted individuals who work collaboratively for the long-term success and viability of Pine Point School.

The major responsibilities of the Board include:

  • Fiduciary Health – serve as stewards of the School’s financial assets to ensure long term stability
  • Strategic Planning – engage in institutional goal setting and evaluation for current and future constituencies
  • Policy Review – oversee the development, review, and implementation of institutional policies to reflect the mission and intention of the School
  • Leadership – select, advise, and evaluate the Head of School and engage in succession planning for School and Board leadership

Executive Committee 2023-2024:

President: Megan M. Hodgson
Vice President: Jeffrey P’an
Vice President: Phil Iredale
Treasurer: Jenny Wronowski
Secretary: Thomas J. Capalbo, III ’98

Trustees

Thomas J. Capalbo, III ’98

Thomas J. Capalbo, III, Esq., attended Kindergarten through 9th grade at Pine Point, graduating in 1998. In 2005, he was awarded a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration degree, with a concentration in Finance, from The Catholic University of America. While at Catholic University, Attorney Capalbo was a member of the varsity lacrosse team.

Matthew Corbett

Matthew Corbett and family enthusiastically joined the Pine Point School community upon the start of his daughters’ academic journey here in fall of 2021. Matthew currently resides in Mystic with Keira (grade 3), Sophie (grade 2) and his partner Crystal Bashore (grade A+), but has been living in southeastern CT since 2001.

Harvey DeMovick, III ’87

Harvey DeMovick, III is an architect at Arnold Design Group and DeMovick Design & Development which, specializes in coastal residential design. He lives in Westerly, RI with his wife Susan and their three children, Harvey ’20, Reagan ’23, and Daphne. Harvey attended Pine Point School for 10 years and is a member of the Class of ’87.

Jessica Duda

Jessica Duda is an experienced corporate and business development professional and has spent her career in the life sciences industry. She has provided advisory services to a wide range of early stage healthcare companies. She is currently an advisor with Red Sky Partners, LLC. Recently, she has also stepped into the role of Interim Director of Operations of the Master of Engineering Management (MEM) Program at the Thayer School of Engineering at Dartmouth College.

Tony Featherston

Tony Featherston has been a leader in independent school education for 30+ years. As a longtime faculty member for the NAIS Diversity Leadership Institute and for five years as the lead facilitator of the Institute for New Heads, he has extensive experience cultivating leaders in schools. His leadership in the area of diversity and inclusion and as a regular presenter at the People of Color Conference informs his work in schools, with school leadership, and boards of trustees.

Germaine Gurr

Germaine Gurr is a partner in White & Case’s global M&A practice in New York. Germaine advises clients on mergers and acquisitions, private equity, securities offerings, capital raising opportunities, joint venture and commercial transactions, and general corporate matters. She also regularly advises global companies on legal and business considerations in corporate and commercial transactions, operational structuring and management, and compliance and governance matters.

Megan Hodgson

Megan (MacDonald) Hodgson is a professional project manager, with experience in managing cross-functional, multi-year, high-value projects in real estate and financial services. At Fidelity Investments, Megan was Director of Project Management, responsible for product development initiatives within Fidelity’s retail brokerage business.

Phil Iredale

Phil Iredale did his PhD and a brief post-doc in signal transduction mechanisms in the Central Nervous System (CNS) at the University of Nottingham in the UK. In 1994 he joined the Duman/Nestler lab at Yale, investigating the molecular regulation of corticotrophin releasing factor receptors and, exploring the role the receptor plays in withdrawal from drugs of abuse.

Sara Kearney

Sara Kearney is the founder and CEO of Styleaid, a New York City based styling consultancy. Since founding Styleaid in 2016, she has served private clients with styling advice for everyday personal and business attire as well as event and media appearances. Sara takes pride in offering a curated and full-service experience, in a fun, unpretentious, no-pressure environment.

James Nicholas

James is the owner of St. Clair Annex Restaurant in Watch Hill, Rhode Island. He is the fourth generation of his family to have operated the business; doing so continually since 1887. James’ father George attended Pine Point School, graduating as President of his class in 1968. His grandmother, Irene, worked as a teacher at Pine Point School for over 10 years from the early 1960s, until her retirement in 1977.

Jeffrey P’an

Jeffrey P’an studied engineering, industrial design, sculpture and writing at Syracuse University, University of Connecticut, and Connecticut College before leaving school to pursue his passion for glass. He spent time on the island of Murano studying glass and right away upon his return founded prescient studios as an outlet for his creative experimentation.

Starr White Snead ’66

Starr White Snead is the founder and principal of Advancement Connections, a firm dedicated to serving advancement professionals and volunteers in schools throughout the United States and internationally.

Erin Wright ’91

Erin Wright is a Senior HR Business Partner with Rhode Island’s largest healthcare provider, Lifespan. She believes passionately in DEIB, peaceful conflict resolution, and the power of kindness. To this end, she chairs the HR Committee of the Nonviolence Institute board and volunteers her time with The Center for Mediation and Collaboration Rhode Island.

Jenny Wronowski

Jenny has been doing daily carpool trips to Pine Point School since 2007. She lives in Mystic with her husband, Adam, and their four children. Peter, Joseph and Cecelia are current Pine Point School students and John Paul is an alumnus.

AJ Zimbelmann

A.J. (Andrew) Zimbelmann has been a Pine Point parent for 14 years, and is the father of two Pine Point graduates (Thomas and Oonagh) and current Pine Point student Cecilia (9th grade). His wife of 24 years, Sue, was a Pine Point trustee for six years.

TJ Capalbo ’98

Thomas J. Capalbo, III, Esq., attended Kindergarten through 9th Grade at Pine Point, graduating in 1998. In 2005, he was awarded a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration degree, with a concentration in Finance, from The Catholic University of America. While at Catholic University, Attorney Capalbo was a member of the varsity lacrosse team. In 2008, Attorney Capalbo was awarded the degree of Juris Doctor from Massachusetts School of Law. Attorney Capalbo then began working as an Associate for the Law Office of Capalbo, Capalbo & Hartford in Westerly, Rhode Island. Attorney Capalbo is licensed to practice law in both Rhode Island and Connecticut. In 2017, Attorney Capalbo was named Partner at his Firm.

Attorney Capalbo has served as both an Alternate Member and Full Member on the Town of Westerly Zoning Board of Review for a tenure of four years. Additionally, in 2014, Attorney Capalbo was appointed as the Town Solicitor for the Town of Westerly. Appointed by the Westerly Town Council, the Town Solicitor serves as chief legal counsel for the Westerly Town Council, the Town Manager and Town Department Heads.

Since 2011, Attorney Capalbo has also been a participant and supporter of the Westerly Area Youth Lacrosse program through his involvement as an assistant U-14 boys lacrosse coach. Attorney Capalbo has been serving as a member of the Board of Trustees at Pine Point since 2020.

Attorney Capalbo and his wife, Perrilea, live in Westerly with their two sons, Thomas J. Capalbo, IV, a current third grade student at Pine Point, and Vincent Capalbo, a current kindergarten student at Pine Point.

Matthew Corbett

Matthew Corbett and family enthusiastically joined the Pine Point School community upon the start of his daughters’ academic journey here in fall of 2021. Matthew currently resides in Mystic with Keira (grade 3), Sophie (grade 2) and his partner Crystal Bashore (grade A+), but has been living in southeastern CT since 2001. Matthew grew up in Hamden, CT, attending Hamden High School, moved on to Boston University, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in organic chemistry, then landed a job at Pfizer Inc. in Groton, CT, as a synthetic organic chemist. As a
Principal Scientist still with Pfizer Inc., Matthew continues to pursue his love of chemistry, science, and medicine. Through his career he has made countless contributions to the identification, synthesis, and delivery of numerous novel drug molecules towards several disease areas including oncology, diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis and more. While Matthew is not saving lives at the laboratory bench, you can find him on the beach playing volleyball, on his couch watching Ted Lasso, on a local hiking trail, or dining at one of our local foodie restaurants. Above all else, though, Matthew can’t get enough of spending time with his beautiful family.

Harvey DeMovick III ’87

Harvey is an architect at Arnold Design Group and DeMovick Design & Development which specializes in coastal residential design. He lives in Westerly, RI with his wife Susan and their three children, Harvey ’20, Reagan ’23, and Daphne.

Harvey attended Pine Point School for 10 years and is a member of the Class of ’87. He attended Westminster School in Simsbury, CT, Class of 1990. After Westminster, he attended Gettysburg College and earned a B.A. in political science with a minor in studio art. He then went to the Catholic University of America to complete his master’s degree in architecture and urban planning.

Harvey previously served on the Pine Point School Board of Trustees from 2003-2006 and is currently a member of the Board of Trustees at Westminster School. In addition to serving on several local boards and building committees, Harvey is a Former Commodore of the Watch Hill Yacht Club and was a Member of the Board of Directors for thirteen years from 2005 to 2018.

Jessica Duda

Jessica Duda is an experienced corporate and business development professional and has spent her career in the life sciences industry. She has provided advisory services to a wide range of early stage healthcare companies. She is currently an Advisor with Red Sky Partners, LLC. Recently, she has also stepped into the role of Interim Director of Operations of the Master of Engineering Management (MEM) Program at the Thayer
School of Engineering at Dartmouth College. Jessica is responsible for ongoing
delivery, maintenance, growth and evolution of the MEM program. She advises current students, support connections with alumni and fosters engagements with industry Partners.

Formerly, Jessica was a Director of Business Development at Harvard University’s Office of Technology Development (OTD) where she supported the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering in its efforts to translate cutting edge innovations into commercial outcomes by completing licensing and collaboration deals with biotech and pharma companies. She has extensive experience with intellectual property protection, strategic portfolio planning and the structuring and negotiating of licensing agreements.
Prior to joining OTD, she worked with the team at Third Rock Ventures to found NinePoint Medical, a platform imaging company, where she was the first employee driving early stage company operations and business development. Earlier in her career, Jessica gained corporate development, regulatory, and manufacturing experience at Cyberkinetics, a neurotechnology company, and experience in venture capital as an
Associate at Polaris Ventures Partners.

Jessica earned an AB degree from Dartmouth College and BE, MS and MEM degrees from Thayer School of Engineering at Dartmouth College.

Tony Featherston

Tony Featherston has been a leader in independent school education for 30+ years. As a longtime faculty member for the NAIS Diversity Leadership Institute and for five years as the lead facilitator of the Institute for New Heads, he has extensive experience cultivating leaders in schools. His leadership in the area of diversity and inclusion and as a regular presenter at the People of Color Conference informs his work in schools, with school leadership, and boards of trustees. Additionally, he has served on several school and association boards over the last 15 years. During his career in schools, Tony especially enjoyed nurturing a strong school culture. Now as a consultant who assists schools with their leadership searches, he misses the ability to be deeply entrenched in a single school’s culture but enjoys the opportunity to have impact on the culture of independent schools more broadly.

Tony spent 12 years in headship at Elmwood Franklin School in Buffalo and The Town School in Manhattan. Prior to his headships, he spent five years as the Middle School Director at Pine Point. His two children also attended PPS and the whole family has stayed close to the school over the years. Prior to Pine Point, Tony held senior administrative positions at Kent Denver School and Concord Academy. He started his career at Concord as a history teacher, dorm parent, and coach. Tony received a BA from Boston College and MAT from Brown University.

Germaine Gurr

Germaine Gurr is a partner in White & Case’s global M&A practice in New York. Germaine advises clients on mergers and acquisitions, private equity, securities offerings, capital raising opportunities, joint venture and commercial transactions, and general corporate matters. She also regularly advises global companies on legal and business considerations in corporate and commercial transactions, operational structuring and management, and compliance and governance matters. Germaine has extensive experience in the energy industry, as well as the infrastructure, software, information technology, retail, healthcare, education and telecommunications sectors.

Germaine previously served as vice president and deputy general counsel at a global Fortune 500 energy management and automation company where she was responsible for and managed all of the company’s corporate transactions and corporate governance matters.

Germaine is listed among The Deal’s “Top Women in Dealmaking for M&A” in 2021 and was named “M&A Legal Advisor of the Year” by The M&A Advisor in 2020. She is listed in Euromoney’s Women in Business Law Guide and Euromoney’s Expert Guide for Corporate/ M&A in the United States in 2020.

  • Bars and Courts
  • New York State Bar
  • Education
  • JD University of Michigan Law School
  • BA Simmons College
  • Languages
  • English
  • Spanish
Megan Hodgson

Megan (MacDonald) Hodgson is a professional Project Manager, with experience in managing cross-functional, multi-year, high-value projects in real estate and financial services.

At Fidelity Investments, Megan was Director of Project Management, responsible for product development initiatives within Fidelity’s retail brokerage business. Megan has managed large project teams across technology, compliance, finance, and distribution.

As an advisor to Windham Mountain Partners, Megan was responsible for projects to diversify the experience offerings at Windham Mountain Resort. She oversaw the design, construction, staffing, and launch of a wellness facility, the acquisition of a golf course, and multiple infrastructure upgrade projects focused on improving the guest experience.

Megan is the Executive Director of the J. Randall and Kathleen MacDonald Foundation, which supports initiatives in both education and medical research. She is a member of the Leadership Council with Memorial Sloan Kettering Hospital, and a member of the Board of Directors for the Hermitage Club in Wilmington, Vermont.

Megan holds a BS in Business Management and Economics from Bucknell University, certification from the Project Management Institute, and is a graduate of Greenwich Academy. She lives in South Kingstown, Rhode Island with her husband Dawson, and two sons, Winfield (13), and Charles (11).

Phil Iredale

Phil did his PhD and a brief post doc in signal transduction mechanisms in the Central Nervous System (CNS) at the University of Nottingham in the UK. In 1994 he joined the Duman/Nestler lab at Yale investigating the molecular regulation of corticotrophin releasing factor receptors and, exploring the role the receptor plays in withdrawal from drugs of abuse. He joined Pfizer in 1997 as a lab head where he initiated and eventually led a program for the treatment of addiction (primarily alcohol) in collaboration with the Obesity group. This program resulted in 4 clinic candidates, the most advanced of which entered phase 3. The team also generated data which supported an interest in cognition enhancement as a possible additional indication (with the potential for treatment of symptoms both in Alzheimer’s disease and schizophrenia).

Phil joined the Pfizer CNS area management team in 2004 and subsequently became chair of the Schizophrenia Disease Focus team and served as biology contact on the Development Team. In 2007 he became the head of the neuroscience Best In Class Unit which served programs across both neurology and psychiatry followed by an appointment as head of the neurology group with a major focus on programs in Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s Disease areas. In 2011 he took on a new role as head of Neuro Opportunities leading the strategy for external collaborations, in licensing and portfolio partnering. The group was subsequently expanded in 2013 and became Business Research, with a new remit that included all of the budget and fiscal oversight for the Neuroscience and Pain research unit as well as the goal of executing on and building an external portfolio. In 2015 Phil became the head of Business Research for Biotherapeutics which added additional partner line and therapeutic area operational oversight as well as Kendall Square, MA site responsibilities.

In 2018 Pfizer announced that it was exiting Neuroscience and Phil served as a key member of the team that was formed to identify options for spinning out the portfolio of assets. He subsequently joined Cerevel Therapeutics as Head of Biology in October of 2018. This company was formed in partnership between Bain Capital and Pfizer.

Outside of work, Phil spends his time ballroom dancing, building his skills in competitive jump rope (inspired by the success of his daughters in the sport), singing at Church and anywhere else he can, and recently joined an education committee for a Catholic high school in New York. He is married to Marie-Claire Peakman. They are the proud parents of Annabelle Iredale ’16 and Jillian Iredale ’19.

Sara Kearney

Sara Kearney is the founder and CEO of Styleaid, a New York City based styling consultancy. Since founding Styleaid in 2016, she has served private clients with styling advice for everyday personal and business attire as well as event and media appearances. Sara takes pride in offering a curated and full-service experience, in a fun, unpretentious, no-pressure environment. Her goal is to help clients articulate their own style and to help them feel empowered and confident.

Prior to launching Styleaid, Sara was the Sales Director at The Aubrey Company, an independent showroom representing international and domestic designers including private0204 (Denmark), KristenseN Du Nord (Denmark), Evam Eva (Japan), H+ Hannoh Wessel (France), Virginia Johnson (Canada), Hartford (France) and Organic John Patrick (USA) and had the pleasure of working with the most prestigious retailers in the world including Barneys New York, Bergdorf Goodman, Saks Fifth Avenue, L’Eclaireur, A’marees, Forty Five Ten and Linda Dresner. Sara also served on the selection committee of the trade show Designers & Agents from 2001-2009. She received her BS in Fashion Merchandising Management from the Fashion Institute of Technology.

James Nicholas

James is the owner of St. Clair Annex Restaurant in Watch Hill, Rhode Island. He is the fourth generation of his family to have operated the business; doing so continually since 1887. James’ father George attended Pine Point School, graduating as President of his senior class in 1968. His grandmother, Irene, worked as a teacher at Pine Point School for over 10 years from the early 1960s, until her retirement in 1977.

James attended Stonington High School where he was a member of the CIAC All-State football team. In 2006, he was awarded a B.A. from Endicott College, having double majored in Business Administration and Hospitality. While at Endicott, James played varsity football. He was also a member of the varsity sailing team, where he captained his boat to a top-10 finish in the 420 North American Nationals Regatta.

James serves as a Lieutenant on the Watch Hill Fire Department, where he has been a volunteer since 2014. He is a pro board certified firefighter as well as a licensed EMT. Lieutenant Nicholas also serves as a captain on Watch Hill Fire Department’s 25’ rescue boat as a USCG certified Search and Rescue Operator. Lieutenant Nicholas has chaired and served on several committees and appointments within the fire department, including: The By-Law Revision Committee Chair, Company Treasurer, and Company Steward. James also currently serves on the House Committee for the Watch Hill Yacht Club.

When he is not working or volunteering, James enjoys spending time outdoors and traveling with his family. His wife, Dr. Emery Nicholas, practices oral and maxillofacial surgery in Rhode Island, following her recent graduation from Cornell Medical school and residency. Their daughter Ellen has been a student at Pine Point School since 2018 and is currently enrolled in second grade.

Jeffrey P’an

Jeffrey studied engineering, industrial design, sculpture and writing at Syracuse University, University of Connecticut, and Connecticut College before leaving school to pursue his passion for glass. He spent time on the island of Murano studying glass and right away upon his return founded prescient studios as an outlet for his creative experimentation. It was only after years of operating this business that he introduced a signature line of work focusing on exploiting the transparency of the glass and how pattern and color work together to create the final visual effect. Years after that Jeffrey dropped the studio name from his work and his one-of-a-kind creations are now signed simply with his name. Exploration of the concept of layering, overlapping of color and pattern working within the context of simple geometric forms has led him to work on diverse projects of all scales and complexity.

His company was founded in 1993 as prescient studios after his return from study in Murano, Italy. At that time he produced glassware and small decorative items with a small team of apprentices. Today Studio Jeffrey P’an is the design house, artist’s workshop and factory in the tradition of the factories in Murano. In addition to his primary focus, which is Jeffrey’s one-of-a-kind sculptural work, all manner of glass related work is performed from jewelry making, cut crystal, glassware and repairs of historical pieces by an expanded team of apprentices and specialists in all aspects of the fabrication and restoration we perform. The studio is open to the public and we welcome visitors to view the glassmaking and browse our large showroom where examples of all of Jeffrey’s work are on display.

Jeffrey lives in Groton, CT with his daughter, Vivienne, his partner Amanda and her daughter, Aniela. They enjoy the outdoors and outdoor sports especially golf, tennis, boating and skiing. Jeffrey is a member of the American Mensa Society.

Starr White Snead ’66, Trustee 1989-1996

Starr is the founder and principal of Advancement Connections, a firm dedicated to serving advancement professionals and volunteers in schools throughout the United States and internationally. Based in Charleston, South Carolina, Advancement Connections provides fundraising, constituency relations, marketing/enrollment, strategic planning and communications services exclusively to PS-12 schools. Prior to Advancement Connections,
Starr was the executive director of the Advancement Program Council (APC) in Washington, DC.

Starr has worked in independent schools since 1972 as a teacher, administrator and more recently as advancement director for Greenhill School in Dallas; Heritage Hall in Oklahoma City; and Ashley Hall in Charleston. From 1982–1997 Starr directed Starr Snead & Associates, an international consulting firm in New Haven, Connecticut.

Starr holds an A.B. degree in Psychology from Wheaton College in Massachusetts, an M.A in Reading Education from the University of Rhode Island, and an M.S. in Special Education from Fordham University. She is an alumna of two Connecticut schools – Pine Point in Stonington and Westover in Middlebury. Starr served as a trustee of Pine Point from 1989–1996 and on
Westover’s Alumnae Association Board of Governors from 2001–2010.

In August 2009 she joined the board of trustees at Trident Academy, a K-12 school for students with learning differences, in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina, serving that school for three years. In July 2010 Starr was appointed Executive Director of the Palmetto Association of Independent
Schools (PAIS), a part-time position she held until October 2017. In October 2010 she was elected to the President’s Commission at Wheaton College. She recently completed a six-year term as a trustee at Westover School, serving as Board Chair from 2019-2022.

Starr is a frequent speaker at CASE and NAIS conferences. Her popular workshops and seminars offer practical solutions to today’s development, enrollment and advancement challenges, combining five decades of personal and professional experience with.

Erin Wright ’91
Erin Wright is a Senior HR Business Partner with Rhode Island’s largest healthcare provider, Lifespan. She believes passionately in DEIB, peaceful conflict resolution, and the power of kindness. To this end, she chairs the HR Committee of the Nonviolence Institute board and volunteers her time with The Center for Mediation and Collaboration Rhode Island. Erin graduated with a Juris Doctor from Notre Dame Law, a Master in Human Relations from the University of Oklahoma, and a Bachelor of Arts from Providence College. For centering and happiness, Erin has a regular yoga practice, enjoys traveling far and wide, and spending time with family.
Jenny Wronowski

Jenny has been doing daily carpool trips to Pine Point School since 2007. She lives in Mystic with her husband, Adam, and their four children. Peter, Joseph and Cecelia are current PPS students and John Paul is an alumnus.

Jenny grew up in Orlando, Florida and attended Florida Institute of Technology on an athletic scholarship for Crew. She graduated with a degree in Ocean Engineering. During college she worked as a Scuba Diver at The Living Seas at Walt Disney World’s EPCOT Center.

With a strong background in engineering and project planning, she has been involved in the oversight and project management of the Fort Trumbull Municipal Development Project, Mystic Aquarium/Institute for Exploration Renovation and Expansion Project, the Atlanta Olympic Games and coastal reconstruction projects with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Jenny is currently a fiscal/project management consultant with the Renaissance City Development Association in New London, CT.

AJ Zimbelmann
A.J. (Andrew) Zimbelmann has been a Pine Point parent for 14 years, and is the father of two Pine Point graduates (Thomas and Oonagh) and current Pine Point student Cecilia (9th grade). His wife of 24 years, Sue, was a Pine Point trustee for 6 years. A resident of southeastern Connecticut since 1985, he is in his 37th year working for Electric Boat, supporting the design and testing of the world’s finest submarines. A.J. received his undergraduate degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Rochester in 1985 and a masters degree in mechanical engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in 1992. He is happiest when surrounded by family and friends, and enjoys activities of all sorts, particularly those occurring outdoors. A.J. has been inspired by the dedication and proficiency of the Pine Point faculty and staff who guided and taught his children how to learn, think, and do their best. He is happy to continue promoting and supporting Pine Point as a member of the Board of Trustees.
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