Board of Trustees

NINEVAH LOWERY worked in the computer software industry for 15 years as a technology consultant, sales engineer, and marketing communications leader. Taking time off to care for her children as a stay-home mom, she has been a consistent school volunteer, having served in various parent leadership roles. During this time, she has also held numerous executive board seats and served on regional and national committees in member-based community organizations. She is committed to excellence and approaches her work with passion. Ninevah holds a BS from The University of Alabama, with a major in management information systems, and an MBA from University of Detroit Mercy. Ninevah is president of UPrep’s Board of Trustees. She and her husband, Bryant, have two children, Bryant II ’24 and Neva-Nataia ’26. 

As chief operating officer, JULI COOK oversees NBBJ’s global operations across 12 offices and manages the firm’s administrative, financial, legal, information technology, and human resources functions. Juli is widely credited with introducing innovative new business models across a range of professional services and creative industries. Prior to joining NBBJ, she served as executive vice president of Corbis Images managing media products and global operations. Prior to her role at Corbis, she was vice president of product management at Washington Mutual, where she was responsible for developing new products and services for retail bank customers and held management roles at Deloitte Consulting and Sotheby’s. Juli holds a BA in art history and a BFA in painting from the University of Michigan, and an MBA from Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business. She is currently a member of the Boys and Girls Clubs of King County Board of Directors, where she serves on the executive committee, and previously served on the Artist Trust Board of Directors, and Artist Trust’s executive and finance committees. Juli is chair of UPrep’s trusteeship and governance committee. She and her husband, Andy, have two children: Max ‘26 and Zander ‘28.

CHARLES FRISCHER is the general partner of LFF Partners, a family office based in Seattle, WA, a position he has held since 2004. Prior to working at LFF Partners, Charles was a principal at Zephyr Management, L.P., a New York–based private equity firm (2005–2008). He was also a senior vice president at Capri Capital (1995–2005). He graduated from Cornell University in 1988 with a BA in government. Charles serves on UPrep’s finance and audit committee as well as on the investment sub-committee. He and his wife, Abigail, are the parents of Benjamin Frischer ’26, and Graham Frischer, ’27.

JARRAD HARFORD is the Paul Pigott - PACCAR Professor of Finance and Chair of the Finance and Business Economics Department at the University of Washington’s Foster School of Business. He grew up in Pennsylvania and earned his BS from Penn State. He later earned his PhD in finance with a minor in organizations and markets at the University of Rochester and moved to the Pacific Northwest to start his career in academia. His teaching focuses on core finance, corporate governance, and acquisition analysis. Jarrad currently serves as a managing editor of the Journal of Financial and Quantitative Analysis. He and his co-authors are working on the 6th edition of their textbook, Fundamentals of Corporate Finance, published by Pearson. Jarrad previously was a long-serving member of the UCDS finance committee and a member of the UCDS Board of Trustees for six years. Jarrad is treasurer of the UPrep Board of Trustees. He chairs UPrep’s finance and audit committee and sits on the investment sub-committee. He and his wife, Katrina Strand, are the parents of Evan ’24 and Cole ’25.

KRYSIA JOHNSON is the Chief Financial Officer for MD2, the most distinguished network of concierge medical practices in the United States. Krysia's finance career spans several industries including healthcare, consumer products and technology. She has an MBA from the University of Michigan and an undergraduate degree in public policy from Duke University. Krysia also served as president of the UPrep Parent Guardian Association for the 2023–2024 school year and volunteered as a Puma Fund class agent for the last several years. Krysia and her husband, Bjorn, are the parents of Wynne ’24 and Paige ’26.

THONG LE HONG serves as senior managing director and CEO of Accelerator Life Science Partners. Thong has over 20 years of experience identifying, investing in, managing, and successfully exiting numerous seed and early-stage investments in the biotechnology sector. He served as founding CEO and director of numerous Accelerator Life Science Partners portfolio companies, including Petra Pharma (acquired by Eli Lilly), Rodeo Therapeutics (acquired by Amgen), Lodo Therapeutics (acquired by Ginko Bioworks), Proniras, Automera, and KayoThera. Prior to joining Accelerator Life Science Partners, Thong served as a managing director at WRF Capital, the venture capital investment arm of Washington Research Foundation, a Seattle-based nonprofit organization that supports research and scholarship in Washington state, with a focus on life sciences and enabling technologies. Prior to joining WRF Capital, Thong was the founder and CEO of MiniMeals, Inc. and a consultant for Capital Management Consulting.  Thong completed post-graduate studies at the Templeton College of Oxford University and received his AB cum laude in government from Harvard University. Thong chairs UPrep’s investment sub-committee.  He and his wife, Jeannie, have two children, Maya ’27 and Adric.

RUSSELL NORMANN ’86 owns and operates a private commercial real estate company with a unique and growing portfolio in the Puget Sound region. Russ oversees all aspects of the business and takes great pride in serving its diverse family of tenants. Prior to entering real estate, Russ had a successful career in technology that spanned over a decade. Russ attended University of Washington, where he graduated with degrees in philosophy and mathematics. He is a proud alumnus of UPrep’s graduating class of 1986, participated on the UPrep Alumni Board, and has served on the finance committee for several years. When Russ isn’t taking care of buildings and tenants, he enjoys sailing, skiing, traveling, and spending time with family and friends (many of whom stretch back to his days at UPrep). Russ serves on UPrep’s building committee. He and his wife, Heather, are the parents of Ben ’21.

SUJAL PATEL is currently founder and CEO of Nautilus Biotechnology. In 2001, Sujal founded Isilon Systems, an enterprise data storage provider. After Isilon was acquired by EMC in December 2010 for $2.6 billion, Sujal served as the president of EMC’s Isilon Storage Division from the acquisition until November 2012. Sujal holds numerous patents in the areas of storage, networking, and media delivery; is a well-known speaker on entrepreneurship; and has received a variety of industry awards. Currently, Sujal serves on the board of directors at Qumulo and is a trustee of Rainier Scholars. He serves on UPrep’s investment committee. Sujal and his wife, Meera, have twin sons at UPrep, Avi ’26 and Niam ’26.

CASEY SCHUCHART is a fifth-generation construction professional whose career has been honed through time spent working in the field, estimating, project engineering, project management, and division management. He was instrumental in the delivery of the Bullitt Center: a six-story office building deemed the greenest commercial building in the world. As the president of Schuchart, Casey leads the team through the execution of business initiatives and strategies. Casey earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of San Diego and an MBA from Seattle University. Casey currently serves as a board member for the Seattle Aquarium. Casey serves on UPrep’s building committee. Casey and his wife, Allison, are the parents of Gregor, ’28 and Jomie.

BLAKE TITCOMB ’09 was born and raised in Seattle. He graduated from UPrep in 2009 and the University of Puget Sound in 2013 with a BS in geology and minor in economics. Blake is passionate about giving back to his community and has served on several philanthropic boards. He served as president of the UPrep Alumni Board for four years and currently sits on a foundation for their sustainable forests and communities initiative committee and heads the financial committee. Blake is a director of account management at PitchBook, a financial software company. He and his wife, Brittany, welcomed their first little Puma to the mix, Azalea, who was born in 2023. Blake serves on UPrep’s advancement committee.

ROBIN WATERMAN earned a BS in speech and hearing science and an AuD from the University of Washington. After graduate school, she worked for Virginia Mason Medical Center and then Listen and Talk as a pediatric audiologist diagnosing and treating young children with hearing loss. Her work experience includes leadership roles and departmental program design and development in a large hospital setting and a mid-sized nonprofit. Recently, Robin has shifted her focus away from audiology to entrepreneurship to pursue a longtime dream of developing a kids and family technology product. Robin serves on the Villa Academy Board of Trustees. She has held positions of vice chair and development committee chair and has been a member of the reopening the school task force, land task force, head of the school search committee, and strategic planning task force. Robin is serving on the parent education committee of the Parent Guardian Association at UPrep, where she has served two years as a Puma Fund class agent. She is chair of the UPrep development committee and served on the ULab Capital Campaign committee for one year. She and her husband, Charlie, have three children, Cole ’28, Grant ’30, and a first grader, Cameron.

VERONICA (“Ronnie”) CODRINGTON-CAZEAU is in her fifth year as head of school at UPrep. Previously, she served as head of The Evergreen School in Shoreline, WA. In her time at The Evergreen School, Ronnie grew enrollment, oversaw a campus expansion project, and led a successful 20-million-dollar campaign. Ronnie began her teaching career at The Park School in Brookline, MA and spent 17 years (the final six as middle school head) at Harvard-Westlake School in Los Angeles, CA. As well as serving as a faculty member in the Aspiring Heads Fellowship, she also serves as a member of the NAIS Board of Trustees executive committee, a member of the Country Day School Headmasters’ Association, chair of the INDEX board and past president of the Elementary School Head’s Association. Ronnie holds a bachelor’s from Wellesley College and a master’s in educational leadership from Pepperdine University.

A New York City native, MARY BALMACEDA graduated with a BA in economics and environmental studies from Binghamton University. She served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Benin, West Africa. She has an MBA from Georgetown University, where she focused on marketing and social entrepreneurship. Mary has worked in nonprofit marketing at Green America, National Geographic, Calvert Foundation, and Unitus Microfinance. Mary has been an active volunteer in schools for 15 years, having held school board positions at Woodland Park Preschool Co-op, North Beach Elementary, and Cascadia Elementary prior to joining the Parent Guardian Association at UPrep. At UPrep Mary has served as a parent Ambassador, Puma Fund class agent, family community service rep, and PGA governance committee chair.

KIM GONZALES began her English teaching career in 1999, working with students at Foster High School, The Bush School, and Rainier Scholars before joining the UPrep community in 2020. Kim currently teaches 9th graders in Foundations in Composition class and 11th graders in the American Voices class and runs summer college essay writing workshops for rising seniors. She has also served on UPrep’s intensive redesign committee and facilitated interdisciplinary faculty conversations on rethinking assessment. Kim’s desire to help young people write with clarity, intention, and voice led her to co-found the Bush School Writing Center, launch writer coaching programs at two public schools in Seattle, and serve as a writing coach, site coordinator, and coach trainer with the Bay Area's WriterCoach Connection. She holds a BA in English literature from the University of Puget Sound, and a master’s in teaching from Seattle University. When she's not working with students, Kim enjoys hiking, reading everything she can get her hands on, and traveling with her husband and two sons, Owen and Blake.