| Robin Acker - President
Wendy Parkman - Vice President
Kelly Snow - Treasurer
Sarah Lipson - Secretary
Carol Campbell
Jeff Dubois
Courtney Nash
Doyle Ott
Tim Parkyn
Libby Smith
Caroline Orrick, Advisory Board
Ken Levinson, Advisory Board
Judy Finelli, Advisory Board
Biographies

Robin Acker - President
Robin Acker has provided direct service to individuals and families,
and has designed and directed programs in the not-for-profit sector
for over 20 years. She has held numerous positions at Edgewood Center
for Children and Families, including Director of the Circle of Care
Program, Assistant Director of School- Based Services, Interim Director
of Development and finally Associate Clinical Director. As a licensed
Marriage, Family and Child Therapist, she has experience ranging from
hands-on work with severely emotionally disturbed children to the
creation and supervision of programs to protect vulnerable populations.
Other projects she has overseen include Youth Advocates, Inc. at Huckleberry
House II in San Francisco and the Intensive Treatment Foster Care
at Seneca Center in San Leandro. Robin has been involved with the
Circus Center since 1998 when her son Colin began taking beginning
acrobat classes. Colin now performs with San Francisco Circus and
hopes to continue his career in the Circus Arts.
Wendy Parkman - Vice President
Wendy re-joined the Circus Center Board after a hiatus of almost 10
years. Her career as a performer and teacher of circus arts goes back
to the beginning of the circus renaissance in San Francisco in the
mid 1970's, when the Pickle Family Circus and Make-A-Circus began.
She performed with the Pickle Family Circus as a juggler, acrobat
and aerialist from 1979-1983, and as an aerialist with the Flying
Karamozov's production of The Comedy of Errors, at the Goodman Theatre
(1983), the Olympic Arts Festival in Los Angeles (1984), Lincoln Center
(1987), and in Joanna Haigood's Zaccho Dance Theatre at Theater Artaud
in 2002. With Judy Finelli she was one of the founding members of
the Pickle Family Circus School in 1984. She was an integral part
of the transition to the San Francisco School of Circus Arts teaching
recreational classes and serving on the board from 1994-1998. She
has been teaching circus arts and theatre at the Urban School of San
Francisco since 1989, as well as being a guest teacher at various
schools in the Bay Area, the Young Conservatory of ACT and Cal Shakes.
Kelly Snow - Treasurer
Kelly has worked in the high-tech industry for 15 years as a web programmer, producer and designer. She earned her undergraduate at Cornell University and later, a masters degree in Information Science. She currently works as an interaction designer at Cisco Systems. As an athlete, Kelly races her bicycle throughout Northern California. She has been a member of her team's Board of Directors for the past three years and is currently heading a program to develop women into competitive athletes.
Sarah Lipson - Secretary
Sarah has worked with children and youth in San Francisco for the
past 10 years as a classroom teacher, instructional reform facilitator
and administrator. In 2001 Sarah was elected to the Board of Education
for the San Francisco Unified School District. Sarah served a four-year
term as Commissioner and was Vice President of the School Board. She
is currently Assistant Principal of Bessie Carmichael school in the
South of Market. Sarah is the mother of two children, Elsie and Henry.
Both children have taken and continue to take classes at Circus Center.
Carol Campbell
Carol comes to the Circus Center with varied experiences in the world
of sports and athletic performance. Her career started out as the
Co-Director of Cultural Affairs for the City of Philadelphia and moved
into the area of sports, including being in charge of marketing efforts
for Runners World magazine and being the Director of the Mayors
Council on Physical Fitness and Sports for San Francisco. Carol had
a 15-year stint as the head coach of the University of Indiana gymnastics
team and also coached and taught gymnastics at Farmingdale University
and several high schools. She was responsible for several sporting
events, including five State Regional Gymnastics Championships, and
running and tennis events. Carol has also been very involved in Community
work with the Suicide Prevention Hotline, Marin Public Schools Curriculum
Committee and the Womens Sports Foundation. She has also served
as President of the Division of Girls and Womens Sports for
the State of New Mexico and the Mill Valley Co-op Preschool.
Jeff DuBois
Jeff was recruited for the Board in order to help the Circus Centers
new transition to the future with his unique Strategic Planning and
organizational skills. Jeff is currently the Organizational Development
Director for Edgewood Center for Children and Families. While there,
in collaboration with the executive management team and the Board
of Directors, he was responsible for the development and implementation
of the agencys Strategic Plan. Trained in
Participatory Decision Making (PDM), Jeff has had extensive experience
using the PDM model with a variety of not-for-profit organizations
and groups. He also has a strong background in accreditation, having
organized and managed the successful reaccreditation of the entire
agency by the Council on Accreditation. Jeffs volunteerism includes
group facilitation for the Overseas Development Network and project
coordination for AmeriCorps*VISTA.
Courtney Nash
Courtney is a tax attorney whose practice focuses on a variety of income tax issues, including matters involving closely-held businesses, partnerships, and limited liability companies. Her practice involves representation before the IRS in tax controversy, as well as advising clients on tax compliance. She has worked with nonprofits for several years. She moonlights as an aerialist, training in aerial straps and silks with the Circus Center.
Doyle Ott
Doyle is a long time circus performer, director, teacher, scholar
and administrator. Currently, he is the Artistic Director of Children's
Theatre at Children's Fairyland in Oakland, California and teaches
theatre at Sonoma State University. A graduate of the Clown Conservatory,
Doyle has performed in numerous theater productions and clown and
circus shows including Make A Circus, the San Francisco Shakespeare
Festival and Lunatique Fantastique. He has also taught classes for
both children and adults, in a wide range of subjects including puppetry,
clowning, acting, movement, creative drama, storytelling, improvisation,
mask making, juggling, aerial arts and others. Doyle has presented
his research on youth circus training internationally at academic
conventions and youth circus festivals. His directorial experience
includes children and adult theater and circus shows for such organizations
as the New Conservatory Theater, the Crucible, and Splash Circus Theatre.
Tim Parkyn
Tim brings over 15 years of marketing experience from the medical device,
financial, and action sports industries. He holds an MBA from the University
of San Francisco.
Libby Smith
Libby Smith is a senior Consultant with Primitive Logic, specializing in process improvement and strategic planning. She is also a freelance Auctioneer, working with numerous local and national non-profit organizations and fundraising committees. She has been Director of Administration for both Butterfields Auctions and Greg Martin Auctions. She holds a Masters of Information Management and Systems degree from the University of California, Berkeley and a degree in Psychology from Mills College.
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