Board of Directors

BOARD OF DIRECTORS' MESSAGE​

King David High School is a community of individuals working together to create an exceptional educational environment.

At King David, students, administration and staff, parents and families, donors and community members all strive to achieve excellence in Jewish high school education in Vancouver.

The Board of Directors plays a pivotal role in providing strategic oversight, amplifying the voices of all stakeholders. Collaborating closely with the School Leadership Team, the Board shapes and executes the school’s strategic vision, supports fundraising efforts, and ensures long-term financial sustainability. One of the Board’s primary responsibilities is the selection and support of the Head of School. Organized by portfolio, the Board addresses the multifaceted challenges of governing a high school, fostering a wider range of perspectives in determining the school’s strategic focus.

Each portfolio chair oversees a dedicated committee that convenes regularly to work alongside the administration and staff, offering risk oversight, defining goals, and implementing strategies. The committee chair actively seeks board input, provides recommendations, and delivers comprehensive reports during the board meetings, which take place 6-7 times annually, with additional meetings scheduled as necessary.

We are immensely grateful to have an outstanding Board composed of dedicated, industrious volunteers who are wholeheartedly committed to enhancing all aspects of our school. We encourage you to acquaint yourself with these exceptional individuals by exploring the concise bios presented below.

We are continually seeking new committee members, and if you are interested in joining a committee, please feel free to reach out directly to the committee chair.

– Diane Friedman, President

Ronit spent much of her childhood growing up in Vancouver. After graduating from VTT in 1987, her family moved to the United States, where she continued her Jewish education and later received a BA from The Jewish Theological Seminary in New York in Modern Jewish Studies alongside a BA in English from Barnard College of Columbia University. She met her husband, Tadd, while working at Camp Solomon Schechter, and the two finally returned to the lower mainland in 2007, after Ronit completed her PhD in English from Rice University in Houston, TX. Ronit currently works for Pearson Education as an online writing consultant, working with both writing instructors and post-secondary students globally to improve their writing and teaching skills. Ronit has worked remotely since 2007, allowing her the time and energy to raise her three children and work within the Richmond Jewish community as PAC Chair and later Board Chair at RJDS as well as Religious School Educator at Beth Tikvah Congregation. Ronit and Tadd currently have one child at King David, and she is excited to get more involved with the school and continue to work on supporting and improving Jewish educational opportunities in Greater Vancouver.

Michael was born and raised in Vancouver and has an MBA from the Ivey School of Business at the University of Western Ontario. He is a results-driven financial executive with over 20 years of business experience in real estate, private equity, subordinated lending and commercial banking. He also brings expertise in the areas of corporate governance and management of institutional capital to the King David board.

Diane is a corporate director and business advisor with over 30 years experience in finance and as a board member, committee and board chair in both the corporate and non-profit sectors. Diane has been an active volunteer in the Jewish community for over two decades, serving on multiple boards. Diane and her husband are proud parents of a King David graduate.

Phil was born and raised in Vancouver.  He attended UBC for both his undergraduate B. Com and MBA with a specialization in Urban Land Economics.  He has spent the last 33 years of his career in the real estate industry as an investor, developer, and consultant.  Currently, as an Executive Vice President at Altus Group Phil specializes in helping clients mitigate property tax.  He is also the Principal of Desert Homes Inc., a company which owns and develops rental properties in the greater Palm Springs area of California.  Lastly, Phil also provides a variety of real estate consulting services through his company Kale Consulting Inc..  Phil’s connection to King David includes three nieces and nephews who have and are currently attending the school.  He is actively increasing his volunteer involvement in the Jewish community and is excited to be a new member of the King David Board and a representative on the JWest Trustee Board.  Phil has been married to his wife Keren for 32 years and has two children Oriana and Liron.
Roni was born and raised in Israel. She graduated from Tel Aviv University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics and Statistics and an MBA with a specialization in Finance and Accounting. After graduation she spent a few years in Canada and in California and in 2002 she settled in Vancouver. Roni works for Kodak as a Finance Director. She has been an active volunteer in the Jewish Community; she serves as a director on the Congregation Beth Israel Board, she is the Vice President of Hebrew Free Loan Association, an organization that provides interest-free loans to help Jewish individuals overcome financial challenges, and prior to joining the King David Board, she was a member of the Finance Committee at VTT. Roni and her husband Chen have three children – two who currently attend UBC and a daughter at King David.
Alain Guez was born and raised in Paris and came to Vancouver in 2011 with his wife, Michelle, and their three children. He received a Computer Engineering degree from the Universite de Technologie de Compiegne, and as of April 2015, he is a Certified Professional in Healthcare Information and Management Systems. Alain is a computer science engineer who became a sales and business development specialist. He has spent the 20 last years in both large publicly-traded and smaller private equity companies, where he succeeded in bringing to market some new and innovative technologies. After 15 years in the Telecommunications industry, he moved to health care, where he used his enthusiasm and leadership skills to promote new and innovative solutions. Alain was always involved in his community in France and was a member of the Board of his Jewish congregation in Paris. Alain is excited to bring his multiculturalism, his professional experience, and his enthusiasm for Jewish education to the King David Board. Alain has three children: Nathan, King David Class of 2019, Ilana, King David Class of 2021, and Eva, a student at King David.
 
Cara is a King David alumna from the Class of 2009. Since then, she graduated from McGill University with a BComm and attained her CPA designation at Deloitte in Vancouver. She then spent time working in London (UK) and Toronto, before returning home to Vancouver with her husband. She now works in Product Forecasting at Aritzia, and looks forward to eventually being a King David parent to her daughter.
 

Moti is an Israeli who’s been living in Vancouver since 2000. He spent over 20 years in the fields of finance, operations, corporate development and M&A.  In recent years he has been focusing on business development of small businesses and consulting for different M&A projects. Moti is passionate about solidifying the Jewish community and especially about strengthening the connections between the local and Israeli communities and making them one and united. Moti and his wife, Sagit, have three kids, including our oldest who graduated from King David in 2024 and our youngest who started King David in the same year.

Dr. Jonathon A. Leipsic is the Chairman of the Department of Radiology VCH/PHC. He is Professor of Radiology and Cardiology with the University of British Columbia. Dr. Leipsic is also a Canada Research Chair in Advanced Cardiopulmonary Imaging and Past President of the Society of Cardiovascular CT. Jonathan has two daughters who have graduated from King David, Isabella in 2022 and Carsyn in 2024.
Tracey was born and raised in London, UK. With a degree in Law and Business Studies, she spent the first decade of her career as a corporate lawyer. In 2004, she moved to France with her South African husband Stuart and their four children where they built and ran a boutique holiday resort for families for many wonderful years. In 2011, the family moved to Vancouver to continue their adventures, and to enable the children to experience Jewish community in a way that was not possible in the French countryside. Tracey is now the Vancouver General Manager for Gowling WLG, an international law firm where she has responsibility for all non-legal operations including business management, accounting and finance, HR, marketing, facilities and systems. With over 25 years of legal and operations experience, Tracey is looking forward to giving back to KDHS via participation on the board. Tracey and Stuart are proud parents of two King David alumni, Nicole and Alex, Class of 2021.
Joanna Wasel was born and raised in Vancouver. She attended Talmud Torah as a child and later worked in the Kindergarten there while she was studying at the University of British Columbia. She also grew up going to Camp Hatikvah before serving on staff for many years and eventually taking on the position of Board President which she currently holds. Professionally, Joanna is the Executive Director of the Hebrew Free Loan Association of Vancouver; a charitable organization that provides interest-free loans to community members in need. With over 20 years of experience volunteering or working in the Jewish community, Joanna has a passion for helping both people and organizations thrive. She believes there is almost always a solution to every problem and strives to create positive and meaningful change in all she does. Joanna has two children and her youngest is in Grade 10 at King David this year. She and her husband Allan couldn’t be more impressed with the warm and enriching environment King David creates.
 

Sherri was born and raised in Winnipeg. She graduated from Northwestern Dental School in Chicago in 1995 and has been practicing dentistry here in Vancouver since. For the past 30 years, she has volunteered in numerous roles in the Jewish Community, such as chair of the JFS Innovators lunch for 10 years and co-chaired Choices for several years. Currently, she serves on the board of Jewish Family Service, as well as the board of Hebrew Free Loans which provides interest-free loans to those in the Jewish community. Sherri is currently a member of the Development Committee at King David. Sherri’s daughter is a Grade 12 student at King David High School. 

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