After graduating from William & Jefferson College with a bachelor’s in economics, Kassie spent over 30 years in commercial real estate finance. Her extensive experience included developing new relationships and underwriting commercial real estate investments. Most recently, she served as Director of Investments and Real Estate Investment Manager for National Real Estate Advisors in Washington DC.

Kassie, her husband John, and their son relocated to Northeast Ohio in 2017. In addition to her work on the Lawrence School Board of Trustees, Kassie is a proud Lawrence parent and is an active member of Lawrence School’s Parents Pride.

In her spare time, Kassie enjoys spending time with her family, minding the birds and koi and cheering on the Nittany Lions of Penn State.

William Fudge III serves as Vice President, Software Engineering at OEConnection. William first joined the company as an intern and has continued to advance through the software engineering ranks at OEC.

Contributing in numerous roles over his 20 years of service, William has held leadership roles in Software Development, Business Intelligence, Infrastructure, and UX/UI.

William holds a Master of Business Administration from Baldwin Wallace University, graduating with business honors, and a Bachelor of Science in computer science from the University of Akron.

He is thrilled to be a part of the Lawrence School Board of Trustees. In addition, he is a member of the Akron Early College Advisory Board at The University of Akron, and is active in the Northeast Ohio tech community participating in volunteer opportunities and other partnerships.

He lives in Macedonia with his wife Chelci and their two children.

Jenifer Garfield served as a Lawrence School trustee for 46 years. She’s seen firsthand the school’s transformation from an after-school tutoring program for struggling readers to a thriving K-12 school on two campuses.

Upon retiring from the board, Jenifer was designated as Trustee Emerita, a distinction reserved for extraordinary service and commitment to the mission of school. There is no higher honor Lawrence can bestow.

Jenifer and her late husband Bob co-chaired the capital campaign that built the Upper School campus. The Garfield Theatre is named in their honor. Jenifer continues to be a tireless champion of Lawrence School and the children we serve.

In addition to her philanthropic work, Jenifer worked professionally as a successful real estate agent for many years. She is the proud mother of three grown children and a grandson. She lives in Judson Park in Cleveland Heights and enjoys the theater and spending time with her family and countless friends.

An alumna of Hillsdale College, Jill Harrington has worked at Boston's Bain & Company and Bain Capital, where she served as Mitt Romney’s administrative assistant. A native Clevelander, she returned to Northeast Ohio to make her mark at Edgepark Surgical. She launched their human resources department, expanded their marketing efforts, and spearheaded the company’s charitable giving program.

Jill just finished her nine-year term on University Hospitals Rainbow Babies & Children’s Foundation Board. She chaired their annual Ride the Rainbow event in 2016 and chaired the Sponsorship Committee for numerous years. During her term, Jill served as the hospital's VP of Development, Secretary of the Executive Team and chaired Rainbow’s Annual Golf Classic.

Jill was newly appointed to University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center Board in May 2020 and has been a member of the Connor Integrative Health Network’s Leadership Council since 2015.

Additionally, Jill has served on the Board of Directors for The Gathering Place. She also volunteers extensively for Fieldstone Farm Therapeutic Riding Center. Jill has served on the Lawrence School Board since 2019.

In addition to being a busy mom of four children and a proud Lawrence parent, Jill enjoys the arts, golf, travel, and playing pickleball!

Yolanda Hilliard Lucas was born in Richmond, Virginia but she has lived in many different cities throughout the United States. Yolanda graduated from high school in Southfield, Michigan. After high school, she furthered her education at Hampton University and received a Bachelor of Science Degree in Elementary Education. After taking a marketing class, Yolanda decided to change her career path and pursue “Sales and Marketing.” She has worked at various prestigious companies: Xerox, Abbott, Bayer and Johnson & Johnson and has received several certifications and achievement awards.

In 2017, she left her job as Regional Marketing Director for Randall Residence to take a more active role at Lucas Memorial Chapel and to pursue a few of her dreams. However, since Lucas Memorial Chapel’s start in 2000, Yolanda has been involved with community outreach. She sponsored food and clothing drives, conducted memorial ornament services during the holidays, promoted student literacy by giving away books to the community, helped college students by providing scholarships for them and continues to be a proud sponsor of the Garfield Heights Basketball Team. In addition, Yolanda has been speaking and sharing her personal tragedy overcoming testimony at churches, civic organizations and wherever an opportunity presents itself. Even in personal encounters, she never misses an opportunity to encourage and offer hope to people wherever she meets them. Recently, one of her dreams was fulfilled with the launching of Phoenix Luxury Vehicles-transportation services.

Yolanda is a part of the Lion Pride Parents Association at Lawrence School and loves helping parents with children who have learning differences by sharing her story of early intervention and discussing the successful educational option of Lawrence School. She is also a member of Jack & Jill of America, Inc. (Cleveland Chapter). She spearheaded their Flint Water Crisis campaign and has played an active role with Founders Day celebration and previously was Foundation Chair. Yolanda received their “Mother of the Year” award in 2017. In 2018, Yolanda was honored with the Trailblazer award from the Cuyahoga County Section of National Council of Negro Women, Inc. She also has been involved with the Cleveland N.A.A.C.P, Hampton Alumni, Area Specialists on Aging, and has served on different executive boards in Northeast Ohio. Yolanda finds great joy in working with churches and charitable organizations to raise both awareness and finances. She was pleased to be a part of the executive team in support of St. James A.M.E. Church’s charitable fund-raising initiative that sponsored CeCe Winans in a benefit Concert in 2017. Yolanda also loves to share the Lucas Legacy story. Five generations of family achievements and displays freedom papers and historical items from 1852 and beyond. In the last year, she’s been actively involved with the Pregnancy and Infant Loss Committee. (PAIL) Her mission is to help navigate parents through the grieving process and to reduce infant deaths and racial disparities. Recently, she was featured in a National Geographic article sharing her personal story of pain and loss and she was certified as a Grief Recovery Method Specialist.

Yolanda is passionate about making a difference in her community, reading, sports, traveling, history, photography and spending time with her family. One of her favorite activities is attending and watching NASCAR races with her son Harper. They both were advocates for the removal of the confederate flag at NASCAR races and was featured on the National news and several other media outlets in 2020. Superfans of NASCAR! Yolanda is also a woman of faith and believes in the POWER of prayer and positivity.

Susan Karas brings over 30 years of experience working in healthcare, education, and social services to her work today. Susan is founder and president of Akouo, LLC, a counseling, coaching, and consulting enterprise that combines expertise in counseling and supervision with an understanding, passion, and drive to help small nonprofits achieve organization effectiveness and greater impact. Akouo is a Greek word that translates to “I listen”, a guiding principle of the organization.

Her diverse professional background has taken her from critical care nursing to agency and private practice counseling to university teaching and seminar presentations. Her interest in nonprofit work spans three decades. She is a founding member of the Northeast Ohio Bereavement Council and served on the advisory board of Cornerstone of Hope.

As a member of the Board of Trustees since 2002, Susan served as the President of the Board of Trustees for Lawrence School (2007- 2016). During her tenure, she was instrumental in co-leading the school through a period of transformative change.

Susan is a member of the Hellenic Preservation Society and runs several youth programs at St. Paul Greek Orthodox Church. The time spent directing the young adult Greek dance troupe and rap sessions for teens are among her favorite activities. She also serves on Cleveland Clinic Children's Leadership Council.

She earned a Bachelor of Arts in psychology from Baldwin Wallace University and a master’s in clinical counseling from the University of Akron. Her post-graduate work is in the areas of assessment, diagnosis, and leadership development. She holds current licenses in both Nursing and Counseling in the State of Ohio.

A lifelong resident of Northeast Ohio, Susan lives in Richfield with her husband Arthur. They have two grown children who are making their way in the world from New York and Boston. Her son is a graduate of Lawrence School, Class of 2010.

Following her graduation from the University of Cincinnati, Jennifer served as Director of Communications for both News Corp and America Online. She also worked for U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno as Director in the Office of Public Liaison and Intergovernmental Affairs at the U.S. Department of Justice.

During her years living in New York City, Jennifer volunteered at the Packer Collegiate Institute, the Museum of Jewish Heritage, and Jumpstart.

Jennifer is an active member of the Lawrence School Board of Trustees. In 2017, she chaired the New Head Search Committee and currently serves on the Executive Committee and co-chairs Governance.

A native Clevelander, Jennifer moved back to Northeast Ohio from New York City in 2013 with her husband Doug and their three children. Jennifer and her family reside in Pepper Pike and she is a proud Lawrence School parent.

Nat Leonard is the Group President of Life Sciences at Smithers, an Akron-based testing and consulting firm. Nat has over 25 years of general management and functional leadership experience. He has run startups and multinational enterprises. Nat’s roles have ranged from running businesses to leading commercial, manufacturing, supply chain, and information technology teams. His industry experience includes financial services, internet startups, construction, electronics, industrial, medical, metals, military systems, vehicle components, and consulting.

He earned his M.B.A. with honors from the Harvard Business School and his Bachelor of Arts in computer studies and economics from Northwestern University.

Nat is an engaged and passionate advocate for education, serving on the boards of several private schools. In addition to his years of service on the Lawrence School Board of Trustees, he currently serves on the board of Western Reserve Academy and was head of the board of trustees at Old Trail School.

He and his wife Liz live in Hudson, Ohio. They have two grown daughters. His youngest daughter is a graduate of Lawrence School, Class of 2015.

Karen Lipman Steiger is an alumna of John Carroll University, with a master’s in English literature. Until 2014, Karen worked as the Director of the Jewish Volunteer Network and Coordinator of Chaplaincy Program at the Jewish Federation.

In addition to serving on the Lawrence Board of Trustees, Karen serves as Secretary of the Board of Trustees of The Gathering Place. She also volunteered at Hawken School and Thomas Jefferson School for Newcomers.

In addition to enjoying spending time with her husband Danny and their three children, she is a yoga enthusiast and dog lover. Karen’s daughter is a graduate of Lawrence School, Class of 2018.

Dr. Lina Mehta, MD is Associate Dean for Admissions at Case Western Reserve School of Medicine and Professor of Radiology at University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center. Currently, Dr. Mehta is the Chairperson of the National Committee on Admissions, a five-member advisory group that provides guidance on national admissions policies and procedures to the American Association of Medical Colleges.

As a board-certified radiologist, Lina maintains an active clinical practice, with a specialty in nuclear radiology (positron emission tomography is a particular area of interest) and has written and lectured extensively in this area. She has served as the Chairperson for Radiology Risk Management and Quality at University Hospitals of Cleveland and has been a member of the Radiology Board of Directors. She is currently a member of the department’s quality, compensation, and promotion, and tenure committees.

Dr. Mehta graduated from the University of Akron and earned her medical degree at the Northeast Ohio Medical University. She lives in Pepper Pike, Ohio with her husband, Dr. Gilles Pinault. They have a daughter who graduated from Lawrence School in 2021.