Board of Directors

The following individuals are the Directors for both Willow Oak Montessori Charter School and Willow Oak Montessori Children's House.

Elizabeth Bonitz, Board President & Chair of Governance & Policy Committee

Elizabeth’s involvement at Willow Oak Montessori began in 2013, when she enrolled her 3-year old at the Children’s House, with her second child following in 2017. Both children have thrived at WOM, inspiring her to give back to the school in whatever ways she can, including serving on a board committee and chairing several PTA fundraisers, along with classroom parent volunteering. Prior to starting a family in Pittsboro with her husband, John, Elizabeth earned a Bachelor and two Masters degrees in Education & English, along with National Board Teacher Certification, which well-prepared her for a successful 20-year career in public education. She especially values how Montessori education empowers initiative and is excited to serve as President on the WOM Board again this year. 

Ali Wolfe, Board Vice President & Chair of Strategic Thinking Committee

Ali spent the first decade of her professional life advocating for improved systems and policies for kids. Upon graduating with a Bachelor's in Political Science from the University of Georgia, Ali was a public middle school teacher in New York City and then served as a policy advocate for teachers at two different non-profit organizations. Missing her direct work with students, she then ventured into wilderness therapy, as a field guide for adolescents facing a wide range of challenges. These collective experiences inspired her to obtain her Master's in Social Work from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. Ali then worked as an intensive in-home therapist and provided outpatient therapy in private practice and at several Durham and Chapel Hill-Carrboro City schools, supporting the abundant caseloads of school social workers and guidance counselors. She is most interested in the intersection of mental health and diversity, equity, and inclusion in public schools. Ali equally loves the mountains and the beaches of NC and any opportunity she and her family have to practice mindfulness and rest. 

Livia Vass, Board Treasurer & Chair of Finance Committee

Bio coming soon!

Manju Reddy, Board Secretary

Manju credits his dad (an educator) for his awareness of the impact good education has on students of all ages. Manju knows he has benefitted from the educators and schools he has attended, and views his service on the WOM Board as a way to pay his educational benefits forward to subsequent generations and to the community. He especially appreciates the student choice and mixed-age groupings in Montessori classrooms, which he believes closely represents the real world environment in social and professional settings. He and his wife have two children at WOM, and he is delighted to be able to serve on the Board, combining his computer science and MBA skills to support the school. 

Josh Beaver, Board Member 

Bio coming soon!

Matthew Brown (Tsilimigras), Board Member 

Matthew grew up the son of a teacher in the mountains of western North Carolina. After college, he was an English tutor to elementary students in rural Japan and continued working with children doing scientific outreach with high schoolers in the genetics of blight resistance in the endangered American Chestnut during his Bioinformatics PhD research at UNC-Charlotte. He then moved to the Pittsboro area for his postdoctoral research at UNC-Chapel Hill in dynamic treatment regimes, cardiovascular epidemiology and the gut microbiome. Matthew is thrilled to join the board at Willow Oak after witnessing his daughter thriving in her first year in the Children's House and looks forward to contributing to the future success of the school.

Genevieve Cohen, Board Member 

Genny first encountered a Montessori-style of education as a young child. Her elementary school embraced several Montessori facets, such as multi-age classrooms, a globally-minded school culture, and differentiated, hands-on learning experiences. Looking back on her own childhood, Genny often recognizes the many benefits that this rich and child-centered early education provided her. As she advanced into her own career as an educator, Genny was able to implement several of these best practices into her own classroom, and as a mentor to other teachers. Genny holds a bachelor's degree in developmental psychology and early childhood education, a master's in elementary teaching, and a master's in business administration. She has taught in public and independent schools in Massachusetts, California, and Brussels, Belgium. Now she works in Product Management, a role in which she leverages many of the same skills she learned as a teacher, helping adults feel valued as individuals and as members of a team. Genny is honored to bring her combination of teaching experience and business skills to the WOM Board of Directors. When she is not working, Genny soaks up the sun with her daughter, walking the trails, embarking on road trips, and visiting local coffee shops. 

Eric Riutta, Board Member & Chair of Educational Excellence Committee

Bio coming soon!

Amber Sowa, Board Member 

Bio coming soon!