Friends School of Virginia Beach is a non-profit corporation and the School Committee is our Board of Trustees. The School Committee speaks as one voice with unity.
The roles and responsibilities of members of our School Committee are:
- To hire and supervise the Head of School.
- To actively support and promote the school’s mission, vision, strategic goals and policies.
- To be informed about current operations and issues by being well prepared for and attending regular meetings.
- To set School Committee and Head of School policies based on long-range strategic planning.
- To keep all board deliberations confidential.
- To guard against conflicts of interest, whether personal or business related.
- To bring to the Head of School, or to the Clerk of School Committee an issue of importance to the school, and must refrain from responding to the situation individually.
- To contribute to the development program of the school, including strategic planning for development, financial support, and active involvement in annual and capital giving.
- To be accountable to the school for sound financial management. Each trustee has this responsibility, not just the treasurer and finance committee.
- To promote a strong bond between the School and the Virginia Beach Friends Meeting.
The roles and responsibilities of members of our School Committee do not include:
- Becoming involved directly in specific management, personnel, or curricular issues.
- The specific needs of a particular child or constituency.
Trustees
Tim Craddock
Tim is a native of Virginia Beach and currently resides there with his family. His Friends School experience began in 2006 with enrollment of a student now attending Radford University. He is also the parent of a Friends School and James Madison University alumna. Tim volunteers at school regularly and enjoys attending school events and being part of the vibrant Friends School community.
Tim is a Virginia Tech Hokie and Professional Electrical Engineer. He is responsible for building electrical system design and construction. His practice includes implementation of sustainable design and continuing education to stay current with the constant evolution of building technology. Tim’s experience includes numerous facilities throughout the Mid-Atlantic region for clients in the government, healthcare and education markets.
Tim currently serves as the School Committee Convener of the Building and Grounds committee.
Hank Ghittino
Hank Ghittino is a long time member of Virginia Beach Friends Meeting where he has served on various committees, as treasurer, and is presently an Overseer and Trustee of the Meeting and a member of the Joint Property Task Force. Hank also served as a Meeting member during the School’s Long Range Planning process. Although raised in Queens, NY, Hank has called Tidewater, particularly Virginia Beach, home since 1970. He graduated from Tidewater Community College, James Madison University, and took graduate course work at Old Dominion University. His two step-children attended Friends School for a time in the early 1980's
Hank is a professional geologist, retired from a thirty-six year career as a hydrogeologist. During his career he worked in the environmental sections of local, regional, and international consulting firms. He spent his last seventeen working years with the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality in the groundwater resources management program, which is a permitting program that regulates groundwater based public and private water supply systems, individual industries, and agricultural and golf course irrigation.
Hank currently serves as Assistant Clerk of the School Committee.
Patrick Goold
Patrick is the Recording Clerk of the School Committee. He is a member of Virginia Beach Friends Meeting and a veteran school committee member. Patrick lives in Portsmouth, keeps a boat in Hampton, and works at Virginia Wesleyan University, where he is a member of the philosophy department.
Chalit Fernando
Born in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Chalit moved to Bethesda, Maryland at the age of 8 with his parents and sister. He attended Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio before transferring to Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada. After graduating with a degree in International Business and Political Science, he worked for a non-profit legal society as the IT and Finance Manager before completing an M.B.A. at The College of William and Mary.
Chalit lives in Virginia Beach with his wife Victoria and daughter Julianna who is currently attending Lower School at Virginia Beach Friends School. He works as the Program Manager of Strategic Planning at Bon Secours Health System.
Chalit currently serves as the Convener of the Advancement Committee.
James Metcalfe
James A. Metcalfe and his wife Lisa, who is a past teacher and current volunteer, are the parents of two former VBFS students who are now grown and in their fourth decade.
Jim is a returning member of School Committee, having served from 1977 through 1991. He attended Germantown Friends School in Philadelphia, PA in 1946. He graduated from the U. S. Naval Academy in 1963 and has lived in Virginia Beach since 1968. He is a retired federal prosecutor and a retired Navy Reserve captain and aviator.
George Polizos
George is a native of Norfolk and credits the five years he attended Friends in the 1960’s as fundamental to his academic, character and spiritual growth. He has two children – Gus attends Radford University and Grace is a sophomore at Lafayette High School in Williamsburg.
George is a graduate of Washington & Lee University and the Mason School of Business at William & Mary. He brings to Friends an extensive professional background in marketing and communications as well as a 20-year career in life insurance and long-term care planning for families and business owners.
He enjoys sharing his son’s passions – fishing and Baltimore Ravens football – and his daughter’s passion – learning to drive now that she has her learner’s permit.
George serves on the Advancement Committee and is dedicated to helping the school be a positive force in the community for the next generation.
Joanne Young
Joanne is a native of Virginia Beach and a graduate of Randolph-Macon Woman’s College with a BA in Politics and Economics.
Her journey with Friends School began as a parent in 2006. She served on the School Committee from 2010-2014 and rejoined in 2017. She has served on the following committees: Buildings & Grounds, Advancement and the Committee on Trustees. She has held the position of Assistant Clerk.
Joanne and her husband James have two children, Patrick and Allison. Patrick attended Friends School in 7th grade and graduated in 2014. Allison is a graduate of Norfolk Academy, class of 2016. The Young family currently hosts a Serbian exchange student, Miodrag Dronjak, who attended Friends School in 11th grade and graduated in 2016. All three children are in college and doing well.
Joanne works as an Interior Design Consultant, specializing in Resort Vacation Properties.
Joanne currently serves as Clerk of the School Committee.
