Virginia Beach Friends School is a non-profit 501(c)(3) with a Board of Trustees. The Board of Trustees speaks as one voice with unity.
The roles and responsibilities of members of the Board of Trustees 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 Board of Trustees 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 Board of Trustees Clerk, 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 Board of Trustees do not include:
- Becoming involved directly in specific management, personnel, or curricular issues.
- The specific needs of a particular child or constituency.
Board of Trustees Members
Natalie Bray
Natalie is a Virginia Beach native, Friends School alumna and parent, and a member of Virginia Beach Friends Meeting. She grew up in the care of Meeting, where she’s attended since the age of 10. She is led to join the Board with the intention of strengthening the connection and relationship between Friends School and Meeting because of her deep ties to both communities.
A high school graduate of Cape Henry Collegiate, Natalie studied Fine Art and Anthropology at James Madison University. She moved to Boston and worked at various non-profit arts organizations and discovered a love for teaching. During her MFA studies at Savannah College of Art and Design, Natalie founded a small nonprofit gallery that served the local community. Natalie has followed her passion and curiosity throughout her career and volunteer roles. Her professional background is in gallery and museum curation at SCAD, Virginia MOCA and the City of Virginia Beach, teaching as an Adjunct Professor at Old Dominion University and Tidewater Community College and serving as a Reggio-based preschool art teacher. Currently, Natalie serves as the Chair of Communications for the Virginia Beach Democratic Committee, a founding member of Little Neck Moms for Progress, a grassroots collective of activists in her neighborhood, and as a Gallery Educator at MOCA.
She and her husband have 3 daughters, 2 dogs, and a bird. Sky attends Friends School as a 6 th grader, and Junie (3 rd ) and Scarlett (8 th ) attend Old Donation School. Their family stays busy with Tide swimming; Tidewater Striders running; piano, violin and vocal music and the VBFM Young Friends group activities. They find time to enjoy the ocean, and the many hiking and camping opportunities offered in our beautiful area.
Chris Dotolo
Chris is a Norfolk native and attended Norfolk Academy for 12 years. After playing baseball at Virginia Wesleyan, Chris played professional baseball for 5 seasons in the San Francisco Giants organization. After his playing career, he coached Division 1 college baseball for 15 years as an assistant coach at Dartmouth College, St. John's University (NY), and as the head coach at Hofstra University (NY). He then worked in the Development Office at Norfolk Academy for 5 years before moving into a career as a Financial Advisor with Edward Jones in Virginia Beach.
Chris has a Master's Degree in Sports Administration from George Mason University and a Master's Degree in Financial Planning and Law from Regent University (2021). He has extensive fundraising experience and is the Chair of the Business and Finance Committee as well as an advisor on the Development Committee for the Friends School. He has 3 daughters; Gina, Savanna, and Maria and resides in Virginia Beach.
Kevin Emerson
Kevin is a native of Virginia Beach and graduated from Norfolk Academy. Kevin attended Washington & Lee University and holds a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting and Business Administration. He started his career with Price Waterhouse in Norfolk in 1994 and is a Certified Public Accountant.
In 2005, Kevin joined McKesson Corporation, a diversified healthcare services company, and has held various senior finance and accounting roles, including Controllership roles, leading M&A and Integration activities, serving as a Business Unit CFO, and now serves as Senior Vice President, Finance Operations where he oversees key enterprise initiatives. These roles have taken him from San Francisco, CA to Richmond, VA, Atlanta, GA, and Dallas, TX, before landing him back in Virginia Beach.
Kevin and his family live at the oceanfront and enjoy being active and spending time at the beach. He has two children at Norfolk Academy and his wife Meredith, who also grew up in Virginia Beach, is a Real Estate Agent with Atkinson Realty.
Brian Facemire
Brian Facemire was a Middle and Upper School History Educator for 15 years at Cape Henry Collegiate. He is still active in the Cape Henry community as a Varsity Soccer Coach. In his fifteen years in the classroom Brian attempted to instill a sense of wonder and exploration in children about the world in which they live. This is evidenced by his status as a National Geographic Educator as well as his focus on experiential learning as part of a primary model for education. After recently finishing a second master’s degree in The Classical Mediterranean, Brian is currently pursuing PhD programs in archaeology and ancient history.
As well as instilling a passion for history and education in the classroom, Brian also served on several directorships in the local community including the Virginia Beach Historical Review Board and the philanthropic organization Virginia Gentlemen Foundation. In addition to his daily classroom duties he also served on several internal boards at Cape Henry to create an in-house professional development program that relies on the expertise of teachers to teach teachers. What teachers are passionate about and how they bring that passion to their classroom is instrumental in sharing knowledge among the faculty. He also served on the Board to create a proactive educator evaluation system not based on draconian measures of punishment, rather focused on goals and insights derived from open and honest conversations between faculty and administration.
He might be called an advocate for teachers in a world that sometimes runs them down. Brian understands what it means to give back to the local community. Acting locally reaches globally. Teaching and education are part of the fiber of his being and he knows that if he reached only one child, that could be the difference in making a better world.
Matt Harding
Matt grew up in Virginia Beach with his sister and parents. His Dad was in the Navy for 20+ years and his Mother was a dietician. He attended First Colonial High School and William and Mary for College. After college, Matt moved to Northern Virginia to work for Freddie Mac. In 2005, he moved to New York City to work for Morgan Stanley where he met his wife (Whitney) and spent a few years there on the Upper West Side. In 2012, they made their way back to his home town with their first son, Parker.
Along with his business partner (who is a friend from High School), Matt operates a market making business in fixed-income securities. His family lives at the North End of Virginia Beach with their three sons, Parker (12), Davis (10,) and Camden (5) – 3 boys who are into baseball, tennis, and surfing. As a family they like to travel, although that has gotten increasingly more difficult with kids’ sports. But they do manage to spend a lot of time in Charlottesville, VA. Whitney enjoys volunteering (Ocean Front Circle for CHKD, Junior League and very involved in various aspects of the Virginia Beach Public School System) and they both play a lot of tennis and enjoy the beach.
Heather Larrabee
Heather grew up in Connecticut and attended Trinity College in Hartford, CT graduating with a degree in elementary education. Upon graduation, she moved to Boston and began her career as a kindergarten and then third grade teacher at The Dexter Southfield School. While teaching at Dexter/Southfield, Heather received her Master’s degree as a Reading Specialist at Lesley University in Cambridge, MA.
Heather met her husband, Travis, while teaching at Dexter/Southfield and moved to northern Virginia to teach third grade at the National Presbyterian School in Washington, DC. After a few years, she became the reading specialist for grades three-six at NPS until moving to Philadelphia in 2007 when Travis accepted a job at the William Penn Charter School. Heather became the MS Learning Specialist at Penn Charter in 2008 and spent fifteen years supporting students, teachers and families with children who had learning challenges.
Heather and her family moved to Norfolk in June 2023 when her husband became the new Head of School at Norfolk Academy. They have three children and the family has truly enjoyed getting acquainted with the area and community!
Mark Paccione
Mark Paccione is the Chief Investment Officer and Chief Operating Officer for Curi Capital, an independent RIA based in Raleigh, NC. As Chief Investment Officer, Mark oversees Curi Capital’s Investment Committee, asset allocation framework, and investment strategies. As Chief Operating Officer, Mark overseas operations and trading for the second-fastest growing RIA in North Carolina. Prior to joining Curi Capital, he spent 14 years with CAPTRUST Financial Advisors, the largest Independent RIA in the country, as Senior Director of Wealth Management playing a significant role in the firm’s growth. Mark’s time in the investment industry began in 1998 and included several years as a market maker on the Pacific Coast Options Exchange and several years with one of Morgan Stanley's top wealth management teams. He received a Bachelor of Science degree in Mathematical Economics from Wake Forest University, and holds the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA), Certified Financial Planner® (CFP®), and Behavioral Financial Advisor (BFA™) designations. Mark currently serves on the Board of Trustees at William Peace University, is an Advisory Board member of Magma Capital, and is the former President of the CFA Society North Carolina.
George Polizos
George is a native of Norfolk and credits the four years he attended Friends in the 1960’s as fundamental to his academic, character and spiritual growth.
George is a graduate of Norfolk Academy, Washington & Lee University and the Mason School of Business at William & Mary. He brings to Friends a professional background in marketing and communications as well as a 20-year career in life insurance, health insurance and long-term care planning for families and business owners. George serves on the Advancement Committee and is dedicated to helping the school be a positive force in the community for the next generation.
In addition to his work for Friends, George is a director on Norfolk’s Economic Development Authority and is a member of the Annunciation Greek Orthodox Cathedral Parish Council.
Joanne Young
Joanne is the Property Improvements Coordinator for Siebert Realty. She specializes in vacation home furnishings and renovation projects in Sandbridge. She is a native of Virginia Beach and a graduate of Norfolk Academy and Randolph-Macon Woman’s College.
Her journey with Friends School began as a parent in 2006. She served on the Board of Trustees from 2010-2014 and rejoined in 2017. She has held the position of Assistant Clerk and President of the Board of Trustees and has served on the following committees: Buildings & Grounds, Advancement, the Committee on Trustees and the Head of School searches that hired both Michael Barclay and Greg Angilly.
Joanne and her husband Jamey have two children, Patrick and Allison. Patrick attended Friends School 7th-12th grades and graduated in 2014. Allison is a graduate of Norfolk Academy, class of 2016. The Youngs continue to be the host family to a Serbian exchange student, Miodrag Dronjak, who attended Friends School in 11th grade and graduated in 2016. Miodrag has a work visa and calls Virginia Beach his second home. All three children have graduated from college; Appalachian State University, Washington & Lee University and The College of William & Mary, respectively.
The Friends School is a special place for children to grow in a safe and nuturing environment that allows them to be their best selves. It is for this reason, Joanne dedicates to the service of this school.
