Board of Directors

Laura Arneman

Board Chair

​Laura is currently a stay at home parent working towards going back to school for occupational therapy. Prior to this, Laura worked in accounting at a family owned architecture and construction company. She was on the board of her townhouse association for 3 years, and served as the treasurer for 2 of those years. Laura has two children at Pinewoods.

Jonathan Churn

Head of School, Ex-officio Board member

​Jonathan Churn obtained a Bachelor’s Degree in English from Barton College and a Masters of Education from Loyola College. He is an Association of Montessori International (AMI) certified Elementary Educator who spent nearly 20 years in the classroom before obtaining his American Montessori Society (AMS) certification in Administration and moving on to school leadership roles. He served as the Assistant HOS at the Montessori School of Raleigh from 2008-2011 before being named the Head of School at Winston-Salem Montessori School from 2011-2022. During his tenure at the Winston-Salem Montessori School, he oversaw a student body of 250 students and managed approximately 40 faculty and staff. He was instrumental in expanding the school from a toddler through 6th grade program to the addition of a 7th-9th grade Adolescent program. He successfully led the school through the COVID19 pandemic, largely keeping the doors open for in-person education throughout this challenging time in school history. Since July 2022, he has been working as the Director of Innovation and Advancement for the Association Montessori International of the U.S. (AMI/USA), where he has led the development of a new 5-year strategic plan.

Jon lives in Winston-Salem with his wife Robyn. He has two college age children, who attended Montessori from 18 months through 9th grade. He enjoys being a part of our school community and getting to collaborate with our Guides and families to build upon our excellent educational foundation, and to utilize his skills and experience to lead the Pinewoods Community into the next stage of its journey.

Kevin Darby

Board Member

Kevin brings a wealth of expertise in technology and finance to the Pinewoods Board. As Vice President of Execution Technology at CQG, Inc., Kevin specializes in quantitative finance, machine learning, and coding trading algorithms. A career entrepreneur, his diverse professional background includes owning a software company, working as a quant for an options trading firm, and managing several small businesses.

Originally from Chicago, Kevin moved to Chapel Hill in 2000 and has been an active member of the community ever since. With two children attending Pinewoods, he is deeply committed to the school’s success. Kevin leverages his financial modeling experience to support the board’s finance committee and contributes to strategic initiatives like the school’s building expansion.

Outside of work, Kevin enjoys math, motorcycles, music, and spending quality time with his wife Jenna and their children.

Valerie Ehrlich

Board Member

Dr. Valerie Ehrlich is an experienced consultant, coach, and organizational learning strategist with a Ph.D. in Social Psychology and extensive expertise in building learning cultures that drive meaningful impact. For more than seven years, she served as Director of the Societal Impact Insights Team at the Center for Creative Leadership, where she led strategic evaluation and research initiatives across education, nonprofit, and philanthropic sectors. Her work has directly influenced how organizations approach leadership development and systemic change.

In 2023, Valerie founded Mission Bloom, a consultancy that partners with mission-driven social impact organizations to transform their approach to learning and leadership development. Her unique blend of academic rigor and practical expertise helps organizations navigate complex challenges while building cultures of continuous improvement. Valerie is also a thought leader in the intersection of emergent learning, AI, organizational development, and inclusive leadership. She has received several accolades for her leadership in professional organizations, including recognition from NCCJ for strategic contributions to equity, diversity, and inclusion. Valerie lives in Hillsborough with her family and is deeply committed to supporting educational excellence in our community.

Brett Kunsch

Board Member

Brett has two children at Pinewoods, Maevie in Upper Elementary and Liam in Lower Elementary. After relocating to Hillsborough from Brooklyn, his family joined Pinewoods in the summer of 2022, a school community where his children have thrived. Brett is an executive recruiter supporting nonprofit, K12, and collective impact organizations throughout the country. He served in multiple roles for over a decade with NYC Public Schools in the offices of Teacher Recruitment & Quality and School Wellness Programs. Brett holds a BA in History from Stony Brook University, a BFA in Film from Long Island University, and his coaching certification from the International Coach Academy.

Bryce McDevitt

Board Member

Bryce McDevitt is vice president of External Communications and Marketing at Parsons Corporation, a technology solutions company in the global defense, intelligence and critical infrastructure markets. In this role, McDevitt is responsible for leading the corporation’s external communications and marketing strategy, advertising, trade shows, memberships and sponsorships, executive positioning, and digital communications, social media, and media relations practices. His family moved to Chapel Hill in June 2022 from Washington D.C., and became immediately connected to Pinewoods when his son, August, attended summer camp. August would later join the Primary 3 classroom and has thrived in the Montessori environment. His family also includes identical twin girls, Poppy and Campbell, who will join their brother at Pinewoods in 2023. He serves on the Pinewoods Board because he believes in the school’s mission of delivering quality, compassion-based education to students within a safe, peaceful setting; giving them the foundational tools to succeed throughout their academic journey. He is passionate about fostering a strong sense of community, and empowering teachers with the support and tools needed to be successful. McDevitt received a bachelor’s degree from Villanova University and holds a master’s degree in communication from Georgetown University. He lives in Chapel Hill with his wife, Cecily; three children; and cat, Penny.

Tara Spector

Board Secretary

Tara has 2 children at Pinewoods, Cosette (10) in Upper Elementary and Cole (7) in Lower Elementary. Her family joined Pinewoods in the fall of 2022 and they have been thrilled with the outstanding education provided by the dedicated teachers and impressed by the strong community feel. Tara is an Internal Medicine Physician and the Associate Medical Director of Clinical Operations for Hospital Medicine at Duke. She has previously served on the Pinewoods Covid-19 Advisory Committee and Head of School Search Committee and is excited to use her administrative skills and leadership experience to support the mission and vision of Pinewoods.

Janelle Sturtz

Board Treasurer

Janelle has two sons at Pinewoods, both in Lower Elementary . Janelle is a chiropractor with a specialization in pediatric and pregnancy care who practices here in Hillsborough at Imagine Chiropractic. Her experience in practice over the past 11 makes her a valuable member of this board, not only in business operations, but with her medical background and perspective with regards to our children’s health and well being, which is extremely important not only now but moving into the future. Janelle is also a member of her HOA board and an active participant in the North Carolina Chiropractic Association.

Haley Walker

Board Member

Haley Walker is a seasoned and award-winning communications and fundraising professional with a master’s degree in Journalism from Michigan State University and a professional certificate in Social Impact Storytelling from Georgetown University. Haley has served in both execution and strategy roles while working for a variety of nonprofits, becoming well-versed in crafting compelling digital and print storytelling and the tactics for ensuring they reach the right audiences.

For more than a decade, Haley held in-house positions with major local and international organizations, including as the Senior Director of Advancement for The Freshwater Trust, a regional conservation organization based in Oregon. There, she led a large team of communications and fundraising professionals, oversaw numerous fundraising initiatives, the production of all external communications collateral, and large-scale fundraising events. In 2020, Haley founded her own firm, Sawdust Storytelling, which has since assisted more than a dozen mission-driven clients across the country with messaging and branding strategy, design, grant writing, art direction, report development, social media, and more. Her campaigns have received Platinum and first-place awards in international creative competitions, and she has played a role in raising millions of dollars to support environmental and social causes. Haley is also the owner of Timberwood Tiny Home, a five-star farm retreat, and co-owner of Working Theory Farm, a property that is being revitalized after years of “not working.” She lives with her husband Belton and two daughters, Isla and Sadie, in Efland. Isla, now 3.5, has attended Pinewoods since she was 18 months old.