Lisa Ward is the Director of Capital and Planned Gifts at Porter-Gaud. She grew up in the Lowcountry and has worked in education fundraising for the last several years. She received a B.A. in Political Science and Public Affairs from Columbia College and a Juris Doctor from the Charleston School of Law. Before coming to Porter-Gaud, Lisa worked on Capitol Hill and as a civil litigation attorney in Mount Pleasant, SC. When she is not at Porter-Gaud, she loves spending time with her husband Heath and their sons Grady and Brody, volunteering in the community, and enjoying all our beautiful city has to offer. Lisa is deeply passionate about Porter-Gaud and the transformational experience the school affords every student.

843.402.4754

lward@portergaud.edu

Kathryn Sherrod has been with the Porter-Gaud Foundation for 13 years and currently serves as the Director of Leadership Giving. Her previous role, as Director of Alumni Relations, allowed her the opportunity to engage with our alumni all over the Country. Prior to coming to PG, Kathryn worked in the Development Office for MUSC Children’s Hospital Fund for 10 years. She is a graduate of the College of Charleston with a B. S. in Business Administration and earned her M. H. A. from the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC). She and her husband, Will, have twin daughters who graduated with the Class of 2022 at Porter-Gaud School. She grew up in the Lowcountry and has a passion for education, running, and animals.

843.402.4685
ksherrod@portergaud.edu

Kenton Barham Youngblood '95 serves asDirector of Alumni Relations. She has more than 20 years of advancement experience to include: Director of Major Gifts at the College of Charleston; Vice President, Major Gifts and Planned Giving at Trident United Way; Director of Development, the Gibbes Museum of Art; and Executive Director, University of Virginia Club of New York City.

Kenton grew up in Charleston where she graduated from Porter-Gaud School in 1995 before earning a B.A. in American Government from the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, VA.
Kenton lives on James Island with her husband Jay in a quiet home as their three adult children have flown the coop. When not on campus, Kenton can be found in the kitchen or on the water.

843.402.4686

kyoungblood@portergaud.edu

Brian Beck is the Director of Annual Giving at Porter-Gaud. He is a UNCG alumni with a B.S. in Nutrition and Wellness and is currently studying at Boston University for a graduate degree in Arts Administration and Fundraising Management. Prior to Porter-Gaud, Brian served as the Donor Relations Manager for Habitat for Humanity where he oversaw the individual giving program in Charlotte, NC. He was part of the mentor program at UNCC for new graduate development professionals and also served on the board of the local AFP chapter in Charlotte. Brian now resides in Mount Pleasant and enjoys all the activities that Charleston has to offer. In his free time, he enjoys being outside in nature, is an avid diver, motorcyclist, and traveler.

Brian Beck
843-402-4803

Tracey Zirneklis has spent the last twenty years in education, most recently as a six year veteran of Porter-Gaud’s Upper School English department.  Now in her current role as the Advancement Services Manager, she works with the advancement team in its efforts to support students and help further the school’s mission.  Additionally, Tracey serves as Head Coach for both the JV and Varsity Girls and Boys tennis teams, winning her first state title with the Varsity Boys in the spring of 2023.  She is a graduate of Indiana University and earned a MAT in English from the Citadel.  An avid tennis player, Tracey lives in West Ashley with her husband, Ryan, step-daughter, Mazie, and son, Logan (PG class of 2024). 

Richard Star is currently a principal and co-founder of NEXgistics, LLC, a national third-party logistics provider. He has an undergraduate degree from Northwestern University and holds Masters degrees from both Duke University and New York University.  Richard currently serves as Chairman of the Regional Board for Reading Partners South Carolina, a non-profit focused on addressing literacy gaps in public schools across the state.  Richard is also a member of the advisory board for the Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation at the Fuqua School of Business at Duke University.  He also serves on the boards of a number of other corporate and non-profit entities.  Richard and his wife Shara have two daughters who are students at Porter-Gaud, Samantha (Class of 2027) and Jillian (Class of 2031).

He and his wife, Holly, have two daughters at PG – Blair '25 and Darcy '28.

Mark attended the Collegiate School in his hometown of Richmond, Virginia, and earned B.S. (’09) and M.S. (’10) degrees in Management from Clemson University. After spending a decade in the international logistics industry, most recently as President of James River Carriers based out of Virginia, Mark decided to pursue a calling to help people leverage their biological design in order to take control of their life satisfaction and personal fulfillment. In 2020, Mark founded Into the Ideal, LLC, a collection of 10 separate ventures as diverse as business consulting, private equity, family counseling, and vacation rentals, all united in their support of a charitable foundation designed to help those struggling to find their path in life. 

Mark is currently completing an ALM degree in Industrial-Organizational Psychology at Harvard University’s Extension School, and has a book publishing deal with Advantage Forbes to explain the psychological processes behind Into the Ideal’s proprietary framework. He and his wife Chelsea have four children: Lilly Grace ’33, Addison ’35 (O’Quinn), Caroline ’37 (O’Quinn), and Parker.

Michael Handler served as Head of the Portfolio Trading Desk in London for Cantor Fitzgerald in their London office for 14 years (16 years total with the firm) before moving to Charleston. He is a graduate of Boston University and an avid outdoorsman. He and his wife Tracey have two children at Porter-Gaud, Abby (Class of 2027) and Gabe (Class of 2029). Michael is currently serving as the President of the Porter-Gaud Fathers Association.

Nat Howe is currently the Director of Development for the Department of Medicine at the Medical University of South Carolina. In this role, he handles all aspects of fundraising for the largest Department within the College of Medicine. Prior to MUSC, he worked for 19 years in Annual Giving at Princeton University where he was responsible for recruiting, training and managing alumni volunteers. He spent most of his tenure managing the 50^th Reunion, the 2^nd largest campaign in the office. He started his fundraising career at Princeton Junior School as their first full-time development professional and later was a member of their Board of Trustees. Nat was also a member of the Board of Trustees at Princeton Academy of the Sacred Heart and Chair of their Strategic Planning Committee. Nat is a graduate of Middlebury College. He and his wife Mimi have one son at Porter-Gaud, Perry (Class of 2022).

Lauren is originally from New York City and attended the University of Mary Washington where she majored in French. She taught in France for two years after college then returned to New York where she worked in marketing, including at Louis Vuitton and Dior. Lauren was actively involved with several philanthropic causes, including serving as President of the Hudson River Park Playground Committee and as a founding member of Moms for Moms, a subcommittee of Enterprise for Affordable Housing. Lauren currently works as a brand marketing consultant and resides in Mt. Pleasant with her husband, Paul, and two children, Gabe ’32 and Rohe, and a step-son Luca.

Chris Osborne ’95 is Managing Director and Partner at Southeast Asset Advisors, LLC, an investment advisory firm providing multi-generational wealth and investment management services, where he leads the Charleston office. He has many connections to Porter-Gaud: alumnus, PG Athletic Hall of Fame member, Current Parent, past President of the PG Alumni Association and serves on thePG Foundation Board. Chris is a graduate of The University of the South (Sewanee). He and his wife Libba have two sons at PG – Granger (Class of 2026) and Caldwell (Class of 2030).

Greer has deep experience in all aspects of planning, leading and advising comprehensive fundraising campaigns. She has developed expertise in every stage of philanthropy, from developing organizational structure to successfully completing multimillion dollar campaigns. Greer also specializes in helping organizations implement custom planned giving programs and campaigns.

As Director of Client Partnerships at the Angeletti Group, LLC, Greer is mindful of the changing environment of philanthropy as she helps organizations enhance charitable funding to increase their impact. She understands organizational finances and how best to use available resources to secure revenue for buildings, programs and endowments. Greer oversees a variety of client service projects including writing, high level strategy and developing and managing clients’ action plans. Her experience, focus, mentoring and strong initiative have helped her clients reach—and many times surpass—their organizational and professional goals.

Before joining the Angeletti Group, Greer served as a senior consultant with another leading national firm advising campaigns and helping diverse clients achieve fundraising success, including zoos, gardens, hospitals, children’s organizations, independent schools and universities. Due to her accomplishments, Greer earned the firm’s Consultant of the Year Award for her fundraising success and high client approval ratings.

Greer began her career in philanthropy at her alma mater, Porter-Gaud School, as director of alumni and public relations. She went on to serve successfully the Children’s Museum of the Lowcountry as its founding director of development and the Coastal Community Foundation as donor services director. This executive experience gives her insight into the needs and challenges that charitable organizations face daily.

Greer received her undergraduate degree from The University of Pennsylvania. She is past president of the Lowcountry Chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals and served on the board of the South Carolina Planned Giving Council for 7 years. In 2017, Greer began her third term on the Junior League of Charleston's Board of Directors. Greer has also been a speaker and panelist at national conferences on fundraising topics including capital campaigns and planned giving.

She is an avid tennis player and recently completed her 9th marathon in November at the New York City Marathon.

John is the Managing Partner of Permanens Capital Partners, an investment management firm overseeing $4.2 billion. Prior to founding Permanens in 2011, he served as a the Senior Investment Officer at the Cornell University Endowment. 

He graduated Cum Laude with a BS in Political Science from Tufts University, where he competed as a member of the Men’s Varsity Track and Cross-Country Teams. John serves on the Board of Advisors of Athletics at Tufts and currently Co-Chairs their athletic capital campaign. He earned an MBA in Finance from NYU’s Stern School of Business and studied abroad at The Yale in China Program at The Chinese University of Hong Kong.

John is an alumnus, former Trustee and former Chair of the Investment and Advancement Committees of Poly Prep Country Day School in Brooklyn, New York. He has served on several nonprofit and educational boards over his career. 

He and Kim have two students at Porter-Gaud, Ryan ’23 and Kelly ’24.

Betsy Saal is a native of Cincinnati, OH who moved to the Charleston area in 2007. She is a retired real estate developer who is now recognized as a community volunteer and philanthropist with her focus on education. She has served on several local boards, including Gibbes Museum of Art, Roper St. Francis Foundation, Trident United Way and Florence Crittenton Programs of SC. Her son and daughter-in-law, Dunne and Rogan Saal, are the parents of two PG students--Trey Saal (5th grader) and Emmet Saal (2nd grader)—and an O’Quinn student, Bay Saal.

A 19-year financial industry veteran, Ms. Burwell joined First National Bank in 2019 as Charleston Market President to build and lead their commercial banking team. Prior to her current role, she held various positions with Wells Fargo Bank and its successors. Most recently, she served as a Business Banking Manager in Charleston responsible for a large team of relationship managers, including oversight of their portfolios and operations. Early in her career, she joined the institution as a Licensed Financial Specialist after working as a junior broker with Merrill Lynch Pierce, Fenner & Smith.

A native of Charleston, Ms. Burwell earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of South Carolina. She currently serves on The Charleston Metro Chamber of Commerce’s Board of Directors, Kiawah Cares Foundation Board of Directors, and Ashley Hall Alumni Board of Directors. She is Past President of the Junior League of Charleston and an Elder in Rockville Presbyterian Church.

Mrs. Burwell and her husband, Ollie, have three sons in grades 6 and 8 at Porter-Gaud and in kindergarten at O’Quinn. In their spare time, they enjoy time being outdoors, traveling, and spending time with family.

D. DuBose Egleston, Jr. is the 6^th Head of School of Porter-Gaud. He attended O’Quinn and then Porter-Gaud for 12 years, graduating in 1993. DuBose studied Chemistry and Biology at Furman University and later completed a Master’s in Business at The Citadel and graduate credits as a Kingenstein Fellow at Columbia University.

DuBose joined the Faculty and Staff at Porter-Gaud as Director of Technology in 2000. In 2006, DuBose became Assistant Head for Finance and Operations. DuBose took over as Interim Head in 2009 and became the permanent Head of School later that school year.

DuBose serves on the Governing Board for the National Association of Episcopal Schools and is a member of the Southern Headmasters’ Association and the Country Day School Headmasters’ Association of the United States.

DuBose and Nancy have been married 17 years and have 3 children who attend Porter-Gaud. They enjoy travel and sailing and the blessing of living on campus.

Prior to taking the helm of the Foundation, Craig served as Vice President at Bernstein Private Wealth Management in Washington, DC and before that as Associate Development Director at Episcopal High School (EHS) in Alexandria, VA. He is a graduate of EHS and has a B.A. and M.B.A. from the University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill. He and his wife, Cricket, live in Mt. Pleasant and have three children, Ansley, Craig and Lee. He served on the boards of an Episcopal retirement community foundation, a military museum and education-focused nonprofit in the Washington area before moving to South Carolina. He loves college sports and reading--mostly novels.