Board of Directors
About the TES Board of Directors
As a charter school, The Expedition School is governed by its own Board of Directors, a local, volunteer group comprised of education professionals, business leaders, former K-12 teachers, parents, and community members. They share a passion for K-12 education and a deep commitment to seeing TES succeed to its highest potential. The board of director’s primary responsibilities are:
- Assure the school follows the mission as written in the charter
- Assure financial accountability and financial stability of the school
- Make spending choices and set salaries
- Hire and Evaluate the Director of Education and Curriculum
- Create and revise school and board policies
- Fundraise and develop partnerships for the school
Please note the board is not responsible for the day to day operations of the school. Please address classroom and operational issues with your child’s teacher, administration, or other appropriate school personnel.
Click here to review the TES Board's Strategic Goals for 2020-2025.Board Meetings
Board Meetings are usually scheduled every third Thursday at 6:00 PM. If the third Thursday falls on a holiday, then the board meeting will be the Thursday before. Due to COVID-19, the TES Board currently holds its meetings via Zoom. Please use THIS ZOOM LINK to access the meetings. Public comments can be submitted here, and must be received 24 hours before the meeting.Committee Meetings are held regularly throughout each month. Please refer to this link for the schedule and meeting links.
The TES board of directors will be reviewing the requirements for CIPA and internet safety at it's board meeting at 6 PM on March 16th, 2023.
Meet the TES Board
Cheryl Schall (Chair) | Durham, NC
Cheryl Schall is a first generation immigrant and an Emmy Award winning ABC News producer. She has received national recognition as an Edward R. Murrow Award recipient. Her production work is focused on planned and breaking live news events. She has worked on the 2004 and 2008 election cycles including primaries, conventions, debates, election nights, and inaugurations. She has covered breaking news events including the deaths of Ronald Reagan, Gerald Ford, Pope John Paul, Ted Kennedy, Michael Jackson, and the massacres at Virginia Tech and Sandy Hook. Cheryl passionately believes in community building and supports public education. She lives in an intentional cohousing neighborhood in Durham with her husband, a current TES student, a future TES student, and an old man corgi named Deacon.
L. Blue Dean | Hillsborough, NC
Blue Dean currently serves as the Executive Director for Library Development at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Blue’s fundraising career spans 20 years and includes non-profit work as well as academic fundraising. Prior to working at UNC- Chapel Hill, Blue served as Executive Director of Development of Major and Leadership giving at Duke Health from 2011- 2019, first overseeing the Duke Heart Center and then managing the development team for the Department of Medicine. Before moving to North Carolina, Blue worked at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville from 2006 – 2011 first serving as the director of development of the University Libraries and then serving as the director of development for the College of Education, Health, and Human Sciences. Prior to her time with the University of Tennessee, Blue served as the Director of Development of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. Additional non-profit work includes the Knoxville Museum of Art where Blue served as the Director of Volunteer and Visitor Service. Blue holds a B.A. in English from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and she has completed advanced training in philanthropy and fundraising from the Johns Hopkins Medicine Philanthropy Institute and leadership training from Duke University. Blue is active in the community having served as the President of the Duke Faculty Club Board of Governors and the founding chair of the Duke Faculty Club Diversity and Inclusion Committee. Blue also served as the Fundraising Co-Chair for The Expedition School Community Association, was a member of the fundraising committee at Duke School, and is currently a neighborhood coordinator for PORCH. Blue and her husband, Robb, have two children – Ava, age 19 and Max, age 13. They moved from Knoxville, Tennessee in 2011 and reside in Hillsborough, North Carolina.
Gavin Jocius (Treasurer) | Durham, NC
Gavin Jocius is an executive with over two decades of experience in information technology, operations, strategy and eCommerce marketing. His most recent prior role was as the Executive Vice President of Art for Circle Graphics, a leading online retailer of custom and licensed works of art that employed over 200 staff members and generated over $80 million in annual revenue. Gavin was the Director of Information Technology and Web Services at Duke University Alumni Affairs and the Global Marketing Director at lulu.com, an online publisher in Raleigh, North Carolina. Gavin holds a Master of Arts and MBA from Duke University. As the father of an EC child at TES, he is passionate about promoting and supporting neurodiversity.
Keethan Kleiner | Hillsborough, NC
Keethan Kleiner is a leader in technology and education policy, currently serving as an Instructor of Computer Science at the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics (NCSSM) in Durham. In this role, Keethan has served in leadership roles within NCSSM as well as in the University of North Carolina System. He has been a member of a variety of committees tasked with decision-making responsibilities, including contributing to creating an artificial intelligence program with a focus on ethics, planning the academic program at the second campus in Morganton, and expanding benefits for system employees. He has also presented his work at professional conferences. Keethan has completed multiple fellowships on equity, diversity, and inclusion and on education policy. He has won multiple awards for his work improving EDI in computer science, including research conducted at NC State. Keethan has additionally completed a fellowship in political leadership, currently serves on the NCSSM Alumni Association Board of Directors, and is an active volunteer with Better Ballot NC. Prior to working at NCSSM, Keethan worked as a Software Engineer at the startup Automated Insights. He earned both his B.S. and M.S. in Computer Science from UNC-Chapel Hill, specializing in artificial intelligence. Keethan resides in Hillsborough with his partner and her two children who attend The Expedition School.
Gary Kuebler (Vice Chair) | Hillsborough, NC
Board Committees
TES Board Committees are small and instrumental working groups with a board member that serves as chair, as well as a second (and sometimes third) board member as a participant. Internal and external community members with expertise in the committee’s area of focus are at times recruited to serve on Board committees.
Contact the Board
To contact the board of directors, e-mail [email protected]
Recent Board Communication
Trust, credibility, transparency, and communication are key to the health of a school community, and the Board is eager to ensure the TES community feels informed and connected to the decisions being considered and made. In addition to the availability of Board meeting minutes, updates from the TES Board are sent several times each year. For previous Board communication, click below.
Board Agendas & Meeting Minutes
If you are unable to access any of the files below or would like to request additional information, please contact [email protected]. (Please note that since minutes cannot be posted until they are approved by the Board at the following month’s meeting, there is a four week lapse between minutes being taken, officially approved and then posted.)
Board Policies
Click HERE for a list of TES Policies (approved by the TES Board.)
TES Bylaws (Revised and Approved 10/21/22)