Meet the PTA Executive Board
Zach Burton, President
LeAnn, Margo, and I love Barnard! Margo is in second grade this year. We enjoy playing golf, visiting the zoo and Legoland, and exploring San Diego as a family.
I am happy to serve as your President this year.
Our family looks forward to making new friends and growing together this school year!
Sergio Rodriguez, Vice President
Hello Barnard Friends & Family! I am excited to serve as your PTA Vice President for the 2024-2025 academic year and to continue my time on the board to serve the Barnard community.
My daughter, Valentina is a second grader who loves Barnard and her continued learning of Mandarin. I also have a younger daughter Juliana who is looking forward to joining Barnard in a few years. Our family enjoys spending time with friends and family at the Birch Aquarium, and the San Diego Zoo, and having picnics on the beach.
I look forward to meeting and connecting with more Barnard families in the coming year!
Kent Lee, Treasurer
Hello Barnard families! My name is Kent Lee and this is my second year on the PTA Board — serving as your Treasurer. Our daughter is in 1st grade and our son starts TK this Fall. Our family chose Barnard especially for the sense of community in addition to all the unique learning experiences and opportunities.
Outside of school, we love to stay engaged in the community, take trips to Legoland, and spend time at our local parks and playgrounds.
We look forward to a great school year and to meeting new Barnard families along the way!
Karen Chern, Secretary
Hello, Barnard friends and family! This is my first year serving as secretary. I have three kids at Barnard – a 4th grader, a 2nd grader, and one in TK.
Barnard is such a special community because everyone chooses to be here. We feel so privileged for our kids to be learning Mandarin here while attending a public school and getting to experience life in San Diego! We are transplants to this city so love exploring all that it has to offer, from beaches to playgrounds to finding new boba places.
I have also been the “Book Fair Lady” at Barnard for the past couple of years, so you may also see me at one of our upcoming Scholastic Book Fairs. Our family looks forward to another amazing school year. Go Pandas!
Elsa Leon, Financial Reviewer
Hello, I’m Elsa. This is my third year serving on the PTA Board. I am originally from Mexico.
I have 3 girls in 6th, 5th and 1st grade. This is my sixth year as a Barnard parent. My family and I enjoy spending our free time, going to the beach, hiking, traveling, and playing around our beautiful San Diego area.
Amy Bard, Historian
Hello Barnard Panda Families,
My name is Amy Bard and I am a Los Angeles native (626 area) who transplanted to San Diego for college and never left. I have one daughter, Audrey, who is in 1st grade this year. She loves it at Barnard and we are so lucky she gets to have a bilingual education.
To pay the bills, I am a corporate attorney, but I’d really much rather be volunteering at the school 🙂 Some of my hobbies include cooking, traveling, walking my dogs, and shopping at Costco.
I am so excited to serve on this year’s Barnard PTA as your Historian. This will be my first year on the board and I look forward to all the great things I know we will accomplish this year!
Yvonne Kenniston, Parliamentarian
Hello, Barnard families! I am happy to be serving as your Parliamentarian this school year. This will be my 7th year at Barnard (with 5 more to go!), and my 4th time serving on the PTA board. I have a 6th grader who graduated from Barnard, and a 1st grader in his third year at the school. I look forward to meeting all of you!
Athena Bruggeman, Barnard Annual Giving (BAG) Chair
Hi Barnard Family! I’m Athena Bruggeman, and this is my first year serving on the board as your BAG fundraising chair. My husband, Drew, and I are originally from Ohio (Go Bucks!), but made our way out to San Diego many years ago. We have 3 kiddos, Lily (a 6th-grader Barnard graduate), Lydia (4th grade), Luke (2nd grade), and a Bernedoodle named Boba. We feel so lucky to be at Barnard, where our kids get to develop life skills like resilience and perseverance as a secondary result of learning a language. Our family enjoys golfing, biking, drinking Boba, MarioKart, and traveling. Please feel free to stop me and say “hello”, I’d be delighted to meet you!
Jeanette Woodward, Gala Chair
Hi Barnard families! I am excited to serve as your Gala Chair this year! This will be my fourth year on the board. I have previously served as Read-a-thon Chair, Vice President, and President.
My daughter Jalyn is now in fourth grade. She has thrived at Barnard because of the dedication of our teachers and staff, as well as the supplemental academic programs sponsored by the PTA.
In my “day job,” I recruit accounting and finance professionals for various companies. In my free time, I try to enjoy all this city has to offer. You might see my family at Sea World, a farmer’s market, or alpaca farm! I love meeting new friends so introduce yourself when you see me around!
Jackie Fremgen, Jog-a-Thon Chair
Hi Barnard Friends and Family! This is my first year serving on the Barnard PTA Board, and my older son, who loves Barnard, is a first grader. I grew up in Hong Kong and have been living in San Diego ever since my undergraduate days at UCSD. Our family feels privileged for Paxton to be able to have a bilingual education in San Diego, just like I did in Hong Kong. We look forward to another wonderful year of great memories at Barnard and meeting new families along the way!
Want to volunteer for a PTA committee? Find out how.
