BOARD & LEADERSHIP
Prakash Bista, Founder/President
Prakash Bista completed his early education and high school in Nepal, and received a scholarship to pursue a BA in Liberal Arts degree at Soka University of America in Aliso Viejo, California and another scholarship to attend MSc. in Social Innovation and Entrepreneurship at London School of Economics and Political Science in 2017. In December 2009, he led residents of his village, Lalu, to build the village's first service-oriented privately run non-profit school. The United Nations considers the area, Kalikot District of Nepal, one of the world’s poorest and most impoverished regions. Prakash won first prize with $10,000 cash in the Orange County Social Entrepreneurship Competition 2014 at UC Irvine, beating 10 other finalists from around the world, which gave rise to the idea of starting Impact Schools. He was then named one of Orange County's 100 Most Influential People in 2014 by Orange County Register. Prakash’s dream is to expand educational opportunities to the world's poorest and most remote communities.
Aaron Kuyper, Board Member
Aaron graduated from Soka University class in 2019. During his time at Soka, he was provided opportunities to live and work abroad in several countries in the field of education. When he was studying at Soka, he was provided with a grant from Soka to intern for two months at Impact Schools’ first school in Kalikot, Nepal. Since then, Aaron has taught at schools in Dakar Senegal and worked as an English Teacher in Tokyo, Japan for nearly three years. He has also worked in Special Education for children on the Spectrum and early education. Aaron is currently completing a degree in Marriage and Family Therapy at Pepperdine University..
Molly Wuerz, Secretary & Board Member
Molly is the Ed.M. Candidate at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and the founder of EdEthics Students at HGSE. Molly has ten years of education experience that spans water safety, the performing arts, elementary ed, Waldorf methodology, curriculum creation, high-school English, alternative education, student advocacy/restorative justice, academic/disciplinary re-engagement, international teacher training, independent consulting, tutoring, and a K-8 school board. Molly intends to further the field of education by making meaningful contributions to the field of educational ethics, particularly by exploring moral improvement strategies for ethical educational leadership.
Sharon Kolby, Treasurer
Sharon Kolby lives in Laguna Niguel and is a second-generation Californian. She is a former teacher. She has taught in the Philippines, Germany and Italy. Sharon recently retired from Coldwell Banker Residential Real Estate. She is currently a Member of American Women for International Understanding and Co-chair of the Orange County Chapter. Sharon hobbies are travelling around the world, visiting museums, gardening and photography.
Mary Patrick Kavanaugh, Advisor
Mary Patrick Kavanaugh produces innovative educational programs and events for higher education, business and community organizations, with a focus on conscious leadership, social enterprise, entrepreneurship, and societal transformation. She founded and directs Soka University’s Bridges to Business (B2B), a purpose-driven career mentoring program, and Critical Conversations @ Soka, a community speaking series featuring artists, activists, and thought-leaders. Prior to working at Soka, Mary founded and directed UC Irvine’s Prosperitas, an idea incubator and networking community for successful entrepreneurs at the Merage School of Business. Before transitioning into higher education, she ran her own research firm that focused on market research and competitive analysis, and served as marketing director and general manager at Bay Area consulting firms. She is a published author and licensed private investigator (California License #19957). Mary has a BA from San Francisco State University, and MFA from the University of San Francisco.
Ellen Boccuzzi, Advisor
Ellen Boccuzzi is Senior Program Advisor with The Asia Foundation. She has fifteen years of professional experience in international development, with a focus on good governance, urban development, migration, civil society, and education in Asia. Prior to joining the Foundation, Dr. Boccuzzi served as a Foreign Service Officer with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and as a consultant to the United Nations. She holds a Ph.D. in South and Southeast Asian Studies from UC Berkeley, a Master’s from UC Berkeley, and a Bachelor’s from Princeton University.
Justin Barr, Advisor
Justin Barr spent over a decade creating and building businesses in the online advertising industry. Based in Puerto Rico he is currently a co-founder of the Honeyland project, a decentralized exchange and play-and-earn blockchain game. Justin co-founded Tapit!, a mobile advertising network that was acquired just 18 months after its creation. He is passionate about entrepreneurship and spent years as a board member for the Orange County chapter of Entrepreneurs Organization. He enjoys using his skills in marketing and user-acquisition for for-purpose marketing to help drive donor leads and engagement.
