Board of Trustees

Chris was at Long Ridge for four years with his son Leonardo ’20 and his daughter Annabella ’22.

Guy Bailey has a BA in History from the University of Rochester and an MA in Private School Leadership from Teachers College of Columbia University. He joined the Long Ridge faculty in 1971 and served as a teacher, Assistant Head, Business Manager, and Head of School, departing in 1989. Guy then worked at the Mead School as the Administrative Manager from 1989-1996. Guy returned to St. Luke’s School, where he had begun his career in 1968, and served there until 2014, retiring as Assistant Head of School. His son, Andrew, is a Long Ridge alumnus, and his wife, Kathy, taught at Long Ridge for 20 years in the 80s and 90s. Guy joined the Long Ridge Board of Trustees in 2015. He served as Secretary for three years and currently is the Vice President. He is also the Director of Accreditation Services for the Connecticut Association of Independent Schools.

Shanti Hageman is a mother to three Long Ridge boys, joining the school in 2013. She spent nine years as a federal litigation attorney in Washington DC prior to her second child’s birth. She is a past Chair of the Long Ridge Parents Group and is an enthusiastic volunteer at Long Ridge and elsewhere. Shanti is a graduate of Hamilton College and Brooklyn Law School.

Anne began her association with The Long Ridge School in 2001 as a parent of Christian ’05. After a career in the investment management field, she rediscovered her love of teaching and obtained an MS Ed. from Sarah Lawrence College. Anne joined the Long Ridge faculty in 2002 as a Science specialist until 2014. She became a Trustee in 2015 and now serves as the Treasurer and chair of the Finance Committee. Anne has a BA from the University of Michigan and an MBA from the Tuck School of Business.

Samantha Brown is the mother of three daughters (Alexandra, Reagan, and Olivia) and has been a Long Ridge parent since 2014. She has coordinated Mom’s Night Out, served on the Auction Committee, organized the Long Ridge baby club, and partnered as a class parent. She holds a BA from Vanderbilt University, an MS from TWU, and a Post-Professional Doctorate in Physical Therapy from Washington University School of Medicine. Her professional experience includes working in a variety of healthcare settings and serving as Director of Rehabilitation for an in-out patient facility and professor at the University of Rhode Island. She joined the Board in 2020 and serves on both the Finance and Advancement Committees.

Marc is South African/British and has been married for 12 years to Lise-Kate (South African). Together they have three children—Bethany (K–1), Jensen (Nursery), and Josephine-Grace, each born on a different continent!

They have been living in Riverside, Greenwich, since November 2019, and before that, we were based in South Africa (before that, the UK and Singapore).

They are a family who enjoys each other’s company, whether that is spending time reading, baking, exploring outdoors, or meeting new people. They are part of Gracechurch Greenwich and try to live out our beliefs in the way we do life.

Marc is passionate about finding ways to serve the community he lives in through work and personal life. Currently, he is a founding member of the Diversity and Inclusion Council at Beiersdorf and a Mental Health employee resource group. He is now looking for additional ways to serve as we open up post-COVID.

Sopong is a member of the DEI&J and Finance Committees, and he is also a Board of Trustees at the Ferguson Library. Sopong holds BSE in Chemical Engineering from the University of Pennsylvania and has spent his entire 20+ year career in commodity trading and risk management. He and his wife Eunjin are proud parents of Ellie, ’23.

Bill Knauer is currently in his sixth year as the Head of School at The Harvey School in Katonah, NY. Bill has spent more than 30 years in independent and international schools as a teacher, technology specialist, department head, and senior administrator.

He began his career in education at the Munich International School as an English teacher before returning to the US, first as a teacher at the Riverdale Country School and then at the Packer Collegiate Institute as Director of Technology and later Assistant Head of School. Bill and his family left Brooklyn and spent four years in Barcelona, where he was Head of the Benjamin Franklin International School.

Bill and his wife, Eileen, also an educator, are the proud parents of Emiliana, who is currently an 11th grader at Harvey.

John Ora was Long Ridge’s Interim Head of School from 2018–2020 and now serves on the School’s Board of Trustees. He is a seasoned school leader with experience as a teacher, administrator, and Head in preschool-grade 12 independent schools. From 2007–2016 he served as the Head of School at the Woodland School in Portola Valley, CA.

John has completed doctoral coursework in Educational Leadership at Teachers College, Columbia University; holds a Master of Arts in Educational Administration, Policy and Analysis from Stanford University; teaching credential from the University of Washington; and a BS in Biology from Seattle University.

He has engaged in numerous professional development opportunities and has received a number of awards and achievements, notably a Klingenstein Fellowship from Teachers College, Columbia University.

Carissa Lewis is the Head of School and joined The Long Ridge School in 2009 as a 2–3 classroom teacher. She has a BA in Anthropology from State University of New York at Oswego and a MS Ed. from Sarah Lawrence College. In 2014 she became the Science Specialist and, in 2016 started the robotics program for the school. Prior to Long Ridge she was the lead nursery teacher for the Early Childhood Center at Memorial United Methodist Church in White Plains, NY. Carissa is the very proud mom of Jake and Zoe ’12.

Ronald Japha is the father of Adam ’98 and Alex ’02. He serves as liaison to the Long Ridge School Camp and has also served on the Personnel and Facilities Committees. Ron graduated from the University of Virginia and Dickinson School of Law. He is an attorney with an office in Stamford and has been a Trustee since 1996 and an Honorary Trustee since 2004.