Meet Our Staff

List of 11 members.

Jeffrey Berndt

Director of Institutional Advancement

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Bio
Jeff joined Thacher in 2015 and serves as the School's director of advancement. He started his career at Middlesex School where he held roles in the annual fund and their record-setting capital campaign. In 2001, he joined the Noble and Greenough School in Dedham, MA, as their director of development. Then, he became managing director of New Profit—one of the leading “venture-philanthropy” firms. Immediately preceding Thacher, Jeff was a managing director and the head of philanthropic services at Roundtable Investment Partners, which is a shared family office headquartered in NYC. Jeff and his wife Kristin live on campus with their three children, Tyler '20, Erik '21, and Kendall.
Sara Billings

Director of Development

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Bio
Sara Billings, a native to Los Angeles, joined Thacher in 2019 as director of development to oversee the Annual Fund, Lead Gifts, Alumni Relations, and Operations teams. Sara has worked in major gifts, development strategy, and team management since 2001. Before coming to Thacher, Sara was most recently the director of advancement at The Archer School for Girls and brings 12 years of independent school leadership experience to the role. A graduate of Johns Hopkins University and Campbell Hall High School, Sara is passionate about serving her team and Thacher’s community members. She lives in Ojai and her two kids attend Thacher.

A graduate of Johns Hopkins University and Campbell Hall High School, Sara is passionate about serving her team and the supporters of Thacher. She lives locally with her two children and husband.
Emma Balina

Director of Annual Giving and Parent Relations

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Bio
Emma oversees the Thacher Annual Fund, Senior Parent Gift, and leads engagement strategy for current parents and grandparents. A Maine native, Emma joined Thacher in 2018. She has more than 10 years of development experience at independent schools and environmental nonprofits in both California and Maine. Emma holds a BA in Sociology with a minor in Peace Studies and Conflict Resolution from the University of Maine, and a MBA with a concentration in Finance from the University of Massachusetts. She lives in Ojai with her husband and two children.
Aimee Brown-Nelson

Assistant Director of Community Engagement and Events

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Bio
Aimee Brown-Nelson is a native to Ventura County and joined the Thacher Alumni and Development team in August 2021. She is looking forward to connecting with alumni and families to provide experiences that reinforce Thachers’ mission and values. Prior to joining Thacher, she worked in constituent engagement, event production, and fundraising within the entertainment and political spheres. She is enthusiastic about jumping into Thacher ways and all things outdoors. In her spare time, you can find her hiking, camping, enjoying live music, and fostering animals looking for their forever homes.
Adriana Gomez

Director of Alumni Giving

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Stuart Johnson

Assistant Director of Annual Giving
Rebecca Samuelson

Assistant Director of Alumni Giving

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Jillian Seaton

Assistant Director of Development Operations

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Malory Taylor

Director of Stewardship and Donor Relations

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Theresa Vyhnal

Annual Fund Manager

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Jillian Wade

Director of Development Operations

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Giving to Thacher

A college preparatory boarding school for grades 9-12

5025 Thacher Road
Ojai, California, 93023
Tel: 805-646-4377 Fax: 805-646-9490 Email: info@thacher.org

Notice of nondiscriminatory policy as to students: The Thacher School admits students of any race, color, national, and ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the School. It does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national, and ethnic origin in administration of its educational policies, admission policies, scholarship and loan programs, and athletic and other School-administered programs.