The Island School Board of Directors

Francesca is a post-doctoral associate at the Cooperative Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Science at the University of Miami and has a Ph.D in Marine Biology and Fisheries and an MSc. in Marine Affairs and Policy. She attended The Island School in Fall 1999 and returned to work as a SCUBA instructor in Fall 2001. She served on the Cape Eleuthera Foundation Board from 2004 until she joined the CEIS board in 2012. Francesca lives in Miami with her husband Ian.

Ed served as Senior Vice President of Retail Services and Public Affairs for Atlantis from 1998-2020 and continues to serve as General Manager of Ocean Club Residences and Marina. He is the Principal of EF Consulting with clients such as Atlantis, Lyford Cay Club, and Global Ports Holdings. A well-known radio host with a diverse background, he serves as Director of the Bahamas Airport Authority, Catholic Board of Education, and Downtown Nassau Partnership. Mr. Fields is the Founder and Chairman of the non-partisan, non-profit organization ‘We the People’. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Government from St. John’s University in Minnesota and a Master’s degree in Public Administration from the University of Georgia.

David and his wife Beverly have sent their daughter Renee (Spring 2003) and son Travis (Spring 2005) to The Island School. Dave is a doctor of ophthalmology in private practice in Grand Rapids, MI. He is a member of several medical associations and serves in an advisory capacity to many community-based organizations, including the East Grand Rapids Schools Foundation, Macatawa Park Cottagers Association, and the Grand Rapids Art Museum.

Dave grew up in the Boston area and was an Island School student during Fall 2005. He went on to pursue his undergraduate degree at the University of Rhode Island.

Johann grew up in New York and was an Island School student during Spring 2002. He went on to pursue his undergraduate degree at Connecticut College.

Mark earned his undergraduate degree in Psychology from Bates College and a Masters from Harvard University. He worked for 37 years in campus-based college admissions at Bates, Harvard, Occidental, and served for more than two decades as Vice President for Enrollment at Colorado College. He founded Hatch College Advising and now works with parents and students to empower them to own and author their experiences in and out of the classroom. He has served on the Board of Directors for multiple independent schools, including The Cloud Forest School, and was the past president of the Common Application. Mark is the proud parent of daughter, Heather, who attended The Island School in Summer 2019. In his spare time, he enjoys hiking, running, and playing recreational ice hockey.

George is the Managing Partner of Brodie Group, an Owner’s Representation and Land Use Planning & Permitting firm in Sausalito, California. His firm specializes in educational projects, which has led to involvement in several campus improvement initiatives at the Island School. George’s connection to the school spans over 15 years, from attending the Island School in Fall 2010, interning in 2013/2014, and now, serving on the Board of Directors. During those years, he also had the opportunity to work at the Center for Sustainable Development and volunteered for multiple years on the admissions committee. In the Bay Area, he leads the Bronco Builders Alumni Association for Santa Clara University. Always near the water, George lives on a houseboat and enjoys boat drives around San Francisco Bay and annual trips to Eleuthera.

Ian graduated from the University of Miami in 2006 and later earned his Ph.D. at RSMAS in 2010. He currently works as the head of AOML’s Coral Program at NOAA and a Principal Investigator of the National Coral Reef Monitoring Program, leading several projects pertaining to the Coral Reef Conservation Program’s restoration pillar and NOAA’s Omics initiative. He is also a research ecologist with the Ocean Chemistry and Ecosystems Division of NOAA’s Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory in Miami. Ian recognized the power of the Island School and the Cape Eleuthera Institute from the moment he set foot on the island. He helped to initiate the first coral conservation programs at the Island School and has visited Eleuthera annually for the past 15 years.

Michael graduated from medical school at Michigan State University and completed his Emergency Medicine residency training at the Butterworth Hospital, where he subsequently joined the faculty. He then pursued a Master of Science in Epidemiology. Michael has served as a senior editor on a few medical journals and is a former chair of the American College of Emergency Physicians Clinical Policies Committee. He currently serves on the Editorial Board for Cochrane and as Editor for Cochrane Evidence Synthesis and Methods. Michael’s daughters, Nichole (Spring 2006) and Randi (Spring 2009) attended the Island School. Inspired by his daughters’ experiences, Michael assisted The Island School in developing adequate medical care protocols.

Antonius is a Bahamian artist known for his sculptures and installations (some found on the Island School campus). He graduated from the Philadelphia College of Art.

Kate graduated with a degree in Economics from Cornell University and attended law school at Georgetown University. She is a lawyer with over 14 years of experience in corporate law, both in private practice (capital markets in London) and in-house roles at startups. She also served on the Executive teams at Booking.com and Hubs. Now, Kate runs a freelance General Counsel practice for corporate clients in the US and Europe, and increasingly focuses on advising in the impact investing space in Africa. Kate is a Spring 2001 Island School alumnus and has served as an alumni mentor and on the planning committee for The Island School 25-Year Reunion.

Andy received his undergraduate and Master’s degrees from Trent University (Ontario, Canada) and his PhD from the University of Alberta (Edmonton, Canada). Andy has worked at the School for Field Studies on South Caicos, Turks & Caicos Islands, where he embarked on a research project focused on queen conch and bonefish. He then helped conceptualize, design, and run the Cape Eleuthera Institute from its inception through 2009, and restructured the science curriculum at The Island School. Since that time, Dr. Danylchuk has become a world leader in the conservation and management of tropical flats ecosystems, as well as recreational fisheries, more broadly. He is currently a Professor of Fish Conservation at the University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass). Andy is an Ambassador for Patagonia Fly Fishing and a Fellow of The Explorers Club. He is the parent of an Island School alum (Fall 2024) and husband of Sascha Clark Danylchuk, who also played a pivotal role in the early days of The Island School.