Board of Directors

Desrie Campbell is the owner of Benefits Solutions which provides comprehensive health benefits and financial services to individuals, families, professional associations, executives and small to midsized businesses. Desrie has lived in Fremont since 1996. She and her husband, Willie, have 4 young men, all of whom attended and graduated from Fremont Schools. As an active member of the community, Desrie serves as the Chair of the Alameda County Commission on the Status of Women’s Gender Racial and Equity Committee and she is a 2007 Emerge graduate. She is a member of the Fremont Community Engagement and Advisory Board, Fremont Chamber of Commerce, the Black Women Organized for Political Action (BWOPA). She holds a BS in Business Administration from the University of Phoenix, Fremont.

Sherea Westra has been an active participant of the FEF Board for over 5 years. She first became involved as the liaison between FEF and the teachers’ association, but for the past two years has served solely as the President of FEF. She has been involved in the Innovative Education Grant program by conducting grant writing workshops for FUSD teachers and reading grant applications for a number of years. For the past two years, Sherea has co-hosted the ASB Telethon. As a full-time elementary teacher in Fremont Unified, she is also an active volunteer at her school site, Niles Elementary School, and serves as the 1^st Vice President of the Fremont Unified District Teachers Association. Sherea is a long-time resident of Fremont and believes in giving back to the community where she received a solid education. She lives in Niles with her husband and daughter.

Debra Watanuki and her husband have called Fremont home since 1985. Debra joined the board of the Fremont Education Foundation in 2001 to support music, athletics and innovative teachers in Fremont schools. She was a post-secondary teacher until changing her career path by earning her law degree and establishing a practice in estate planning and business. In addition to her legal practice, Debra is a development officer for Safe Alternatives to Violent Environments, a local nonprofit serving victims of domestic violence, and she is proud to serve as a Human Relations Commissioner for the City of Fremont. Debra enthusiastically promotes education as the chairperson of her child’s elementary school’s School Site Council, past president of its parent teacher organization, and now as president of the Fremont Education Foundation.

Beth Rasler, CPA, joined the board in June 2001 to serve as treasurer. She was named the 60,000^th resident of Fremont when her family moved here in 1962. Beth grew up in Fremont and is a graduate of California State University, Stanislaus. She has a daughter in the 6^th grade in Fremont who plays the baritone in her 3^rd year of after school band. Beth is employed by Greenstein, Rogoff, Olsen and Co., a CPA firm in Fremont.  She is an alumnus of the Leadership Fremont program, a volunteer for Girl Scouts and a volunteer at her daughter’s elementary school.

Sandi Pantages served on the Fremont Education Foundation board in the mid-1990’s, and rejoined the board in late 2001. Now retired from the Alameda County Library, Sandi worked in the Fremont libraries for 32 years and was the manager of the Fremont Main Library for many years. She is an active member of Niles Rotary, and is also involved with the Fremont Symphony Guild and the League of Women Voters of the Fremont, Newark and Union City Area. Sandi grew up in Concord, obtained her undergraduate and graduate degrees from UCLA and worked a few years at the Library of Congress before returning to the Bay Area in 1969. She lives with her husband Dick in the Brookvale area of Fremont.

Lara York has been a board member of FEF since 2000 and served as President from 2003-05 and Vice-President from 2001-03 and 2005-08. In 2006 Lara was elected to the Fremont Unified School District Board of Education.

Lara moved to Fremont in 1992 after completing her BS in Business Administration from California State University, Chico. After working for a major publishing company for several years, she made the decision to stay at home with her children and become more active in the community.

Lara is an active member of the community including her involvement over the years with groups including: The Fremont Chamber of Commerce; The League of Women Voters of Fremont, Newark & Union City; the American Association of University Women; Citizens for Better Community; The Tri-Cities Democratic Forum; The Cultural Arts Council; The F.U.N. Mothers' Club; PTA; School Site Council; FUSD Financial Advisory Committee, Parent Representative Advisory Assembly and the Community Facilities Committee.