Executive Board and Appointed positions
The Franklin PTA Executive Board is made up of at least 15 members including a president, secretary, and treasurer. Elections are held annually in April and elected members have the choice to serve two terms. In order to function effectively, the Board includes community members who bring unique skills, values, and beliefs to the organization.
Executive Board and appointed positions 2025-2026
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Dara Beer
Oversees and coordinates the work of an executive board to run a PTA effectively. Serves as the official contact, communicator and representative of a PTA. Works with other PTA leaders to connect families, school and community to support student success.
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Tim Blackburn
Primary aide to President. Oversees and aides various program committees. Works closely with school administration and is a liaison between the school staff and the PTA members.
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Amanda Pereira
1st Vice President
Literacy & EducationRachel Round
1st Deputy Vice President
Literacy & EducationOversees coordination of Parent Education series, Book Fairs, Reflections, Science Club, Multicultural events and more.
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Karen Freedman
2nd Vice President
HospitalityNina Segil
2nd Deputy Vice President
HospitalityOversees coordination of Faculty Appreciation, including coffee carts, staff appreciation week activities, and Back-to-School Picnic and more.
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Jeff Altrock
3rd Vice President
Health & Safety
Brooke Dekofsky
3rd Deputy Vice President
Health & SafetyOversees coordination of Green Team, Beautification, Gardening, Nurse’s Office supplies, Lunch Supervisors, Art Cart, Disaster Preparation and more.
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Lindsay Levitan
4th Vice President
Community
Svetlana Nagel
4th Deputy Vice President
CommunityOversees coordination of PTA Membership, School Tours, Special Education, Legislation and Advocacy and more.
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Monica Gelfand
5th Vice President
School CommunicationsMimi Sroka
5th Deputy Vice President
School CommunicationsOversees coordination of the Flash, the PTA weekly e-newsletter, Room Parent Coordinators, Social Media, First Day Packets and more.
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Ron Dalah
Maintains permanent records to track unit funds and financial transactions, chairs budget committee and prepares the annual budget, reports for every PTA meeting to share financial reports, and creates the annual financial report. The treasurer also pays all PTA bills. -
Romy Sharafi
Financial Secretary
Works closely with the treasurer, keeping a record of all PTA funds and preparing monthly and annual reports. The financial secretary is also responsible for intake of all funds to the PTA.
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Lauren Goldenberg
Corresponding Secretary
Conducts all necessary correspondence to the executive board and all members of the PTA. Notifies officers of their election and chairpersons of their appointments. Sends out notices of executive board meetings along with agendas.
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Courtney Wacht
Recording Secretary
Keeps accurate records of all proceedings of association and Executive Board meetings. Is always prepared to refer to minutes of previous meetings and records all expenditures . Prepares list of all unfinished business. Keeps a current list of paid members.
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Emily Keifer
Historian
Assembles and preserves a record of the activities, achievements, and volunteer hours of the association. Assists with the association’s annual report required by the California State PTA.
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Tarun Mahajan
Auditor
Sara Wahl
Deputy AuditorAudits the books and financial records of the association semiannually
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Melissa Sullivan
Fundraising Committee Chair
Oversees, plans and organizes fundraising activities for the school year, which include the Fall Festival and Move-A-Thon. Focuses on raising the amount of funds needed to meet the school PTA’s annual budget. -
Ann Bash
Parliamentarian
Assists the President to manage meetings and advises on parliamentary procedure; chairs Bylaws committee to review unit Bylaws yearly and revise every five years; and arranges nominating committee’s first meeting, providing information on nomination and election process.
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Ashley Zibit
Special Education and DEIA Committee Chair
Serves as a supportive resource and advocate for families of children with special needs by fostering understanding between the special ed and general ed communities. This role helps connect families with specialists and educators, organizes relevant events, and shares the parent perspective to promote awareness. Acts as a liaison between the school and PTA Council to support diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts—ensuring all families feel seen, heard, and valued within the school community.
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Jayanthi Daniel
Legislation Committee Chair
Leads PTA positions and support on legislative issues that affect school-age children and their families, at Franklin and beyond. Works in conjunction with National PTA, California PTA, 33rd District, and Santa Monica-Malibu Council of PTAs to speak on behalf of children and youth.
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Jelena Trifunovic
Education Foundation Liaison
Helps raise critical funds for the Santa Monica Education Foundation, which funds important staff and programs at Franklin, like our P.S. ARTS classes, STAR Science classes, all of our instructional aides, and our Responsive Classroom program, among others.
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Julie Lavine
Liaison between the teachers, admin, staff and PTA to the individual class assigned Room Parents to help streamline communication on a weekly basis.
Faculty Representatives
Principal
Natalie Burton
Teacher
Lauren Berman
contact us
Join Leadership Team
In order to be a member of the Executive Board or to vote in our elections, you need to be a member of the Franklin PTA.
We invite you to join Franklin PTA leadership. Two months prior to the annual election meeting, nominations will be made by a nominating committee. The five members of the Nominating Committee, elected by the association, will solicit nominations of people to serve on the board-- look out for further information in the Spring.