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Board Members
Leelanau Montessori Public School Academy has a governing board of directors consisting of Kate Fairman, Pat McCool, Anneke Wegman, Randy McMillan, Ben Nelson, Mark Howell and Elizabeth Lint.
The board meets monthly.
Dr. Patrick McCool- President
Ph.D. Plant Pathology University of California, Riverside – Riverside, CA
MS Plant Pathology University of California, Riverside – Riverside, CA
B.S. Biology University of California, Irvine – Irvine, CA
Patrick McCool has advanced degrees in the biological sciences with an emphasis in environmental science. He has 29 years professional technical experience, 15 as a faculty member at the University of California, Riverside (UCR), and 14 at Great Lakes Environmental Center in Traverse City. His professional experience as the Associate Director of the Statewide Air Pollution Research Center at UCR required him to serve as a manager for numerous environmental research projects on the local, state, and national levels. Patrick has lived in Suttons Bay for the past 15 years, and has two children, Cameron (12) and Grace (9). Patrick has volunteered on a number of Boards in the area, including the TBA/ISD Math, Science, and Technology Center; the Michigan Land Use Institute; and the American Lung Association of Michigan. He has served as Secretary of the Leelanau Montessori Friends for the past three years and was a member of the Montessori Charter School Development Board prior to serving on the Leelanau Montessori Public School Academy Board. Patrick volunteers his time coaching soccer and basketball in Suttons Bay and enjoys traveling and spending time with his wife Maureen and his children.
Kate Fairman - Vice President
MS Natural Resource Planning and Behavior– University of Michigan- Ann Arbor, MI
BS Education– University of Vermont- Burlington, VT
Kate Fairman is an adjunct professor in the Liberal Studies/Interdisciplinary College at Grand Valley State University. Previously, she has worked with numerous schools and partner organizations developing place-based education opportunities, such as initiating the "Water Watch" watershed education program and creating a land use planning curriculum for schools in the TBAISD. She earned an MS in Natural Resource Planning and Behavior from the University of Michigan and a BS in Education from the University of Vermont. She has three children who have all participated in the Montessori Program and has had at least one child in the program during each of the last 12 years.
Elizabeth Lint- Secretary
Anneke Wegman- Trustee
Anneke is currently a stay-at-home mom, with two children in the Suttons Bay school system; one in the traditional program and one in Leelanau Montessori. Anneke has volunteered for many years in the schools and has also worked with a small family business.
Randy McMillan- Trustee
Mark Howell- Trustee
Dr. Mark Howell has been an LMPSA board member since 2011. A professor of communications at Northwestern Michigan College since 1997, Dr. Howell is also an adjunct faculty member in humanities at Ferris State University. Prior to NMC, Howell taught for two years at Michigan State University. Before MSU, he was on the adjunct faculty of Tiffin University, Defiance College, and also Bowling Green State University in Ohio.
Known globally as an automobile historian, Dr. Howell has published and lectured widely on numerous topics pertaining to motorsports, especially the socio-cultural history of NASCAR. He was a featured guest on NPR’s “Talk of the Nation” in 1998 and on ABC’s “Nightline with Ted Koppel” in 2001 following the death of Dale Earnhardt. Howell’s 1997 book, From Moonshine to Madison Avenue: A Cultural History of the NASCAR Winston Cup Series, earned recognition from the American Culture Association/Popular Culture Association, as did a chapter he wrote about the evolution of transportation and tourism in North America, which was honored by the ACA/PCA as part of the best reference book published in 2007.
Howell currently writes a regular column about NASCAR for Frontstretch.com, which was named the best auto racing website of 2011 by the National Motorsports Press Association. In addition to serving as an LMPSA trustee, Dr. Howell is also a member of the Society of Automotive Historians. He also sits on the nominating committee of the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America in Novi, Michigan.
Dr. Howell resides in the village of Suttons Bay with his wife and their son, who is a Primary student at LMPSA.
Ben Nelson- Treasurer