SEARCH COMMITTEE MEMBERS
Audra Chavis
Audra Chavis and her husband, Terrence, have one daughter Elle who is currently in the seventh grade at St. John’s Episcopal School. They have been a part of the St. John’s Episcopal School family since Elle was in Kindergarten. Audra currently serves on the board of trustees for St. John’s Episcopal School where she is a member of the Governance Committee. She also serves on the Diversity Task Force Committee and the Annual Cultural Fest Committee. In addition, Audra serves as new family middle school coordinator, middle school open house tour guide and works with the seventh grade Model U.N. students.
In addition, She has held several leadership roles at various non-profit organizations in the Dallas area including being a past board president for Our Friends Place. Audra earned her Master of Business Administration in Health Services Management from the University of Dallas and her Bachelor of Arts from Xavier University of Louisiana.
Derek Claybrook
Derek and his wife, August, have been part of the St. John’s community for over 40 years. August is an alumna of St. John’s and grew up attending the church. She and Derek were married at St. John’s Church and their two daughters have attended St. John’s School beginning in pre-K. Abby is a current eighth grader and Madeline is now a sophomore at Ursuline.
Derek has served on the St. John’s School board of trustees for four years and served on the Finance Committee for three years prior to joining the board. Currently, Derek is a member of the board Executive Committee. Derek feels privileged to serve on the search committee as St. John’s writes another chapter in its history.
Melissa Eakes - Search Committee Chair
Melissa Eakes is the mother of two children at St. John’s Episcopal School: Catherine, fifth grade, and Andrew, second grade. During the past six years, Melissa has been an active member of the Parents Association, serving in a variety of positions, including President for the 2016-17 school year.
She served on the Board of Trustees Advancement Committee for two years and is a pending incoming member of the board. Melissa’s favorite spot to serve the St. John’s community is in the library, where she has regularly volunteered for the last seven years. Melissa and her husband, Ben, are active volunteers with Interfaith Family Services and Highland Park Presbyterian Church. Melissa holds a B.A. in Corporate Communications and Public Affairs from Southern Methodist University.
Judy Gass
During time of need, Judy has always been ready to help St. John’s. Judy’s association with St. John’s began in 2009 when she was named interim head of school while the search began for the school’s permanent head, Mark Crotty.
Judy has served several ISAS and NAIS schools during her years as a teacher and administrator: Hockaday as admissions director, head of lower school, and interim head of upper school; Lamplighter, as interim head of school, trustee, life trustee and Spirit Award recipient. She has also worked at Good Shepherd Episcopal School, The Saint Michael School, ESD, and Saint Mary’s Hall. Currently, she proudly serves as a St. John’s grandparent to Charlie and Jane Canales.
Mark Kraemer
A parishioner of St. John's Episcopal Church since 2009, Mark has served on the board of trustees since 2014. Mark and his wife, Jenny, are parents to one St. John's graduate as well as three younger children who also attended St. John's for many years. In addition, Jenny is a St. John’s alumna who previously taught seventh grade Language Arts at the school.
During his tenure on the board, Mark has served on the Governance Committee where he spearheaded the joint church-school initiative to update and modernize the school’s bylaws and governance procedures. In his professional life, Mark works in health care and software development as he leads the Agile Center of Competence for AmerisourceBergen.
Mary Odom
When they relocated to Dallas in 2008, Mary Odom and her husband quickly decided that St. John’s was a perfect fit for both their children and their family. After enjoying time volunteering and substituting, Mary joined the St. John’s faculty in January of 2012 as a fourth grade language arts teacher.
Mary, who has 17 years of experience teaching middle school and high school English, recently returned to the middle school classroom to teach seventh grade English. Mary and her husband Robert, an Episcopal priest and chaplain at Parish Episcopal School, have two children, George (’11) and Suzette (’14), both St. John’s graduates.
Scott Parks
Scott Parks is an alumni parent and former trustee. He and his wife, Leigh, joined the St. John’s community when their daughter Allison (’11) started pre-k in 2000. By the time their son Reed graduated in 2014, they had logged countless volunteer hours individually and collectively.
Scott served in a variety of roles during his six years of board service, including board secretary and vice president. As chair of the Advancement Committee, he worked to raise funds for the Teacher Endowment Fund and the Science Wing addition. Prior to joining the board, he chaired the Marketing Task Force and provided communications support for the 2009 head of school search committee.
Jennifer Sharpe
Jennifer Sharpe and her husband, Chuck, have three children that are currently students at St. John’s: Wyatt (first grade), Charles (fourth grade), and Lauren (sixth grade). Jennifer has worked extensively with both the St. John’s Parents Association and the St. John’s board of trustees for the last eight years. Jennifer has served as the co-chair for the annual school auction and has served as the P.A. treasurer as well as the vice president of fundraising for the P.A. She has been a member of the board of trustees for the last four years and has served on the Executive, Finance (chair), Governance (co-chair) and Advancement committees.
Jennifer grew up in Dallas and was happy to move back here and start her career after college. As an alumna of Ursuline Academy, she served on the Ursuline Foundation Board for six years in addition to being the chair of the Finance Committee. After many years in public accounting, she currently works as a CPA for White Rock Investment Co.
Rev. John Thorpe
Father Thorpe came to St. John’s in 2014 to serve as school chaplain, and he has taught Religion, Latin, and Service Learning with a focus on hunger issues. In addition to daily chapel duties, he occasionally preaches, celebrates the Eucharist, and teaches Sunday School at St. John’s Church. He serves as ecumenical officer to the Episcopal Diocese of Dallas.
Father Thorpe is originally from Oklahoma. In college, he met and married Beth, an Iowa native and school librarian. They now have three children: Edwin (age 12), Olan (age 9), and Vivienne (age 6). Father Thorpe went to seminary at Yale Divinity School through the Institute of Sacred Music and was ordained to the priesthood in 2005. He has served as Associate Rector of St. Peter’s Episcopal Church in downtown Albany, NY, and as Rector of St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church in Newton, Iowa.
