Board Members
Michelle Bowser
President
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Michelle Bowser
President
About
- WCA Affiliation:
- US Math Teacher (2011-2017)
- Board Member (2020-present)
- “Hometown”: Northeastern Ohio - near Akron
- Employer/Job: Systems Analyst
- Educational Background:
- Grove City College, B.S. Math and Secondary Education
- JHU Whiting School of Engineering, M.S. Applied and Computational Math
- Church: McLean Presbyterian Church
- Hobbies: Running, drinking tea, hiking, traveling, plants, amateur calligraphy
- Fun Fact: I was a baton twirler from 5th grade through college
Paul Van Veldhuisen
Vice-President
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Paul Van Veldhuisen
Vice-President
About
- Family: Wife Tami, two sons and daughter
- “Hometown”: couldn’t pick one (moved around)
- Born in Kitchener, Ontario (through 4th grade), Edmonton Alberta (through 9th grade), Washington, NJ (through 12th grade)
- WCA Affiliation:
- Since 1999 - Parent of 3 WCA alumni; Tami WCA part-time school nurse (1999-2010); Tami board member (2015-2021)
- Board Member (2024-present)
- Employer/Job: Emmes Company; President/Statistician
- Educational Background: BS, Mathematics, 1991; Calvin; MS, Biostatistics, University of Washington,1993; PhD Epidemiology, George Washington University, 2005
- Church: Silver Spring Christian Reformed Church
- Hobbies: Travel, Golf, Spending time with Family
- Fun Fact: Farmer Paul - in NJ while in High School, parents bought a farm and I raised veal calves (up to 200 at highest point)
John Ausema
Secretary
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John Ausema
Secretary
About
- Family: Wife Tatiana and two daughters
- “Hometown”: Grant, MI (farm community 45 minutes north of Grand Rapids).
- WCA Affiliation:
- Parent since 2021
- Board Member (2024-present)
- Employer/Job: Gonzaga High School, teacher (Biology and AP Environmental Science) and coach (cross country and track)
- Educational Background: BS, Calvin College; MS, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
- Church: Silver Spring CRC
- Hobbies: Running, Hiking
- Fun Fact: I have visited more than 300 of the 400+ sites in the National Park system. I have also backpacked the entire Appalachian Trail
Rita Schuh
Treasurer
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Rita Schuh
Treasurer
About
- Family: Husband Paul and daughter
- “Hometown”: Columbus, Ohio
- WCA Affiliation:
- Margaret (Maggie) started attending WCA in Kindergarten in 2001
- Board Member (2015-2021, 2024-present)
- Employer/Job:
- Mechanical Engineer, Naval Surface Warfare Center Carderock Division
- Research, Development, Testing, and Evaluation of shipboard wastewater systems
- Educational Background:
- BS, Mechanical Engineering, The Ohio State University
- MS, Public Administration, University of Oklahoma
- Church: First Alliance Church of Silver Spring, MD
- Hobbies: Reading, Decorating Cookies with Royal Icing, Walking, Crafts (Beading, Making Greeting Cards, Knitting), Gardening
- Fun Fact: Spent five years on staff with Campus Crusade for Christ after college (University of Minnesota, Brown University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology)
Jill Reiffer
Board Member
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Jill Reiffer
Board Member
About
- Family: Husband Matthew and son and daughter
- “Hometown”: I grew up in Northwest Indiana and attended Highland Christian School and Illiana Christian High School.
- WCA Affiliation:
- I have been attending WCA functions since moving to the area in 2001. I was a middle school girls basketball coach from 2008-2010 and again from 2018-2022. I have been a room parent for many years and have also worked on the Bazaar Committee in the past.
- Board Member since: 2025-(1st year on the Board)
- Employer/Job: I am a speech and language pathologist with Montgomery County Public Schools since 2024.
- Educational Background:
- Undergrad at Calvin University with a BS in Communication Disorders and Psychology.
- Masters of Science from Towson University in Speech and Language Pathology.
- Church: Silver Spring CRC
- Hobbies: Long walks with my dog, hikes with my family, and reading a good mystery.
- Fun Fact: I have been to all about 2 of the 50 states.
Katharine Stewart
Board Member
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Katharine Stewart
Board Member
About
- Family: Husband Gary, daughter and son
- “Hometown”: Rockville, MD! Born and raised.
- WCA Affiliation:
- 2009 Graduate and current parent.
- Board Member (2025-present)
- Employer/Job: Stay- at -home mom. I used to work in sales.
- Educational Background: BS, Hospitality & Tourism Management, UMES ; Associates Degree in Event Planning.
- Church: Fourth Presbyterian
- Hobbies: Baking sweet treats, sourdough, hiking, & traveling.
- Fun Fact: My husband and I are WCA high school sweethearts!
Dianna Whittle
Board Member
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Dianna Whittle
Board Member
About
- Family: Married to my college sweetheart, Scott Whittle. We have two sons, Chase (WCA class of 2017) and Hunter (WCA class of 2021)
- “Hometown”: Grand Rapids, Minnesota
- WCA Affiliation:
- Parent , 2011-2021
- Board Member, 2021-2024; 2025-current
- Employer/Job: The Lamb of God School, Middle School History Teacher as well as Public Speaking and Geography
- Educational Background: B.A. Communications, Wheaton College and M.A.T, Secondary Education, Liberty University
- Church: Oakdale Church in Olney
- Hobbies: Traveling, snorkeling, walking, Bible study leader
- Fun Fact: I have traveled to 22 countries and counting. I am a pug mom of three (3 pugs sounded like a really great idea at the time).