Anne McGovern (President)​

Current President Anne McGovern retired from Mary Baldwin University after 33 years teaching French language and literature. She directed the Vanderbilt-in-France program in Aix-en-Provence in 1985-1986, and after coming to Staunton directed the Doshisha Women’s College/Mary Baldwin Cultural Immersion program in 1991 and the Beverley Street Studio School Art Trip to Provence in 2000. She has a master’s degree in French from Stony Brook University and a doctorate from Vanderbilt University. Anne joined the board in 2023.

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Roderic Owen (Vice-President)

Current Vice-President  Roderic Owen was a faculty member at Mary Baldwin University (formerly College) for over forty years -- teaching applied and advanced ethics seminars, interdisciplinary honors courses, and Peace and Justice Studies   to a diverse range of students. Rod is now retired,  but he still teaches an online ethics course each semester, sings in two choirs, enjoys hiking and  travel (especially to his native Wales), serves as a leader in the North American Welsh Foundation, and loves taking care of his two very smart and beautiful granddaughters: Ella and Zoey.   He has found it very fulfilling to serve  as a tutor for LEARN for two years and as a Board member for the past year. 

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​​​​Sherry Ceperich (Secretary)

Sherry is a licensed clinical psychologist who moved to Staunton in 2020 from Richmond where she lived for 20+ years although originally is from Montana.  Currently working at JMU on a grant to improve mental health for students transitioning out of high school, she formerly has been a faculty member and counseling psychologist at several Virginia colleges and universities. While living in Richmond she volunteered and worked at The READ Center, an adult literacy organization with a similar mission to LEARN English and Reading Now.  She has a Ph.D. in counseling psychology from Arizona State University, a master’s degree in educational psychology from the University of Tennessee, and a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Northwestern University.  She enjoys reading, hiking, dancing and considers herself a life-long learner who enjoys being part of others’ educational and well-being journeys. Sherry joined the board in 2023 and is serving as Secretary.​

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​Matt Lunsford (Treasurer)

A native of Staunton, Virginia, Matt Lunsford brings over 24 years of experience in the financial services industry. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Finance from Virginia Tech and currently serves as a Mortgage Advisor at DuPont Community Credit Union, where he has worked for the past 10 years. He comes from a family of educators and feels strongly about improving the community through educational opportunities. Matt lives in downtown Staunton with his wife, Justine. Matt joined the board in 2025 and is serving as Treasurer.

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Ottilie Austin

Ottilie Austin lives in Waynesboro and is a professor in the department of Curriculum, Instruction and Special Education at the University of Virginia. She teaches literacy courses and coordinates the Curriculum and Instruction Education Specialist degree. She has been on the faculty at the University of Virginia since 1998. Ottilie joined the board in 2025.

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​​​Nathaniel Hughes

Nathaniel Hughes is the Assistant Director for Employer Relations at the Center for Engineering Career Development (CECD) at the University of Virginia. With over 14 years of experience at UVA, Nathaniel specializes in connecting engineering students with employers to foster meaningful career opportunities. He is currently pursuing a M.Ed. in Higher Education Administration, with an anticipated graduation date of May 2025. Outside of work, Nathaniel enjoys gardening, reading, and spending time with his two cats. Nathaniel joined the board in 2023 and has served as Secretary (2023-2024) and Treasurer (2024-2025).  

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Samantha Hughes

An Augusta County native, Samantha attended Mary Baldwin University, majoring in Political Science and minoring in History and Asian Studies. During her time on campus, she worked as a tutor and study partner for MBU’s exchange students, sparking an interest in international education that has carried through to today. During her 15 year career in enrollment and education, Samantha has worked with international students both prior to their arrival on campus and during their time in the United States. In 2022, Samantha completed her MEd in Authentic Learning and Leadership through Mary Baldwin University and is currently the Director of Admissions for the university’s residential programs. Samantha joined the board in 2023.

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Kim Harris

Kim is a retired, former local business owner. She is committed to local community through membership in the Kiwanis Club of the Shenandoah Valley. Kim joined the LEARN Board in 2024.

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Amy Mountz​

Amy served as Director of Reading First in Virginia (through No Child Left Behind) on behalf of UVa's education school. Afterwards, she directed two federally funded, longitudinal language and literacy studies through the Center for the Advanced Study of Teaching and Learning, also at UVa. She a co-authored text titled Engaging Children with Print: Building Early Literacy Skills Through Quality Read-Alouds. She developed, managed, and sustained professional
development and trainings for state departments of education in Louisiana, Georgia, California, and Florida, as well as for various Head Starts; this work was created to align with the Classroom Assessment Scoring System (developed at UVa). She continues involvement in work at UVa through grant-funded consulting opportunities. Amy currently serves as a tutor for LEARN, and has found her long-time work tutoring children to be of utmost value when working with an Afghani student, as she is preliterate in Pashto, her home language.Amy joined the LEARN Board in 2024.

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​Kayla Payne

Kayla graduated from James Madison University with a Bachelor of Arts in History and has a Masters of Library and Information Science from the University of South Carolina. She lives in Staunton and worked at the Staunton Public Library from 2012-2021. She now works at the Jefferson-Madison Regional Library in Charlottesville as the Collections and Technology Manager. Kayla joined the Board in 2021 and hopes to connect community members with valuable literacy resources. She is currently serving her second term on the board and was president from 2022-2023, 2023-2024, and 2024-2025.

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Rick Plant

Rick Plant is a retired English professor from Mary Baldwin, where for nine years he also directed the college honors program. As a much younger man, in western Oklahoma, he served for two years as a volunteer adult literacy tutor and assistant tutor trainer. He loves to read and pretends to write. Rick has three daughters and two young grandsons. Rick joined the board in 2025.

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Katherine Turner

Katherine Turner was educated in Kenya, Essex, and Oxford, and moved to Staunton in 2005 to take up a position at Mary Baldwin University, where she is now Professor of English and Director of the School of Humanities and Social Sciences. Although most of her teaching experience is within literary studies, she has also taught English as a Second Language (in the UK) and teaches introductory composition skills to undergraduates (including some non-native speakers). Her teaching and research interests include topics such as women writers, the literature of slavery and abolition, and queer literature, and she is committed to the inclusive values embodied in organizations such as LEARN. She currently serves on the Vestry of Emmanuel Episcopal Church in Staunton. Katherine joined the board in 2025.

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Anna York

Anna is a married mother of one, lifelong resident of Virginia, currently residing in Augusta County.  She graduated from JMU with a BS, then an M.Ed.  She taught for more than 40 years, both full time and part time, in public, private and hospital schools in Virginia before retiring in 2022 from Augusta County Public Schools.  For the first half of her teaching career she worked with students with learning disabilities (primarily in reading) and speech defects.  For the latter part of her career she taught middle school math and algebra I.  In one capacity or another she worked with students from Kindergarten age through High School and is now enjoying working with adult learners.  In addition to working with English Language Learners through Learn, she will be teaching a technical math class to adults in the fall semester. Anna joined the board in 2025.

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