Our Board

August 14, 2023
September 11, 2023
October 16, 2023
November 13, 2023
February 12, 2024
April 8, 2024
May 6, 2024
June 10, 2024
August 12, 2024



2023 - 2024 BOARD MEETINGS

Pursuant to A.R.S. § 38-431.02, Ball Charter Schools hereby states that all notices of meetings of the Governing Boards of Ball Charter Schools (Dobson, Hearn, and Val Vista) will be posted in front of each school and on our website. 

The Board reserves the right to change the order of items on the agenda with the exception of public hearings set for a specific time. Information regarding agenda items may be requested 24 hours in advance and/or reviewed at the Office of the Governing Boards. The Boards may vote to go into executive session, which will not be open to the public for certain items listed on the agenda, pursuant to A.R.S. § 38-431.03. However, all Board decisions will be made in a public meeting.

Candidate Application

Looking to join our Board? Please fill out our  candidate application.
Email the application to Cstadler@ballcharterschools.org

Board Meeting Calendar

Ball Charter Schools
Governing Boards Meeting

Curriculum & Systems Meeting 
4pm Virtual 

TBD

Board Meeting Materials

John Huppenthal has served on the Ball Charter Schools Board as a representative and committee member for many years. He was recently elected Governing Board President in June, 2019.

Mr. Huppenthal served Arizona as Superintendent of Public Instruction (2011-2015). Prior to being elected Superintendent, John served as City Councilman, State Representative, and State Senator. He was also a Senior Planning Analyst for Salt River Project.

The Governing Boards of Ball Charter Schools is wholly made up of dedicated and engaged volunteers. Our Board consists of successful professionals with experience in technology, education, finance and legal arenas.

President

John Huppenthal

Michael Sobieski is a Technical Financial Advisor in the Phoenix area where he has worked since 2006. He is responsible for generating complex financial plan reports and analyses in a variety of specialized areas, as well as engaging with clients to develop, review and implement financial planning and investment strategies toward the accomplishment of their goals and objectives. Mr. Sobieski also volunteers as a financial counselor at his church and volunteers his time to teach classes in the area of personal finance.

Mr. Sobieski earned his B.A. degree from Northern Arizona University. He holds FINRA’s Series 65 License and a Certified Financial Planner certificate.

Mr. Sobieski has served as a parent representative on Ball Charter School committees and has been a member of the Ball Charter Schools Board of Directors for several years.


Vice President

Mike Sobieski

Val Vista Member

Rhonda Donnelly

Karah Gagnon, Senior Vice President, Commercial Banking Team Lead at Sunflower Bank,
has more than 17 years of commercial lending experience in the non-profit, education, medical/professional, and professional services industries. With a background in public finance and commercial real estate financing, she consults with prospective and existing clients to identify the current and long-term financial needs of the company. She was educated at Bob Jones University, Greenville, SC with a major in Marketing Management.

In her free time, she volunteers at her church, mentors a group of eighth grade girls, and can often be found at the soccer field watching her girls play.

Ms. Gagnon has been an active volunteer at Val Vista Academy for five years and is in her third term as a board member.


Val Vista Secretary

Karah Gagnon

Devin Grigg is the Director, Grigg Enterprises, Inc. in Gilbert. He served as Principal of Sunset Elementary and Assistant Principal of Armand Larive Middle School--both schools located in Hermiston, Oregon.

Mr. Grigg obtained his Masters in Curriculum & Development w/ emphasis in Education Leadership at Eastern Washington University. He obtained his BS in Elementary Education and Biblical Studies from Trinity Bible College.

Val Vista Member

Devin Grigg

My name is Amy Gurtler and I'm a proud mother of four amazing children, all of whom have attended Hearn Academy. My blessings are in 1st Grade, 3rd Grade, 8th Grade and a senior in high school. In addition to my children keeping me busy I am also a Realtor and between being a mom and a professional I am all over this beautiful valley. Prior to real estate I was fortunate to be a stay-at-home-mom and before that I was an educator for 15yrs. I am a native to Arizona and I enjoy being mentally and physically challenged to help me continuously grow as a person.

Some things I enjoy doing are kickboxing, GoRuck Challenges, baking, volunteering, entertaining, shopping and of course spending time with my family.

Hearn Member

Amy Gurtler

Marcus Harrison is an Army Veteran, who served as a part of Operation Enduring and Iraq Freedom. After military service, Mr. Harrison spent four years with Fidelity National Financial where he served as Senior Account Executive/Purchasing Manager in Santa Barbara, California and later in Jacksonville, Florida. He is well versed in vendor management and quality control.

He was educated at Texas Tech University – Abroad (Giessen, Germany) and Paradise Valley Community College, Phoenix, Arizona.

Mr. Harrison is an active volunteer at Hearn Academy, where he also serves as a basketball coach. He has been a member of the Ball Charter Schools Board of Directors for five years.

Hearn Secretary

Marcus Harrison

Connie Johnston is pleased to serve Ball Charter Schools as Governing Board Coordinator, and Central Office support, since April 2018.

Ms. Johnston graduated from Eastern Washington University with a B.A. in Secondary Education, and a B.A. in English. She moved to Arizona from Washington State to assist the Dean, University College in establishing a Liberal Arts College on Arizona State University’s Downtown Phoenix Campus.
Ms. Johnston has worked for several state and local agencies: as a Personnel Officer for the Department of Energy; Assistant to the Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs, University of Washington; and most recently, the Dignity Health Foundation.

Connie has two adult children and two amazing Grandsons! She is a philanthropist, active in P.E.O., and enjoys socializing, gourmet meals (both eating & cooking), Mahjong, and her Book Group.

Coordinator

Connie Johnston

Natalie McKenney is a litigation paralegal with over 20 years of experience managing all aspects of litigation matters in both an in-house and law firm setting. Her areas of expertise include: product liability; wrongful death; catastrophic personal injury; premise liability; property damage; commercial litigation; transportation and commercial carriers; medical malpractice; medical devices; harassment, retaliation and discrimination matters; covenants not to compete; minority shareholder disputes; appellate practice; and multi-district litigation.

Ms. McKenney received her B.A. in the Sociology of Law, Criminology and Deviance from the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities.

Ms. McKenney is an active volunteer at Dobson Academy where she served as the Vice President of the PTO and as a Junior Achievement® volunteer. She continues to serve as a parent representative on school committees.

Dobson Member

Natalie McKenney

Tara Yesenski is the Associate Director for the Sun Devil Fitness Complex for Arizona State University. She is responsible for the oversight and management of the Sun Devil Fitness Complex on the ASU Polytechnic Campus and oversees all Sports Programs and Kids’ Camps at all four ASU locations. She has worked for Arizona State University for over 16 years.

Mrs. Yesenski earned her B.S. in Educations from Southern Nazarene University in Bethany, Oklahoma where she was a four year scholarship recipient in Softball and Track & Field. She then went on to earn her M.S. in Education with an emphasis in Sport Management from Baylor University in Waco, Texas.

Mrs. Yesenski has served on the Site Council for Dobson Academy for three years and has two children that currently attend Dobson Academy.

Dobson Secretary

Tara Yesenski

Visit one of our campuses today!