Septima Clark Public Charter School

The Board of Trustees is composed of people deeply concerned about the education and future of young boys in the District. Our Trustees are passionate about the mission of Septima Clark Public Charter School and about creating a public school that sets and holds a high bar of academic achievement for boys.

Ms. Jenny DuFresne, Ed.M. - Founder/Head of School

Ms. DuFresne is the founder of Septima Clark Public Charter School, the first all boys public charter school in the District of Columbia. She is a former Building Excellent Schools Fellow, a national program designed to train aspiring school leaders to develop high performing public charter schools.   Ms. DuFresne's professional career includes a 10-year career in the U.S. Marine Corps, work in corporate level media relations, and service in the national nonprofit community. These professional experiences led her to become a 5th grade teacher in DC Public Schools through the DC Teaching Fellows program. During her service as a teacher, the vision of a high performing public school that would serve to educate boys was born.  Ms. DuFresne holds an Ed.M. from Harvard University and a BA from George Mason University.

Jacque Patterson, M.P.A - Chair

Mr. Jacque D. Patterson is a founding member and currently serves as Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Septima Clark Public Charter School. He was selected as a Capital City Fellow in 2001 by former DC Mayor, Anthony Williams and served in his administration until 2006.   He now works as a project director for the influential Federal City Council. He holds a BS from Southern Illinois University in Education, a MS from Central Michigan University in Public Administration and currently is studying to receive his doctorate in Law and Policy from Northeastern University.

James (Jay) Coston, Esq. - Vice Chair
Biography under construction

Steve Messner - Treasurer
Mr. Messner is a management consultant and interim C-level executive with over 25 years of experience in finance, general management, operations, and strategy. He has also been CEO, COO, and CFO of professional services companies in the Washington, DC, area and the founder of two management consulting firms. Mr. Messner holds an MBA from the Harvard Business School, an MS in Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and a BA and an MS in Applied Mathematics from Harvard University.

Marlene Zakai - Secretary

Marlene Zakai has a Master’s Degree in Social Work from Temple University in Philadelphia and a Bachelor’s Degree from Hebrew University in Jerusalem. She is currently a Senior Advisor to the CEO at the Corporation for National Service. In her current position, she coordinates and manages many of the Corporation’s large initiatives and internal day to day operations. Prior to this position, she served as Senior Program Officer for the AmeriCorps National Direct portfolio, as Director of the Office of Grants and Policy Operations, and as a government loaned executive to the Points of Light Institute.

Marlene began her career was in Jewish Communal Service in Philadelphia. She worked for the Association for Jewish Children, and as the Philly Regional Director for BBYO. Prior to entering the field of National Service, she served as International Director for Program Services at the B’nai B’rith Youth Organization in Washington DC.

Keith Coleman

Keith is an associate at Reed Smith LLP, and his practice focuses on providing advice and counseling in the area of government contracts at the both the federal and local level. Prior to joining Reed Smith LLP, Keith served in the District of Columbia Government as a trial attorney with the Office of the Attorney General where he litigated government contract matters on behalf of the city and he was an attorney advisor in the Office of Contracting and Procurement, where he provided legal advice and counseling to the Director and District client agencies regarding the interpretation of District procurement statutes and regulations. Keith also served in the federal government earlier in his career. Specifically, he served as a policy analyst in the Office of Federal Procurement Policy where he reviewed, revised and wrote procurement legislation and regulations. Keith received an LL.M. from The George Washington University Law School, J.D. from Howard University School of Law, and a B.A. from Morehouse College.

Sandra Durham
Biography under construction

Catisha (Tisha) Jackson

Catisha Jackson is a Senior Inside Sales Coordinator for Vocus, Inc. In her two year tenure at Vocus, she has received numerous accolades for her sales abilities. She is currently pursing a B.A in Criminal Justice and plans to work with at-risk youth. Her commitment to children and her dedication for helping them succeed is what led her to joining the board. She earnestly believes in the Septima Clark model and is excited that her membership on the board will allow her to be a part of conditioning our young boys to compete, achieve and contribute productively in society.

In her free time she enjoys spending time with her family; a spirited three year-old who is learning her way in the world, an eight year old son, who is a promising student at Septima and a loving husband who is proudly serving in the United States Air Force.

Debbie Lister

Debbie Lister is a board member of Septima Clark Public Charter School. She currently works as a Program Manager for the CityBridge Foundation where she serves multiple corporate partners in an innovative skills-based, cross-sector service model Ms. Lister’s professional career spans 15 years of work in national and local nonprofits. She was a Peace Corps volunteer in Lithuania where she facilitated workshops on grant writing, fundraising, project management and marketing skills to national and regional NGOs throughout the country.   Ms. Lister holds a MPA from American University and a BA from University of Florida.

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