ABOUT US
Board of Directors
The Winston School is a private non-profit institution governed by an independent board of directors. Its dedicated members include entrepreneurs, physicians and educators.
Laura Cunitz, Board President
Laura Cunitz has a background in both business and accounting. As a CPA in New York City, she specialized in non-profit organizations, including hospitals, long-term healthcare facilities and charitable organizations. She spent six years in the public accounting field as an audit manager and financial consultant to large hospitals, interpreting new federal laws. Laura was hired by IBM as a healthcare consultant before she moved over to IBM Credit Corp., focusing on financial sales. She finished her 20-year IBM career in a marketing role as the Worldwide Brand Manager for PC Leasing. She recently founded her own internet-based design company. Laura was recently on the Parents Association Board at Pacific Ridge School and is the parent of a recently graduated Winston student who is currently in college.
Mary Balo, Member
Mary Balo has 20 years of professional experience in the pharmaceutical and medical devices areas. She has held positions in sales, outsourcing and budgeting of clinical trials and working for the regulatory agency FDA, which oversees these industries. Mary has worked for the largest CRO, Contract Research Organization, as well as pharmaceutical company Pfizer, and currently has her own business as a sales consultant. Mary is from Massachusetts and has an MPH in Epidemiology from UMASS Worcester. She has resided in nearby Carmel Valley for over 16 years with her husband and two sons.
Ria Scoma, Member
Ria Scoma is an award-winning real estate broker with Coldwell Banker, Del Mar. After many years as marketing director for a local real estate firm, Ria owned and operated her own marketing consulting business in La Jolla for 10 years. She then elected to enter sales, handling residential real estate in the Palm Springs-Palm Desert area, where she quickly became a top producer. Since returning to San Diego several years ago, Ria has maintained her status as a consistent top agent and also has a history of dedicated community service. A resident of Cardiff, she takes pride in her four married children and three grandchildren, all of whom reside in San Diego County.
Tasha Taylor, Member
Tasha Taylor is both a General Pediatrician and a Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrician providing care to underserved communities throughout San Diego. She also works in private practice in Carmel Valley, serving patients with a variety of conditions, including learning disabilities, Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and Autism. She grew up in Del Mar and recalls spending many sunny weekends playing on the now Winston fields! She migrated to the East Coast for her education, attending Yale University for undergraduate and the University of Rochester, New York for Medical School. After attending pediatric residency at the University of Washington in Seattle, she returned to San Diego to practice and later to complete her Developmental-Behavioral Fellowship at University of California, San Diego. Tasha also enjoys international travel, both for work and pleasure. While working for Doctors of the World in Chiapas, Mexico in 2002, she met her husband, a native of Puebla, Mexico. They now live in Del Mar together with their son.
Ann Buckingham, Member
Ann Buckingham is a partner at the law firm of Latham & Watkins LLP, a full-service law firm with 30 offices around the globe. She practices corporate law, specializing in joint ventures, partnerships, mergers, and acquisitions, as well as advising numerous local and national companies on general corporate matters. Ms. Buckingham has an LLB (Hons) and B.A. in English literature from Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand, as well as a BCL (Master of Laws) from Oxford University. Ms. Buckingham lives in Carmel Valley with her husband and son.
