Board of Directors
Nicole Meador Mace – President
Nicole Meador Mace lives in Scotts Valley with her husband, Craig, step-daughter, Avery (5th grade at Brook Knoll), and newborn baby, Isabelle (Izzy). They also have a furry friend (puppy), Harper Rose, and love living on this side of the hill.
Nicole was born and raised in Silicon Valley. She moved to Tempe, Arizona in 1995 to earn a BA in Political Science and Business at Arizona State University. She then returned to the Bay Area to pursue a career in education. She earned a CA teaching certification K-12 and an MA in Literacy from Santa Clara University, while teaching at various grade levels in both public and Catholic schools. Eventually, she returned to Arizona, Tucson this time, to earn a Ph.D. in Educational Psychology from the University of Arizona. While earning her Ph.D., she volunteered her services as a teacher mentor and literacy specialist at a struggling school that served migrant children and Native American students. She currently has a private practice helping students (elementary to college age) with academics and mental health.
Nicole has always had a passion for education and a strong commitment to service. Over the years, she has given countless hours to a number of causes including homeless projects, animal shelters, and of course, schools and students. Since moving to Scotts Valley in 2016, Nicole has coached softball with her husband Craig, volunteered in classrooms in Scotts Valley and Boulder Creek, helped with multiple school auctions and read-a-thons, worked on campus beautification, volunteered at a number of other Brook Knoll campus events, served on the board of the Brook Knoll PTO as Vice President and the SVEF Representative, and writes grants for SVUSD and local animal shelters.
Nicole also loves to spend time reading and she is a distance runner and dancer; she still spends one night a week (sometimes two nights if time permits) teaching dance classes. Her favorites are ballet and tap, but she also is trained in jazz, lyrical, modern, and contemporary. Recently, she has had the opportunity to teach Avery’s ballet class and that has been one of her most favorite opportunities.
Nicole is excited to serve the school district and community as the Vice President of SVEF.
Brian Ruf – Vice President
Brian Ruf has been an active member of the community since moving to Scotts Valley in 2006. With four kids ages 10 – 18, there has always been plenty of opportunities to volunteer.
At Brook Knoll, Brian has been involved with fundraising, running auctions, member of site council and has organized the team of fearless volunteers that help with morning drop off. Outside of school, Brian has been involved with youth soccer, both as a coach, assistant coach and board member.
Brian graduated from UCLA with a Theatre Arts degree and spent his twenties and early thirties as an actor. He then moved back to the Bay Area, getting involved in the family business and eventually buying it. Brian was President and CEO of E&K Scientific Products, a wholesale distributor of scientific and life sciences supplies until it was sold in 2018.
Dennis Lane – Past President
Dennis Lane works in the bicycle industry as a Director at FOX, a local Scotts Valley premium suspension company. Previously to FOX, he led global development for one of the world’s largest bicycle brands, based out of Southern California.
The creation of the Touch-A-Truck event was Dennis’ initial contribution to SVEF. That led to him becoming President of SVEF from 2018 – 2020. He also coaches Scotts Valley competitive girls soccer teams and the SV middle school girls soccer teams.
Dennis has lived in the Scotts Valley area since 2011 with his wife Jennifer (an educator at Brook Knoll elementary school) and their two children who attend Scotts Valley Middle School. Dennis graduated from The Ohio State University with a BA in Business Administration.
Derek Timm – Honorary President
Derek Timm is a real estate broker, attorney and was elected to the Scotts Valley City Council in 2018, where he currently serves as Vice-Mayor. He also serves on the Association of Monterey Bay Area Governments, the CA League of Cities and an alternate on the Regional Transportation Commission. Prior to his election, he served six years on the Scotts Valley Planning Commission, most recently as Chair.
He founded Save Our Schools, which was recognized by the Chamber of Commerce Organization of the Year, where he served as a community leader for the successful Measure A (Middle School Bond) and Measure A (Parcel) and Measure K in support of the Scotts Valley Public Schools.
He is former President of both the Scotts Valley Friends of the Library and the Scotts Valley Educational Foundation. He was recognized as the 2017 Man of the Year by the Scotts Valley Chamber of Commerce and received a BA from UC Santa Barbara, studied law at George Washington University and received a JD from UC Davis.
Tyler Crawford – Secretary
Open – Treasurer
Open – Assistant Treasurer
Lori Gentile – Technology Director
Lori has been an active volunteer in the community for over 10 years. She has served SVEF for ten years in various technology positions and as a school representative. Lori currently serves the City of Scotts Valley as the Chair of the Planning Commission and as a member of the General Plan Advisory Committee.
Lori’s previous volunteer experience includes serving as a Parks and Recreation Commissioner and Chair, serving as a member and Chair of the Vine Hill Elementary Site Council and Middle School Site Council, and serving on multiple fundraising events for the Vine Hill Elementary Parent Teacher Association.
Lori’s background ranges from customer support to program and database management. She currently works as the Director of Business Services for Scotts Valley Unified School District. Lori holds a B.A in Psychology from San Jose State University.
