Read about the members of our board and staff that help make things possible.
Executive Board
Vikki Strand has 25 years of experience in the financial services industry including management positions in lending, community and business development. Her board experience includes Housing Hope for nine years, serving as President one year and also on the Executive committee, HR committee, Resource Development committee
and Capitol Campaign committee. Vikki has also served on the Everett Community College Foundation for nine
years, the Mukilteo Boys and Girls Club Luau committee for three years and several years volunteering in Mukilteo schools and sports organizations. Vikki and her husband Scott have lived in Mukilteo for 18 years and have three children with their youngest currently at Kamiak High School.
Aaron Alonso grew up in the Mukilteo School District and attended Mukilteo schools for his entire public education. A 2010 graduate of Kamiak High School, he attended Western Washington University, receiving his Bachelor’s Degree in Theatre Arts with an emphasis in stage management and technical theatre in spring 2014. A theatre practitioners and ultimate theatre geek, he has worked at many theatrical companies here in the region and across the country, including: Village Theatre, The 5th Avenue Theatre, The Eugene O’Neill Theatre Center in Connecticut, and The Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. Aaron is currently the Production Manager at Village Theatre KIDSTAGE in Everett, managing and supervising the production programs in that location. KIDSTAGE, as part of Village Theatre, is one of the leading theatrical youth education departments in the Pacific Northwest, serving over 26,000 students over the course of the year between their locations in Issaquah and Everett. Aaron still lives in the district in South Everett.
Karl Hausmann is a lawyer with the Mill Creek Law firm. Karl attended Mariner High School, the University of Notre Dame, and Seattle University School of Law. Karl’s law practice includes civil and commercial litigation, including construction, probate litigation, and real estate law. Karl is the former president of the Snohomish County Bar Association and a member of the Everett Port Gardner Rotary Club. He is a former coach with the Mukilteo Youth Soccer Club.
Ex-Officio
Dr. Alison Brynelson began serving as the Mukilteo School District Superintendent on January 1, 2020. Dr. Brynelson’s work in the District spans 22 years and several different positions including including Explorer Middle School Assistant Principal, Voyager Middle School Principal, Director of Student Services, Executive Director of Secondary Education, Assistant Superintendent, and Deputy Superintendent from 2016 to 2019. She began her career in education as a middle school social studies and English teacher in the Bethel School District.
Dr. Brynelson earned a bachelor’s degree from Western Washington University, a master’s degree from University of Puget Sound, completed her superintendent’s certificate in 2005 and earned a doctorate degree in Executive Leadership from Seattle Pacific University in 2014. She has been a steady, guiding force in the District’s equity work. Dr. Brynelson was raised on a small island in Southeast Alaska. She moved to Washington to attend Western and has remained a resident ever since.
Board
Arantxa Gallegos is the Director of Outreach and High School Programs Department at Everett Community College (EvCC) and has worked at EvCC for over 5 years. She oversees the college’s outreach efforts in Snohomish County, underage admissions, and dual credit programs (e.g., Running Start, College in the High School). Arantxa holds a BA in Anthropology and Latin American Studies from Wellesley College and she is currently working on her M.Ed. in Social and Cultural Foundations through the University of Washington College of Education. She is originally from Los Angeles County. While she is not a Mukilteo School District parent, she is a school district auntie and is beyond excited to serve students through the Mukilteo Schools Foundation Board.
Karen has over 35+ years experience in male dominated fields. She spent 26 years in
the military, the rest in aerospace. She then began considering another change and she set
her sights on a career in financial services to become her own boss.
In the military, Karen rose to the rank of Major and figured out quickly that you can’t
command people but learned you can only advise and guide. She then took that
experience into the aerospace industry, and not only did she advise and guide, Karen
learned it was not about perfection but getting the job done well.
Ready to leave corporate America, Karen then opened her financial services business.
There she learned, along with her other experiences, that success doesn’t mean self sacrifice,
and she began to stand in her power and behind what she believes in.
Jen Chong Jewell is originally from South Korea and the Director of Parent Training and Information at PAVE. She is also a board member for the Washington State Coalition for Language Access and serves on many committees and councils at the state, county, and local level. Jen is also the parent of a student with disabilities in the Mukilteo School District. She is committed to serving students, families, educators, and community through the Mukilteo Schools Foundation Board.
Pat Hegarty joined the Mukilteo School District in July of 2015, after 32 years of service to Shoreline Public Schools. Pat began his career in 1983 as an English teacher at Shoreline High School. Mr. Hegarty then moved to Shorewood High School where he served for 14 years as English teacher, librarian, Yearbook advisor, department leader, Assistant Principal, and Athletic Director. In 2006 Pat became the principal of Syre Elementary School in Shoreline, and six years later returned to high school to lead Shorecrest High School, where he served as principal for nine years. Pat holds a BA in English from the University of Washington, an MAT in English from the UW, the Washington State Principal certificate from Seattle Pacific University, and he is currently working on his Superintendent’s certificate through Western Washington University.
Kim Gaffney accepted the position as Unit Director of the Mukilteo Boys and Girls Club in October 2019. Prior to that, she co-owned a law practice and also was an organizer and operation manager for Seattle Human Services Coalition, a non-human service non-profit that organized and advocated for gender equality, racial equality, immigration reform, fair and equal funding for the homeless and food insecure, support for victims of sexual and domestic assault. Kim began volunteer teaching art at her daughter’s school and decided to make a
change in careers. She made the jump and worked for Kamiak High School in their Life Skills department. She also worked two school year terms in the autism classrooms . Kim welcomes this opportunity to do the work of both of her passions in life; working with children and working to shape the community around us to create a brighter stronger future.
Alex Zitnik is the current Business Development Director at IRG Physical & Hand Therapy. She has worked at IRG since 2010 and currently leads the Marketing, Outreach, and Performance Service Departments which currently serves several schools in the Mukilteo School District. Alex grew up in Snohomish County and is a proud graduate of Washington State University. Alex volunteers for several community organizations including the Economic Alliance of Snohomish County, Imagine Children’s Museum, and the Snohomish County Sports Commission Board of Directors.
Staff
Kristin Kimmerling has been in the PNW for 35 years, in Mukilteo for the last 21 with her husband and two children. Kristin’s two children went through the Mukilteo School District from Kindergarten at Serene Lake Elementary to graduating from Kamiak High School. During those years Kristin volunteered with the Serene Lake PTA, OV PTO, Kamiak PTO, as well as being the KPAB Wreath Sales Chair, KPAB Patron of the Arts Chair, and the 2016 Kamiak Grad Knight Treasurer. Kristin graduated from UNR with a degree in Anthropology, but went to work in the accounting field, and worked as a bookkeeper in the Civil Engineering world for 28 years. She “semi-retired” in 2019, and is a partner with her husband in their own firm. Outside of work she likes to snow ski and garden.