Ross Wehner, Executive Director of World Leadership School,has worked as an instructor for the National Outdoor Leadership School and as a journalist, teacher and a mountain guide.

After graduating from the University of Virginia in 1989, Ross moved to Chile where he covered the end of the Pinochet regime for the San Francisco Chronicle. He spent four years reporting from Peru, as well as Ecuador, Argentina and Mexico. He has written about climate change, outdoor adventure, worker’s rights and other topics for Mother Jones, Utne Reader, Outside and Ski magazines. He most recently worked as a reporter for The Denver Post.

Ross is also a dedicated teacher. He has been a Spanish teacher at The Miller School of Albemarle in Crozet, Virginia, The Bush School in Seattle and the University of Virginia, where he earned his M.A. in Spanish American literature in 1999.

Ross taught leadership as a wilderness instructor for the National Outdoor Leadership School both in the U.S. and in Mexico. He continued his work with leadership and risk management as a mountain guide for Alpine Ascents in Seattle. He has guided clients on high-altitude rock and ice climbs in the U.S., Canada, Peru and Ecuador.

Ross first experienced the educational impact of service learning while leading high school volunteers in Costa Rica for Global Routes, a volunteer organization based in Berkeley, California. He then spent nearly two years managing Volunteer Adventures, a Denver-based volunteer organization.

The World Leadership School combines Ross’ experience with global issues, leadership training and service learning. He lives in Boulder with his wife Renée del Gaudio, with whom he co-authored the travel guidebook Moon Peru. Ross and Renée have two young children, Sebastian and Francesca.

Erin Lasky, Director of Operations for World Leadership School, has a wide range of experience when it comes to both designing, managing and leading international service learning programs.

Prior to joining World Leadership School, Erin served as a Director of Programs for Camp Fire USA, a youth development non-profit that focuses on service-learning and summer camps. While at Camp Fire, Erin developed new service learning and outdoor programs for after-school, in-school and summer camp settings using the traditional Camp Fire USA curriculum. Before that, Erin helped design and manage inner-city youth programs for Big Brothers Big Sisters in Tucson, Arizona.

Erin has also led a variety of service learning trips throughout Africa, Latin America and the American West. She has worked several seasons as an expedition leader for Road Less Traveled, an adventure and community service travel company based in Chicago. Most recently she has lead programs for World Leadership School in Tanzania, Belize, Peru and Costa Rica and set up WLS programs in India, Tanzania and Costa Rica. Through these programs, Erin enables, engages, and encourages students to see their full potential as caring and productive citizens.

Erin grew up in Great Falls, Virginia, a suburb of Washington DC, and she graduated from George Mason University with a degree in Psychology and Leadership. She has been living in Denver since 2006, spending a lot of her time in the mountains. She spends her free time training for half marathons, rock climbing adventures, snowboarding expeditions, and anything else that challenges her mind and body.

Jennifer D. Klein, Global Partnerships Director, comes to World Leadership School with a wealth of experience in the classroom and the world. She is the Director of Educational Development for the Research Journalism Initiative (RJI), an educational non-profit that facilitates creative expression among Palestinian young people and the use of their media projects in American classrooms. She holds a BA from Bard College and an MA from the University of Colorado at Boulder, both in Literature and Creative Writing. She taught college and high school English for 19 years, including five years in Central America and 11 years in all-girls education. She has published a wide array of educational and creative writing, and is currently working on a book on Cuban education. Jennifer completed requirements for a principal’s license in Colorado, and has an extensive background in curriculum development and experiential, project-based learning. Former Educational Chair for the United Nations Association Board of Directors, Colorado Division, Jennifer is currently President of the Denver Chapter.

In 2010, Jennifer left teaching to begin PRINCIPLED Learning Strategies, a global educational consulting business dedicated to developing and enriching global education through curriculum development, professional development, and the use of e-technologies to bring the world into the classroom. Jennifer spoke at the Annual Conferences of the International Studies Schools Association, the National Association of Independent Schools, and the People of Color Conference in 2009. She has also spoken at New York University, Bard College, Fordham University, and Ithaca College in 2009. In early 2010, Jennifer spoke at the Islam and the Media Conference at the University of Colorado at Boulder, and she ran a workshop on methodologies for teaching global conflicts.

David Maher is the Academic Director of World Leadership School. As a leadership and executive development consultant, David's particular expertise is facilitating self and global awareness for independent school faculty and students. David helps schools globalize through experience-based curriculum, assessments, and both formal and informal coaching.

David began working with World Leadership School in 2007 while working as Academic Dean for Fountain Valley School of Colorado. Through World Leadership School, David has leveraged his 25-year career as an educator in working with schools in Belize, Kenya, Costa Rica, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic. He has partnered with schools such as Appleby College of Toronto, Ensworth School of Nashville, Shadyside School in Pennsylvania, and many others in order to develop self and global awareness in faculty, administration, and students. Currently, David is working with the Madeira School in Virginia to completely revise their award-winning co-curricular program in order to create a more 21st century approach for their students.

David is an avid mountain climber and has climbed mountains in Peru, France, Alaska, and all over his home state of Colorado. He has also led groups of students on kayak, mountaineering, hiking, and caving expeditions. He was the creator of PEAKS, an outdoor leadership course that operated in Virginia, West Virginia, and Colorado for over a decade. David is married and the proud father of two young high school students currently attending Fountain Valley School. The Maher family resides in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

Lizzy Leighty, Program Coordinator for World Leadership School, grew up in San Francisco, California. After finishing her undergraduate degree in International Studies at the University of Oregon, Lizzy worked and traveled in Uganda, Southeast Asia, and India. Most recently, Lizzy spent a summer in Tanzania working to build community awareness around sustainable agriculture and HIV/AIDS.

Lizzy is currently working towards her M.A. in International Development and Global Health from the University of Denver, and working part-time as the Program Coordinator at World Leadership School. Lizzy spends her free time in the mountains hiking, camping, snowboarding, or pursuing her photography.

World Leadership School Community Partners:

Monkey Bay Sanctuary – Belize: www.monkeybaybelize.org/

Amawaki – Peru: www.awamaki.org/

Indigenous Education Foundation of Tanzania – Tanzania: www.ieftz.org/

Chilamate Rainforest Eco-retreat – Costa Rica: www.chilamaterainforest.com/

Shompole Community Trust – Kenya (no web page available)

World Connect – Dominican Republic & Haiti: www.worldconnect-us.org

International Educational Exchange – Rwanda: www.educationexchange.org