Parent Executive Board

Bobbi Burton

Bobbi Burton earned an engineering degree from Cal Poly SLO, but her life took her in other directions. After graduation, Bobbi quickly realized her real passion was in early childhood education. Prior to having a family, Bobbi was a preschool and kindergarten teacher for several years. She spends her extra time these days educating her children and lending a hand where she can in the local homeschooling community.

Cathie Clifford

Cathie Clifford attended The Evergreen State College in Washington and has been a self-employed film producer and editor for over 25 years. Her experience attending an alternative College like Evergreen State and running her own business ties well into her passion for Village Home, homeschooling her son and lifelong learning. She sees Village Home as a vibrant example of a new direction in education and is honored to be part of its future. Cathie has served on the Village Home Parent Executive Board since 2009.

Mike Davis

Mike is a CPA with 15 years accounting experience, having worked with a broad range of businesses from small to large and for-profit and not-for profit. He understands the financial tools necessary for an organization to operate efficiently and effectively. "My family has been associated with Village Home since 2005 when my children started attending classes. My wife and I felt that one of the most important lessons we could offer our young boys was that learning is life long and should be cherished, a philosophy exemplified at Village and by its families. I wish the opportunity to contribute my time and experience in a way that will benefit Village Home and its Board."

Catherine Dunster

Catherine Bennett Dunster has been homeschooling her two children since birth and embraced Village Home last year when the East campus opened. As a homeschooling parent she has drawn on her background of twenty-plus years as a registered dietitian where she provided nutrition education from conception to geriatrics in a variety of diverse settings. She believes that the learner should guide the teacher whose role it is to provide an environment rich with opportunities for growth and exploration. “I am excited to continue the philosophy of Village Home by working collaboratively with an already dynamic board.”

Gretchen Ermer

Gretchen Ermer has more than 10 years teaching experience, and she has also been a travel agent, carpool guru, daycare manager, tutor, tour guide, sales person, and editor. She has experience teaching children with learning disabilities and gifted children in private and public settings. She has a bachelor's degree from Texas A & M. Notes from Gretchen, "I think a teacher’s job is to inspire a lifelong love of learning in all her students. I strive to show students that learning is a joyous experience and give them the tools to explore for themselves."

Barbara Hammond

Barbara Hammond is a transplant from Canada where she worked as a Recreation Therapist with children and adults in a neighborhood non-profit. Her focus was with seniors, many with Alzheimer’s. She designed and implemented adult recreational, inter-generational and pet therapy programs and after-school sports programs for children. Finding a new passion with computers, she worked in retail management, corporate sales, training and human resources with Egghead Software. She traveled nationwide, opening stores and training new employees. Barbara and her husband have home educated their three children since birth.

Linda Jutzi

Originally from Maryland, Linda, her three kids and her husband have lived in Oregon for the past nine years. Prior to having kids, Linda graduated from Salisbury University with a BA in Communications and Marketing. She worked in Washington D.C. and Virginia in the film and video post-production field with clients such as The Discovery Channel, The Learning Channel, National Geographic and a plethora of political candidates. After having her first born, she realized her true passion was to be a full-time mom and soon discovered the wonderful world of homeschooling. Although always having been active in the homeschooling community, Linda and family just recently became members of Village Home in the spring of 2009 with the addition of the east side campus. She has jumped in with both feet by putting in many volunteer hours in the classrooms as well as serving on the Program Committee. Linda loves that Village is the one place that meets the needs of all of her kids and feels that is has been a true joy to see how much they've grown while there. She wants to give back to the community by helping Village meet your needs and by assisting the east side campus to stay connected to the larger westside campus by lending her ears and voice on your behalf.

Deborah Mueller

Deborah Mueller, originally from Pennsylvania, has lived in Oregon since 2009, with her husband and four children, all of whom attend and love Village Home. After three years of study at Penn State University, Deborah moved to Hawaii, where she obtained her B.A. and M.A. in French Language and Literature, and then her law degree, from the University of Hawaii. Until she made the decision to become a stay-at-home Mom and homeschool educator, Deborah worked as an associate attorney, practicing commercial litigation, in Honolulu. Her family’s homeschooling journey began eight years ago in Hawaii, and continued in Washington, D.C., where the Muellers lived for several years before relocating to Oregon. At Village Home, Deborah has found a sense of community that she had not found anywhere else. An assistant teacher during her kids' first year at Village Home, Deborah now teaches four of her own classes and thoroughly enjoys every aspect of being a parent and instructor in such a wonderful community. "Village Home redefined homeschooling for our family. In this unique and special environment, we've found other parents who share and encourage our learning goals. The children at Village Home are inspiring. They're inquisitive, diligent, respectful, and happy! I look forward to raising my children in this community and would love to support this educational treasure as a member of the Board."

Lori Walker

Lori is the founder and Executive Director of Village Home and serves as an ex-officio non-voting member of the Board. Prior to becoming a mom, Lori was the Director of Training and Curriculum at Learning Forum, based in California. Lori's vision for Village is to provide a resource center where any learner on an individualized learning path can enjoy a variety of enriching classes taught by passionate instructors in a family-friendly community setting that keeps the intrinsic motivation to learn alive. Lori earned BA degrees with honors from SMU in Business Management and Psychology, with an emphasis in child development.