Catalyst Alternative Private High School Boulder, CO
  • Catalyst High School
  • Gifted and Talented Education
  • Catalyst Gifted Education

THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Rudy Fettig, President
Rudy is Vice President/General Counsel of Real Capital Solutions and has over twenty years of experience in all phases of commercial real estate transactions, real estate finance and leasing, as well as serving as counsel for the three non-profit foundations formed by the company’s CEO. Rudy received his B.S. in finance and real estate from the University of Colorado and received his J.D. from the University of Denver School of Law.
James Roome, Vice President
Jim is an assistant principal at Eaglecrest High School, in Cherry Creek Public Schools.  He has been in education for 21 years. Before moving into administration, Jim spent 17 years in the classroom as a Social Studies teacher. Jim received his BA in Social Sciences from Colorado College and his MBA in Administrative Educational Leadership from Grand Canyon University. This is his first experience as a member of a Board of Directors and he enjoys every minute of the experience.
Paula Pair, Secretary
Paula is the President and CEO of Centennial Conferences, a Louisville-based conference management company specializing in international scientific conferences since 1995. Paula has lived in Old Town Louisville for 18 years, is married and has two grown children, the youngest of which is a recent graduate of Catalyst High School. She has served as a volunteer board and committee member for numerous non-profit organizations, currently serves on the Tucson Advisory Board and is an appointed board member for most of the conferences she manages. Paula received a B.S. in Education from the University of Houston and holds an MBA from the University of Denver. 
Carl P. Gentzel, Treasurer
Carl is a certified public accountant and the owner of Flatirons Tax Service. He has 21 years experiences a CPA. Annually, Carl prepares tax returns for six nonprofit organizations, and he services as a board member four non-profits. Carl has a B.S. in Accounting/Finance from the University of Colorado.
.
Nana Jacquemard
Nana Jacquemard has been an active community volunteer in the Boulder County Region for many years. Born and raised in Boulder, Nana attended the University of Colorado where she earned her BA in Music in 1982. Nana raised three boys in the Boulder Region, the youngest of whom attended Catalyst High School during its first year. He has gone on and done well at the University of Arizona. Nana’s appreciation for Catalyst’s unique educational program led her to volunteer for several months helping the school administration prepare for the North Central Commission on Accreditation and School Improvement Quality Assurance Review. After the completion of that project, Nana decided to join the Catalyst Board. Meanwhile Nana continues to volunteer with Catalyst weekly in the front office. 
William Thorvilson
William is the CEO of RocHenge Capital, which invests in real estate and private equity for high net worth individuals and institutional investors. Mr. Thorvilson is also Vice-Chairman of RocHenge Group, which consists of real estate brokerage, property management, wealth management, construction, land development, as well as granite, tile and cabinet companies. He owned his own real estate company in Boulder, which he sold after accepting an appointment as a Deputy Treasurer for Boulder County. In addition, Mr. Thorvilson serves on the Board of Directors for Stone Craft, Inc. and the Board of Directors for Cheetah International, Inc. He also serves on the Board of Directors for several non-profit agencies, including the World Hope Foundation, whose mission is to help provide education to indigenous people. He also serves on the board of Directors Invitational Ski Classic, an annual pro-am ski race that raises money to benefit local ski programs. Mr. Thorvilson is licensed to practice law in the State of Colorado and has been a licensed real estate broker for more than 25 years. He received his Master of Science Degree in Communications from the University of Denver and his JD from the University of North Dakota.
Gerald Hertz Gerald is a research biologist, most recently specializing in computational biology. He is also the father of a Catalyst student. Gerald has a BS in Biology from MIT and a PhD in Molecular Biology from the University of Wisconsin.
John Schwartz
John is the Founder and President of J.P. Schwartz, Custom Network Designs, a computer and networking services company that specializes in supporting businesses in the ever changing information technology world.  Mr. Schwartz has been acting as a consultant and Sr. support engineer for organizations ranging from very small home offices up through federal contracts on a national level for the past 10 years.  Since the opening of Catalyst High School, Mr. Schwartz and his team have donated support time and expertise to allow the school to install and maintain a computer network that helps provide a learning environment for students and administrative functions for staff.  Mr. Schwartz has had prior experience with board operations while taking minutes for Rocky Mountain Rescue Group in Boulder.  Mr. Schwartz has provided long term support and assistance to meet the long term IT planning needs for over 100 organizations in a wide range of industries.
Pam Novotny
Ms. Novotny, the parent of a former Catalyst student, has been a writer for more than 25 years focusing on parenting, women’s health, and psychology. She has written for a variety of newspapers and magazines, is the author of nine non-fiction books, and is working on her second mystery novel. She has also taught writing for a number of schools and organizations, including the University of Colorado, the University of Denver, American Society of Journalists and Authors, and the Colorado Authors League. She has participated on several Boards, including serving on the Board of Sacred Heart of Jesus School where she was president of the Board for two years, vice president of the Parent Teacher Organization for one year and president of the same organization for two years. She is currently president of the Colorado Authors League.
Pam Constantine
Pamela Constantine joined the Catalyst Board in September 2010.  As a parent of a former student who had special needs, advocating for kids has always been a priority.  She has worked in executive office management for over 25 years and has devoted most of her free time between philanthropic and nonprofit organizations.  Currently she is the Office Manager for Spatial Corp in Broomfield, CO where she has been employed for 13 years.  She is also an active member of the Board of Directors for Highland Christian Church in Denver.
FROM our PRINCIPAL 

Our board of directors is very active and is committed to making Catalyst the very best it can be. It includes parents and educators, as well as those with business, financial, and legal experience. We’re currently seeking minorities, women, and well-connected fund raisers.
Return to the Homepage