Casey Gerry’s Shari Schenk named president of San Diego Jewish Academy board

SAN DIEGO (June 9, 2011) — Shari Friedman Schenk, director of marketing at the law offices of Casey Gerry Schenk Francavilla Blatt & Penfield LLP, has been named president of the board of directors of the San Diego Jewish Academy (SDJA), a private independent Jewish day school in Carmel Valley which serves children from infant day care, preschool and kindergarten through grade 12.

An active member of the school’s board of directors for the last five years, she will preside over a 20-member board of parents, alumni, grandparents and community members for a two-year term. Schenk now has two daughters at the school, in grades five and seven, and a son who graduated in 2008.

Currently, she and the board are involved in the search at SDJA for a new executive director to replace Larry Acheatel, who will soon retire after 13 years of service.  Additionally, she has been involved in plans to open the SDJA’s new preschool, slated to open in the fall of 2011, and has helped raise more than $500,000 this year as co-chair for the academy’s “Every Child Campaign,” an annual fundraising drive which raises funds to provide tuition assistance for needy families and to enhance the educational experience for all students.

A founding co-chair of SDJA’s Hevrat Tikkun Olam program — which organizes community service projects for students in grades K-12 — she is active in a variety of community projects and charities, both professionally and personally, among them the San Diego District Attorney Office’s Adopt-a-Family program.  A former president of the Agency for Jewish Education, she was a board member of the United Jewish Federation’s Women’s Division for nearly ten years. She is a graduate of the Wexner Heritage Foundation program for leadership development and also served on the California Commission for Economic Development.

A resident of Carmel Valley, Schenk earned a Bachelor’s Degree in economics from Tufts University and an MBA in marketing from San Diego State University.

About Casey Gerry
Celebrating more than 60 years in San Diego, Casey Gerry was established in 1947, and is the oldest plaintiffs’ law firm in San Diego. The firm’s 12 attorneys practice in numerous areas, including asbestos, personal injury, product liability and pharmaceutical litigation. Located in the Banker’s Hill neighborhood of San Diego, the firm also has a satellite office in Carlsbad, Calif. For more information, call (619) 238-1811 or visit  www.caseygerry.com.