Board of Trustees

Marcy Balter

Marcy Balter’s interest in health and wellness was awakened through her work as a speech pathologist with special-needs children. Discovering a connection between diet, behavior, and sociability problems led Marcy to help create the Student Nutrition Awareness Council in her home community of Weston, Massachusetts. Trained at Kripalu as a holistic health educator and professional-level yoga teacher, Marcy is also a dedicated student of adjunctive medicine and a graduate of the Institute for Integrative Nutrition in New York City. She teaches and counsels in her home studio, and she and her husband, Bruce, are active in charity work in the Boston area, including Temple Beth Elohim in Wellesley and Brigham and Women’s Hospital. They were founders of the Wellness Community of Greater Boston, a day facility that offered free psycho-social support services to cancer patients and their family members. Marcy is a proud wife, mother, and grandmother.

Dorothy Cochrane

Dorothy Cochrane never imagined that her career as a fine artist and printmaker serving museums and galleries would lead her to a calling of yoga teaching and community building. In the mid-1980s, Dorothy joined the board of an independent and progressive school attended by her daughter, Lily. The school was founded on an experiential model of learning and surrounded by an active and diverse community. While serving the school in a host of leadership roles, Dorothy pursued her own education at Kripalu and Spirit Rock, becoming a certified Kripalu Yoga, DansKinetics®, and Mindfulness Yoga and Meditation teacher. It was this combination of communities and experiences that led Dorothy to find her passion for applying yogic values to public service. When Peter Alfond made his first matching grant to Kripalu in 2005, Dorothy signed on to chair the newly formed Leadership Gifts Committee, a position she still holds. In addition to her nonprofit board work, Dorothy and her husband, Michael, built a yoga and meditation studio next to their Guilford, Connecticut, home, where she teaches yoga classes, hosts workshops, and enjoys a local community whose members share her spiritual values.

Lisette Cooper

Lisette Cooper is CEO of Athena Capital Advisors, an investment advisory firm serving private clients, foundations, and endowments. Athena Capital Advisors was named the number-one wealth management firm in the United States in 2009 and 2010 by Wealth Manager magazine. Prior to founding Athena, Lisette ran the Consulting Services group at BARRA, Inc. (now MSCI BARRA). Previously, she was a vice president and senior strategist for Merrill Lynch. Lisette holds a CFA charter as well as a PhD from Harvard University. In addition to her financial expertise, she is a dedicated yoga practitioner and Buddhist meditator who is dedicated to ensuring that Kripalu continues to provide outstanding programming within an environment of safe and sacred space for healing, growth, and transformation. Lisette is focused on extending Kripalu’s impact on the lives of its guests beyond the campus to make a lasting difference, including extending the benefits of Kripalu programming to underserved populations, in partnership with our teachers and other leading organizations. Lisette has three children and lives in Lincoln, Massachusetts.

Steve Dinkelaker

Steve Dinkelaker is owner and president of American Lease Insurance, an innovative insurance enterprise providing coverage for small-ticket equipment leasing, financing companies, and their customers in the United States and Canada. Credited with “inventing” lease insurance, Steve founded the first agency to offer lease insurance in the early 1980s, and remains an energetic industry leader. Alongside his business success, Steve is a longtime student of philosophy. His interest in human potential was first kindled in the 1960s and ‘70s during his undergraduate and graduate years at the University of California, and led naturally to an exploration of yoga and holistic living. Steve serves on the Board because he sincerely and strongly believes that the practice of yoga is a pathway to greater well-being, and that Kripalu can contribute to a better life for anyone who avails themselves of what it has to offer. Steve is married to Ruah Donnelly, an attorney and author with a passion for New England gardens. Supporters of various horticultural and conservation organizations, Steve and Ruah live in Conway, Massachusetts, surrounded by a vibrant community of native plants.

David Ellner

David Ellner’s spiritual journey began 11 years ago with a powerful Kripalu program experience. David has 25 years’ experience in the music, television, and new technologies industries, with a focus on digital, marketing, business development, strategy, operations, and finance. He was president of Digital and Business Development for 19 Entertainment, home to the hit television shows American Idol and So You Think You Can Dance. Before that, he was executive vice president of Global Digital Initiatives at Universal Music Group, COO and CFO of Motown Records, and held various positions at EMI Music Publishing and Polygram Records. David earned his undergraduate degree from SUNY Albany and his MBA from NYU Stern School of Business, where he is an adjunct professor. Over the last decade, David has passionately pursued the practices of meditation and yoga. The physical, mental, and spiritual benefits he’s received inspired him to serve as a bridge between the worlds of commerce and expanding awareness. He feels Kripalu has something unique and special to offer in this pivotal area of social change and evolution. An avid rock climber, at-home chef, and suffering New York Jets fan, David lives in New Jersey with his wife, Kim, a Kripalu-certified yoga teacher, and their two children, who are Kripalu family program alumni.

Marcia Feuer

Marcia Feuer retired after many years as the Director of Public Policy at the Mental Health Association of Nassau County, New York. In that role, she worked to promote recovery, fight discrimination, and foster a better understanding of mental illness through lobbying and grass-roots advocacy on behalf of children, youth, adults, and seniors. She continues this work as a member of the boards of the Mental Health Association in New York State and Long Island Families Together. While raising her two children, Marcia returned to school to obtain a law degree. A deepening relationship with yoga and meditation led her to Kripalu. Marcia and her husband, Jonathan, live in Great Neck, New York, and spend as much time as possible in the Berkshires.

Christine Fuchs

Christine Fuchs credits Kripalu for helping transform her life. Christine came to Kripalu in her late thirties as a driven businesswoman, having spent two decades building a successful but all-consuming career in the investment management industry. She holds an MBA in finance from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School and a senior position with Wellington Management. As she began looking inward and seeking a more balanced, authentic life, Christine was intrigued by Kripalu’s dedication to the inquiry into what creates a fulfilled human life. She has become an avid fan of Kripalu’s Healthy Living immersion programs, which continue to inspire her. In the years since discovering Kripalu, Christine has left investment management and now enjoys a more balanced life focused on spending quality time with family and friends. Along with running her Boston-based interior design and home renovation firm, Tassels Home Design, she enjoys supporting and raising funds for her favorite nonprofit organizations. In joining the Board, Christine hopes to lend her expertise in finance and corporate governance, helping expand Kripalu’s reach so more people can access and enjoy its transformative benefits.

Steve Glick

Steve Glick is the founder and former CEO of Applied Energy Management Inc. (AEM), a nationally recognized engineering firm that specializes in the design and execution of energy-saving projects in large commercial, industrial, and institutional facilities. Prior to AEM, Steve earned his MeD and PhD in psychology at Temple University and taught in Philadelphia inner-city schools. A former Kripalu resident, Steve used the Kripalu community as the subject of his doctoral thesis. His Kripalu experience proved pivotal, spurring him to leaving academia and start AEM, where business results became a testing ground for his personal growth. Steve’s guiding intention in entering business was always to become successful and give back to others.

Sarah Hancock

Sarah Hancock was a software engineer for IBM, Programart, and Compuware, Inc. She now expresses her love of the arts and support for education by serving on the board of several nonprofit organizations in Boston and the Berkshires. Sarah’s longstanding interest in yoga and meditation was always accompanied by a sense that scientific research would one day establish their efficacy, and result in a wide acceptance of the practices and their philosophical tenets. Learning of the research partnership between Kripalu’s Institute for Extraordinary Living and Harvard, Sarah immediately signed on as a supporter. She joined Kripalu’s Board in 2008 and now chairs the Finance Committee. Sarah divides her time between Boston and Lenox, Massachusetts.

Timothy Henry

Timothy Henry has 25-plus years of national and international experience as a strategy execution and leadership consultant, working closely with executives to define and address business challenges. While Timothy’s initial focus was on developing practical approaches to define and execute company strategies, his ongoing study of what makes organizations successful led him to examine organizational culture and leadership development and identify the factors that support execution and superior performance. His passion is in helping to make good companies great, and working with leaders to define their legacies. Timothy is a founding member of Conscious Capitalism, a movement of business leaders at the forefront of defining business models for how companies can “do well and do good.” He earned an master’s degree in philosophy, politics, and economics, with a specialty in international economics, from Oxford University. Timothy is a frequent Kripalu guest and a depth student of many approaches to psychological and spiritual growth. The father of Kaylee and Michael and three wonderful stepchildren, Timothy, with his wife, Fabienne, divides his time between Lincoln, Massachusetts, and London.

Joan Kopperl

Joan Kopperl has been an active public servant in the Berkshires for most of her life. She is a founding director of the Berkshire South Community Center, which opened the doors to its new building in 2002, and a longtime board member of the Stockbridge Bowl Association. In the 1970s, Joan chaired the Shadowbrook Committee, which successfully fought a state plan to turn Shadowbrook, the building Kripalu now occupies, into a state prison. When she lived in New York City, she served on the board of the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center while earning a master’s degree in clinical social work at NYU and Fordham. At various times, she has worked for the Berkshire Country Day School, the Boston Symphony Orchestra, and served on the Lenox Planning Board, and she is presently a trustee of the Robbins de Beaumont Foundation. Joan and her husband, Paul, live in West Stockbridge, Massachusetts, just over the hill from Kripalu.

Carol O’Neil

Carol O’Neil joined the Kripalu board with 30 years of experience serving nonprofit organizations. A graduate of Boston College, Carol began her career in accounting at a software firm and a construction company. While raising her four children, she taught youth of all ages for 25 years, as an active volunteer, educator, and leader in her local and church communities. For several years, Carol was involved with Lovelane Special Needs Riding Program, an organization that provides therapeutic horseback riding to children with a diversity of special needs. She initially assisted with the children’s lessons, quickly became involved in major fundraising, and joined the board. While serving as board chair, she focused on building strong leadership and an effective nonprofit board. Carol’s passion for yoga was ignited in 2002 while taking classes with a Kripalu teacher. After participating in several Kripalu programs, she completed the 200-hour Kripalu Yoga Teacher Training in February 2010. Presently teaching three yoga classes a week, Carol has begun the 500-hour certification process. Carol shares her philanthropic endeavors with her husband, Jack. Her other interests include health education, reading, cooking, golfing, and playing with her two young grandchildren.

Michael Pulitzer, Jr.

Michael Pulitzer, Jr., retired from the broadcasting business in 2009 and moved to Stockbridge, Massachusetts, where he immersed himself in all things Kripalu. Looking to deepen his yoga practice, Michael participated in consecutive programs and completed the 200-hour Kripalu Yoga Teacher Training. Prior to retirement, Michael’s career path kept him at the intersection of entrepreneurship and community service. After graduating from Harvard, he received an MFA from the American Film Institute in Los Angeles and founded their alumni association. In 1978, Michael’s father asked him to join the family business, Pulitzer Publishing Company, and he embarked on a broadcasting career. Starting in sales, Michael worked his way to being station manager of an NBC affiliate in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. He was also President of the North Carolina Association of Broadcasters, President of the UNC School of Journalism, and Chairman of the Board for the University of North Carolina’s School of the Arts. Michael and his wife, Ramelle, now run New View Tours, which leads custom tours for small groups to South America. He is an active Berkshire Kripalu Community member who teaches yoga at the local correctional center, a member of the Stockbridge Library board, President of the Tri-town Rotary, and on the national advisory committees for both Austen Riggs and the Norman Rockwell Museum. A father and recent grandfather, Michael says yoga provides him the energy needed to live a happy and productive life.

John Taylor

John Taylor is president and CEO of the National Community Reinvestment Coalition. Raised in the housing projects of Boston, he graduated from law school and dedicated his life to furthering the cause of economic justice. After more than 25 years in the field, John has been the recipient of numerous local, state, and national awards, including the Martin Luther King, Jr. Peace Award, two United States Congress Citations, the State of Massachusetts Award for Excellence in Community Economic Development, and a Presidential Appointment to the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund. John recently was appointed to the board of directors of the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition and has also served on numerous other national boards, including the Leadership Conference for Civil Rights, the Consumer Advisory Council of the Federal Reserve Bank Board, the Fannie Mae Housing Impact Division, and the Freddie Mack Housing Advisory Board. Recently, John was named by the Non-Profit Times as one of the top 50 most influential nonprofit leaders in the United States two years in a row. In 2012, President Clinton invited John Taylor to join the board of the Clinton Global Initiative—America. John has testified before numerous Congressional committees, in the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House of Representatives. He has also appeared on ABC’s Nightline, CBS, Fox News, CNN, Bloomberg TV, CNBC, CSPAN, in the New York Times, the Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, NPR, the Huffington Post and hundreds of other print, television, and radio media. In the midst of his busy professional life, Kripalu has been a sanctuary and place of learning, and John is delighted to be exploring how what Kripalu has to offer can be made available to communities in need.

Erin Tunnicliffe

Erin Tunnicliffe is the Executive Director of Development at the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth, where she also earned her MBA. It was during her time as a student that she had her first exposure to yoga and formed an immediate and enduring affinity. After a brief return to the management consulting industry in Boston where Erin had worked after her undergraduate years at the University of Pennsylvania, Erin returned to the Dartmouth community to work for Tuck.

Erin thrives on a dedicated daily yoga and meditation practice, and ongoing study of Eastern contemplative traditions. She has been a yoga practitioner since the mid ‘90s and yoga teacher since 2002, when she trained as an instructor in Ashtanga with David Swenson. Years later, she added Yin yoga to her practice and teaching after training with Sarah Powers. Erin teaches regularly at a local Vermont studio in addition to occasional work with Dartmouth students and student athletes.

Erin has been a regular at Kripalu since her first visit in 2002, prompted by her sister, Heather (KYT 500). Kripalu serves as an important home for personal practice and reflection, as well as a place for family connection (mom Jacquie is KYT 200). Erin and her husband, John Tunnicliffe (KYT 200), live in their Norwich, Vermont, and Stockbridge, Massachusetts, homes with dog Sadie happily underfoot.