2012 Business Officer Institute: Faculty

Palmer has been Business Manager at Spartanburg Day since 1995. Prior to that, she was Vice President for Business and Finance at Converse College for four years, having previously served in the College’s Development Office for three years. Before joining Converse, Palmer was in the Tax Department at Price Waterhouse for two years.

She has been active on the boards of a number of local nonprofits, serving as Treasurer of most of them. She is currently serving on the Personnel and Investment Committees at First Presbyterian Church (Spartanburg) and the Board of Directors of NBOA, and was elected to the Association of Business Officers of Independent Schools (ABOIS) in 2008. Palmer has served on the faculty of the NBOA Summer Institute / Business Officer Institute three times and has presented the five-year budget model at a number of national and regional conferences. Palmer earned a BA from Converse College and an MBA from Vanderbilt University.

Donna currently serves as the CFO & Business Manager of Far Brook School located in Short Hills, New Jersey. Donna started her career in public accounting, working for Coopers & Lybrand in New York City, primarily focusing on Investment and Insurance clients. Following Coopers & Lybrand, she worked for a smaller CPA firm, Robert Hulsart & Co. in New Jersey and began working with schools and Business Officers. It was there that Donna realized she wanted a career serving independent schools and in 1999, joined Far Brook School.

Donna always has been an active educator, even in her public accounting days, participating in training classes whenever possible. While at Far Brook, she was a member of the New Jersey Association of Independent Schools (NJAIS) Finance Officers’ Steering Committee, which planned and coordinated the professional development for the New Jersey business officers, including their annual retreat. Donna holds a Bachelor of Business Administration from Hofstra University and is licensed as a Certified Public Accountant.

Russell is the Director of Finance and Operations at Duke School in Durham, NC, a position he has held since 2006. Duke School has a child centered, project based curriculum for Preschool through eighth graders with 465 students. Prior to Duke School, Russell was the Director of Finance and Human Resources at a not-for-profit research and education company serving the textile and apparel industry for 11 years and has over 30 years of accounting and financial planning experience. He has an MBA in Accounting and Finance and is certified as a Senior Professional in Human Resources. Russell served on the Board of Directors of the Raleigh Wake Human Resources Management Association for four years and was named RWHRMA HR Professional of the Year in 2004.

Alan has more than fifteen years of leadership experience in private school administrative roles. He currently serves as the Director of Finance and Operations for Dominion Classical Christian Academy in Lawrenceville, GA. His previous independent school experience includes roles as the Director of Finance and Operations for The Howard School in Atlanta, the Assistant Business Manager at the Alexander Dawson School at Rainbow Mountain in Las Vegas, NV and at Riverside Military Academy in Gainesville, GA, where he held various positions in admissions, marketing and public relations, and operations.

Alan also directs finance and operations for a Georgia nonprofit organization that seeks to provide educational opportunity to children from low-income families. Alan holds a Bachelor of Business Administration Degree in Management from North Georgia College and a Masters of Business Administration in Organizational Leadership from Brenau University.