Christopher Joyce is the Founding Principal of IDEA Oscar Dunn, an elementary charter school in New Orleans East. As a Mandeville resident, he’s committed to ensuring that all children in our community can thrive and grow into impactful citizens.
Christopher Joyce - Chair
Julie Philippus – Past Chair
Julie Philippus is one of the original founding members of the Cedarwood Children’s Foundation since its inception in 2013 and served as Chair for 3 years. She is also a 7 yr. board member for Children’s Advocacy Center/Hope House which strives to end the cycle of child abuse. Julie serves as Vice President and licensed Real Estate Agent for Diefenthal Holdings, LLC, her family’s holdings company involved in real estate investments and plastic polymerization. Julie earned a Bachelor’s degree from Vanderbilt University in 1993. Julie is a graduate of Leadership St. Tammany and was a member of Northshore’s Finest. She has three children who all attend(ed) Cedarwood School and she co-authored the Cedarwood Gumbo cookbook which won 3rd place in a national cookbook competition. Julie is passionate about providing exceptional educational opportunities and safety for our community’s children.
Scott Touchton - Chair Elect
Originally from Birmingham, Alabama; Scott moved to the New Orleans area in 2002 and is proud to be called Dad by two current Cedarwood students. Scott works in the sales and marketing industry and enjoys being in the outdoors and going to see live music. Scott is also the Chairman of the Cedarwood Dad’s Club.
Chad Readlinger – Treasurer
Chad Readlinger has served in multiple financial management capacities for the nation’s second largest waste services company, Republic Services, for over twenty years. He holds a B.S. degree in Accounting from Southeastern Louisiana University and will obtain an MBA with a specialization in Data Analytics in the Summer of 2020 from LSU. Chad’s son Tyler is currently a 4th grader at Cedarwood School, and has attended there since he was two years old.
Rebecca Blasio - Secretary
Dr. Rebecca Mandal-Blasio is the Senior Clinical Director in Louisiana for Autism Spectrum Therapies, a national company that provides Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) to children diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorders. She leads a team of BCBAs and Behavior Interventionists serving families in and around New Orleans, the Florida Parishes and Baton Rouge areas. A Louisiana native, Dr. Mandal-Blasio received her undergraduate degree from Tulane University. She then obtained her Ph.D. in psychology from the University of Southern Mississippi and completed her pre-doctoral internship at the Kennedy Krieger Institute of Johns Hopkins School of Medicine as part of the Neurobehavioral Outpatient Unit and Pervasive Developmental Disorders Clinic. Before moving back to Louisiana she completed a post-doctoral fellowship at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Center for Development and Learning. She is a licensed psychologist in the state of Louisiana, holds a certification and license as a BCBA-D, and is the former Director of the Northlake Resource Center on Developmental Disabilities.
Jean Champagne
Jean M. Champagne is a Senior Vice President and Private Client Advisor with Bank of America Private Bank in Houston, Texas and New Orleans, Louisiana. Jean joined the Private Bank (formerly U.S. Trust) in 2017 with nearly 40 years of business and management experience. He was a senior executive with a forensic consulting firm, a state-chartered bank, a regulated private utility company and a regional engineering firm. He also has experience in the restaurant and real estate development industries. Jean holds a B.S. degree in accounting from the University of New Orleans and a J.D. degree from Loyola University New Orleans College of Law. He is a licensed Louisiana attorney and a certified public accountant. In the community, Jean’s service focuses on public policy and economic development, particularly with respect to land use, planning and zoning in Southeast Louisiana. He is chairman of the board of the Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation.
Chrissie Witty
Chrissie graduated from Millsaps College in 2008 with a B.S. in Psychology, and from Tulane University with a Ph.D. in Neuroscience in 2013. She currently serves as an Adjunct Professor in the Psychology Department at Xavier University in New Orleans. Chrissie, a proud Cedarwood School graduate, and her husband Jeff have two children who currently attend Cedarwood School.
Niki Gazeley
Niki Gazeley is the Preschool Assistant Director at Cedarwood School. As a little girl, she wanted to change the world. She channeled her passion into educating children. Her 18 years of experience include work in public, parochial and private educational institutions. She has been recognized for her dedication and commitment to educating children by her stakeholders and community members. Niki earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Multidisciplinary Studies from Tennessee Technological University in 1997 and her Masters of Art in Education from Cumberland University in 2004. She is excited and honored to be a part of the Cedarwood Children’s Foundation to help advance the educational goals of our community.
Ex-Officio Members
Kathy LeBlanc
Kim Ellis
Lanie McKnight
Cindy Braud