Our Team

Our Team
Joni Bessler
Co-Founder
Recognized expert in the launch, development and operations of educational ventures, including: Full STEAM Forward; Bookends; Avenues, China; Whittle School, China; and YK Pao School.
Director of ProCure Hope—a 501(c)3 dedicated to supporting “at risk” populations during the Co-VID pandemic
30+ year career with Booz & Co. based in Singapore, Australia, China and the US--working with public and private company leaders to address strategic, operational and human capital issues
MBA from the University of Chicago (Booth); B.Sc. in Engineering from Stanford University
Fluent Spanish, conversational Mandarin and basic Hebrew.
A. Clancey Houston
Co-Founder
Recognized expert in the development of private education, healthcare and senior care services in emerging markets.
Executive Coach & Senior Partner and Founder of Empirik Group, Ltd., providing strategic counsel to operators, investors and their advisors in these sectors.
Member of the Board of Governors, YK Pao School (包玉刚实验学校), Founding member of The Middlebury College Asia Council; Member of the Board of Directors of the UNC Chapel Hill China Club
Master’s degree in Health Policy & Management from the University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill's Gillings School of Global Public Health & B.A. in Political Science and Chinese (cum laude) from Middlebury College in Vermont, USA.
Berlin-based native English speaker who reads, writes and speaks Mandarin Chinese and is conversant in German.
Jeff Sprafkin
Co-Founder
Producer, publisher and distributor of international K-12 educational content
Executive Director of MP Education and Story Shifu digital publishing ventures
Former COO of leading education services firm providing admissions consulting, test preparation, enrichment programs and academic tutoring across Asia
20+ year executive career with with Fortune 500 publishing and media companies launching and operating over 15 new content products, business units, and live events
MBA from UCLA; MA from UC Berkeley; BA (cum laude) from Dartmouth
Fluent in Mandarin
Jane Kloecker
Strategic Advisor
Over 50 years experience in Early Childhood Education in New York City
As a teacher, principal, consultant & director, established pioneering and successful programs in private & public schools and at museums.
20 years as Director in the Education Department at The American Museum of Natural History. In 1998, founded The Science & Nature & Family Initiatives--a highly successful science school for children ages 2 to 12 years and their parents with a yearly enrollment of over 600 families.
While at the AMNH, established sustained partnerships with local community centers, Head Start, shelters and public schools to promote science literacy.
Prof. Edward Bilous
Strategic Advisor
American composer, artistic director, and educator.
A leading advocate for an approach to modern education that is grounded in “creative intelligence” and utilizes experiential learning as its starting point.
Artistic Director for Virtua Creative & Founding Director of the Center for Innovation in the Arts at the Juilliard School.
Received an MM and DMA from the Juilliard School and served on the National Endowment for the Arts panel for Learning In the Arts and was the Senior Education Advisor in the creation of The Academy – A Program of the Juilliard School, Carnegie Hall and the Weil Institute
Charlie Qian
Strategic Advisor
3 years with Bookends as a counselor/teacher in both our in-person summer camps and after-school enrichment programs.
More than 8 years of specialized language teaching experience with adults, teens and children.
Holds a BS in Teaching Foreigners Chinese from Shanghai Normal University
Bilingual in English and Mandarin Chinese.
Vriti Saraf
Strategic Advisor
Edtech Entrepreneur at k20 Educators
Expert in building and executing professional learning ecosystems and programs across local, global, public and private, k-12 and higher education organizations including: k20 Educators, Whittle School & Studios, Ascend Public Charter Schools, Relay Graduate School, Virtually Human Project, and Pearson Education
Experienced school leader, network administrator, teacher, and adjunct professor, with pedagogical expertise in Online Learning, Responsive Classroom, Reggio Emilia, Standards-based Instruction & Assessment, and Project Based Learning. Teach for America Alumna
M.Ed. from Teacher U/Hunter College; B.A. from Macaulay Honors College
R. May Lee
Strategic Advisor
Highly regarded business leader, entrepreneur and educator in the U.S. and China and a recognized expert on innovation.
Founding Dean of the School of Entrepreneurship and Management at Shanghai Tech University. Invited by the World Economic Forum to serve on the Global Future Council on Innovation and Entrepreneurship.
Over the last 25 years, she has held senior positions at organizations such as Goldman & Sachs, Merrill Lynch and NYU, enabling her to thrive in environments that require strategic, operational and entrepreneurial skills.
Serves as a Lifetime Trustee at NYU School of Law, sits on the Boards of Directors for Chelsea Day School in New York and the National Partnership for Women and Families.

Annie Gentile
Strategic Advisor
NYS dual-certified educator in Childhood Education 1-6 and Visual Arts K-12
Inaugural teacher for Camp Full STEAM Forward; currently a k-4 elementary art teacher
10 years of teaching experience in museum settings, including the American Museum of Natural History and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, working closely with young children and their families to enhance their appreciation and understanding of the arts and sciences through hands-on experiences and museum collections.
MS in Museum Education from Bankstreet College of Education; BA in Art History from SUNY New Paltz