School Board

Ari is an American citizen and parent of two children at OSC currently working at the U.S. Embassy. Prior to joining the State Department, he worked for the United Nations in a regional seas program, and as legal counsel for the pacific island nation of Palau. Ari has a law degree and a PhD in international relations. Ari brings to the board almost four years on the school board at the Lincoln School in Kathmandu — during which time the school completely upgraded its infrastructure, significantly modernized its governance policies, and choose a new head of school. He appreciates that serving on a school board is a great privilege that allows one to support the children of the OSC community in reaching their full potential. Moving forward, he looks to work to ensure that: OSC continues to provide an outstanding international education, that OSC’s physical infrastructure is upgraded, and that OSC’s governance structure and practice is fully aligned with parents’ needs and concerns.

Nancy VanHorn has two children at OSC. She joined the board in September 2018 and works at the U.S. Embassy. Prior to joining the U.S. Foreign Service, Nancy consulted on message development for political campaigns, coordinated internal communications for a Caspian Sea oil project, conducted civic advocacy programs in Russia and worked on a Presidential Inaugural Committee. She has served extensively in Eastern Europe and South Asia.

Aruni Goonetilleke has over 25 years’ experience in Banking and Finance in international and local Banks and worked in Singapore for 15 years. She is currently a Board Director of Tea Smallholder Factories PLC, Sunshine Holdings PLC and Softlogic Finance PLC. She has a Master’s in Law from Harvard University, USA and a Bachelor of Laws (Honours) from the University of Colombo, Sri Lanka. She has also been a visiting lecturer in Law at the University of Colombo. She is currently the Chair of the Governance Committee and has previously been the Chair of the Finance Committee.

Rahul Bhan and his wife Nidhi are parents of two children, both are students at OSC. He moved to Sri Lanka in 2016 and joined the OSC board in 2019. Rahul is a qualified Chartered Accountant (ICAI-India), holds an MBA (University Nyenrode – Netherlands), and is a Certified Internal Auditor (IIA-USA). Rahul serves as Director – Internal Audit for seven international diplomatic agricultural research organisations (donor driven, non-profit, scientific research organisations) i.e. WorldFish – Malaysia, IRRI – Philippines, IWMI – Sri Lanka, WorldVeg – Taiwan, AfricaRice – Ivory Coast, World Agroforestry (ICRAF) – Kenya and CIFOR – Indonesia. These organisations contribute strongly to the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and are funded by World Bank, USAID, European Union, DFID, ADB, AfDB, Governments of various countries and other International donors e.g. Gates Foundation. Rahul has lived in and travelled to over 50 countries including Netherlands, South Africa, Kuwait, UAE, and India.

Tiia Juhkam is an Estonian citizen. She joined the Board in September 2020. Tiia is married with three kids, the youngest is attending OSC. Tiia is a certified IB PYP Early Years teacher and she has worked at international schools in Bangkok and Dhaka. Also, Tiia has broad experience working with not-for-profit and non-governmental educational organizations in Estonia as a project leader and manager. She has served as a board member of the Adult Education Association of Estonia (EVHL). Before moving to Colombo in October 2019, Tiia worked as an Executive Assistant to the Consul General of the Republic of Estonia in New York.

Jelmer is a Dutch citizen and moved to Colombo in 2019 with his wife and two children who are at OSC. Jelmer has been active in the telecommunication industry since the start of his working career. He has worked for various telecommunication companies in Europe and West Africa for 20 years. He serves on the board of the Lideke Wery Educational Institute and has been active as a consultant on telecommunication after arriving in Colombo. He has a master’s degree in Public Policy and Public Administration from Twente University in the Netherlands. He is also an active field hockey and squash player.

Aisha is a Maldivian citizen and parent of two children at OSC currently working as an independent director on the Board of Maldives Pension Administration Office. A co-founder of Avahteri Gallery, a social business promoting art & culture, Aishath previously served a 5-year term on the Board of Maldives Inland Revenue Authority, was a Manager at CARE Ratings Maldives Branch, and has also worked for the Maldives Stock Exchange and Security Depository. Aisha holds a BA (Hons) Business Management from the University of Westminster, UK. Aishath brings to the board a strong understanding of the work of the board and its committees, gained from previous experiences in governing nonprofit-independent institutions, formulating strategic policies, appointing and evaluating top international expertise, appraising organizational resources and adhering to ethical and legal requirements. She looks to support the board’s work in ensuring that OSC delivers excellence in education for students from a diverse set of countries and backgrounds.

Kumar is Sri Lankan citizen and the parent of two children at OSC currently working as: Director of Cricket at Rajasthan Royals; a regular broadcaster for SKY Sports and STAR Sports; a member of the National Sports Council in Sri Lanka, of the Sri Lanka Cricket technical Advisory Committee, and of the influential World Cricket Committee for over a decade; the appointed player’s representative on the ICC Cricket Committee; Trustee of the Foundation of Goodness, Colours of Courage, Ayati and British Asian Trust; and as Co-Founder of the Ministry of Crab and an active board member for several companies. Kumar is a former international cricketer who played 594 matches for Sri Lanka and was national captain from 2009 to 2011. Kumar brings to the board leadership and strategic decision-making skills under pressure with experience being on boards and being a principal member of the main committee of the Marylebone Cricket Club. His career has given him an insight into how to successfully manage and navigate environments of diverse interests and diverse individuals. He looks to ensure shareholder trust by encouraging and creating a board culture of openness, transparency and accountability that puts in place strong and positive governing processes and the discharge of Board responsibilities and duty to enhance the educational experience of students and the engagement of the parent body.

Steve is a South African citizen and the parent of two children at OSC currently working as Senior Vice President Human Resources at Cinnamon Hotels & Resorts. Having worked in human resources and talent development for over, 30 years with people from various cultures and nationalities, Steve has a well-developed ability to understand people, their strengths and weaknesses, and how they can best fit into a work environment. Steve brings to the board a skillset in human resources, labor relations, talent acquisition, and learning and development. He looks to contribute to the needs of our OSC families and students by helping ensure that families’ investments in OSC provide a top-tier quality of education and facilities, and that International values of education and standards of teaching and curriculum choices are achieved.

Aminath is a Maldivian citizen and the parent of a child at OSC who is actively involved in the School Community Network, working as Treasurer since 2017. Aminath has worked in a family-owned businesses in Maldives and Sri Lanka and in the Maldives Monetary Authority with responsibilities in the areas of Bank Supervision and Public Debt. Aminath holds a Bachelor Degree in Business from Monash University, Australia and a Master of Commerce Degree from the University of New South Wales, Australia. Aminath brings to the board a financial background and international experience helping her understand the OSC’s focus on unity in diversity. She looks to support the board in prioritizing the needs and interests of our student environment to ensure that OSC functions effectively and efficiently in achieving our shared vision.