Meet the Office

Director of Development
rcotter@friendscentral.org
610-645-5076

Bob Cotter joined the Friends' Central community in July 2015. For the previous nine years, he led the development efforts at the Chapin School in Princeton, NJ. Bob spent 17 years at Friends Select School in Philadelphia in several roles, including as Director of Institutional Advancement. Bob recently completed service as a Board member of the Association of Delaware Valley Independent Schools (ADVIS) and continues to serve as the chair of the ADVIS Marketing Committee. For 20 years, Bob taught business communications as an adjunct instructor at Philadelphia University and several other local colleges. He earned his BA in English from Penn State University and an MA in communications from Temple University.

Director of Annual Giving
kbenjet@friendscentral.org
610-645-4499

Kim joined the FCS community in the Development Office in November 2014, and she has been a parent in the community since 2006. She comes to us with significant experience in program development, fundraising, grant writing, events, and corporate development. Most recently, she worked with Girard College on campaigns to raise money from corporations and key alumni while managing the school’s annual gala. Earlier in her career, she was a clinical social worker and director of social service programs in Washington, DC. She is a former board member and active volunteer with the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. She earned her B.A. in history from Colgate University and her Masters in Social Work from Howard University.

Assistant Director of Annual Giving
sduda@friendscentral.org
610-645-5056

Sarah joined the Friends’ Central community in November 2016. She comes to the Development team with a strong background in special event planning and coordinating teams in collaborative marketing and public engagement initiatives. After earning her B.A. in History from Swarthmore College in 2014, Sarah joined the Historical Society of Pennsylvania as Visitor Services Manager, where she led an extensive event rental re-branding and sales campaign as well as several customer service and accessibility initiatives. A marathoner with a passion for endurance sporting events, she has also become involved with large-scale event production and promotion for Farm to Fork Fondo, a community cycling series based out of Vermont that supports local farms. In her support of Annual Giving at Friends’ Central, Sarah’s focuses include young alumni/ae relations, digital and social media fundraising, and special events.

Director of Alumni/ae Affairs
lwasserman@friendscentral.org
610-645-5042

Linda graduated from Friends’ Central School in 1975 and joined the Friends' Central community in 1995 as the Director of Alumni/ae Affairs. She is responsible for planning and implementing programs and projects that engage alumni/ae with one another and with the School community. These include Reunion, Career Day, and area events. In addition, she works closely with the Alumni/ae Association Board, arranging its meetings, staffing its committees, and ensuring strong and productive relationships between its members and the academic and administrative leadership. Her two children are graduates of Friends’ Central School.

Archivist and Development Associate
jdavis@friendscentral.org
610-645-5083

Jim has been a part of the FCS community since 1972, when he moved from Radnor School District to Chair the FCS arts department. He also led the choral program and taught music history and theory classes. He was music director for the musicals and witnessed the growth of the vocal program from 2 choirs to 3 choirs and 6 small vocal groups. He also played the cello in a number of Faculty Chamber Music Recitals. He presented at various Friends’ Council-sponsored teacher workshops, and in 1994, he was acting Principal of the Upper School. A native of Seattle, his family moved to Philadelphia and Jim attended West Chester University for his BA in Music Ed and his MA in music theory and pedagogy. He was a chorister at St. Martin in the Fields for several years and has played in regional orchestras. He currently volunteers for the Philadelphia Orchestra’s Education Department and serves on the vestry at his church.

Development Associate
dgershkoff@friendscentral.org
610-645-4485

Danielle graduated from Friends’ Central in 2006 and returned to campus in 2016 to join Friends’ Central’s Development team. She earned her BA in Creative Writing from Oberlin College in 2010 and attended Earlham College's Border Studies Program in Tucson, Arizona. After college, Danielle moved to Philadelphia to pursue a career in music and worked in educational settings for a wide variety of ages, including early childhood development. At Congreso De Los Latinos Unidos, Danielle taught in an adult ESOL and GED program and as a poetry teacher in their youth after-school programs. Alongside her work at FCS, Danielle performs in Hardwork Movement, a nine piece hip-hop group, and studies music performance and composition independently.