Rebecca Danello, ED.D.

 Most women, if we are lucky enough, get to live two lives – one in service to family and career and one in service to the community.  In my first life, I earned a BA from Mary Washington College in Drama, an MA Ed from Virginia Tech, and a doctorate from Virginia Tech. I worked for Stafford County Public Schools for 36 years as a classroom English teacher, the district Coordinator for English and Drama, and the Supervisor for Accelerated Programs. I also directed the character education program and summer remediation.  During these years, I was an adjunct instructor at George Mason University and the University of Mary Washington in their graduate schools of education, and I was selected to work with the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE), traveling to colleges and universities across the country. I served as president of the Stafford Education Association and on numerous committees at the Virginia Department of Education. I provided training and workshops at state, national and international conferences and authored a book used by every school district in the state of Virginia.

Since retirement, I have entered my second life of community service.  I serve on a variety of nonprofit boards:  vice president for ArtsLIVE!; secretary for The Rude Mechanicals, a local theatre troupe;  treasurer for the YMCA in Caroline County, where I reside; and vice president for the Women and Girls Fund. Now, in a sense, I come full circle: As a young actress I starred in one of Rollin Wehman’s first dinner theatre productions, and now I am pleased to serve on his Riverside Foundation for the Performing Arts.