Cliff Cort has dedicated thirty years to the mobile office and modular building industry. In 2004 he launched a personal campaign to be the first in the country to produce a LEED level, green portable classroom. The project subsequently won an international award. He is at the forefront of advancements in modular technology and engineering and collaborates with factories, architects, engineers, and contractors to produce some of the industry’s highest quality projects. A graduate of the Management Executive Education Program at Harvard Business School, Cliff serves as the Chairman of the Board for the Webb Innovation Center for Dyslexia (WICD[ED1] ) [ED2] and sits on the Board of Trustees for the Modular Building Institute Educational Foundation.

A lawyer with a Master’s degree in Education, Heidi Webb has been a WICD Board member since it’s inception. She is also the daughter of Dr. Gertrude M. Webb, for whom the Center was named, and is the mother of dyslexic children. Heidi is a Family Law Section Council member of the Massachusetts Bar Association and is Chair of the Members Committee of the Massachusetts Collaborative Law Council. She volunteers with Attorneys Representing Children, Senior Partners for Justice, the Medical-Law Partnership, and Lawyer for the Day in the Middlesex and Norfolk Probate Courts and serves on the fundraising committees for Planned Parenthood of Massachusetts and The Commonwealth School.

Nancy Klavans is the president and trustee of the Germeshausen Foundation, which she has led since 2001. Under her leadership, the foundation seeks to support smaller, innovative organizations led by entrepreneurial leaders. Some of her areas of interest include youth leadership development, the intersection of religion and ecology, complementary medicine, and innovations in education. Nancy has been a committed member of the WICD Board since 1991, and she avidly shares the breadth of her non-profit world knowledge with our Board. In addition, Nancy is the mother of a dyslexic daughter who is now a successful and sensitive teacher of pre-school age children.  

Jordan Rich is host of The Jordan Rich show on WBZ NewsRadio 1030. Jordan attended Curry College in Milton, Massachusetts, where he majored in communications and first met Dr. Gertrude M. Webb, who taught there and had founded the College’s Program for Advancement in Learning for students with learning disabilities. In addition to working live on-air for more than forty years, Jordan has been co-owner of Chart Productions, Inc., an audio production agency, and a performer and teacher of voice-over acting. He volunteers to support Boston Children’s Hospital, Triangle, Inc., Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center, Voices of Hope Boston, and The American Heart Association. 

Andrew Singer is a radiologist with over twenty years of experience in both academic and clinical medicine. His practice is at UMASS Memorial Medical Center and UMASS Medical School in Worcester, MA.. He is passionate about exploring new and improved methods for teaching visual perceptual skills to medical students and residents, and is excited about future innovation in dyslexia education. He has served as a mentor at the Martin Trust Center for MIT Entrepreneurship and with the MIT Media Lab program called “Hacking Medicine,” which brings fresh eyes to old problems. Andrew has been a WICD Board member since 2012.

Toni O’Connor has been a stay at home mom for the past 13 years raising her three children and volunteering for local non-profit organizations.  She has worked as a member of a number of school groups including serving for three years as President of the Lincoln Nursery School board. In addition, Toni has volunteered for the Lincoln Family Association and spent six years on the board of Codman Community Farms. Previously, she held a number of positions in the healthcare industry at health plans and as a senior research analyst for a strategic consulting firm. Toni has two sons with dyslexia. After witnessing the difficulties of identifying children who are dyslexic as well as the struggles they face, she became passionate about advocating for and supporting the dyslexic community.

At the age of 7 Berkley’s grandmother discovered she had dyslexia. Thankfully, Dr. Gertrude Webb was her grandmother. Berkley benefited first-hand from Dr. Webb’s approach to dyslexia and she developed a strong relationship with her grandmother throughout her education. Berkley attended Trinity College (CT) and majored in Psychology with minors in Special Education and Community Action, and since has gone on to teach Special Education in Denver urban schools for the past 4 years. Berkley is excited to join the board and help keep her grandmother’s dreams alive!

An educator and counselor, Kate Pingeon is the 8th grade secondary school placement counselor at the Fay School in Southborough, MA. Prior to joining Fay, Kate taught at the Buckley School in New York City and earned her Master’s degree in Education at the Shady Hill School apprentice program. In addition to being a member of the WICD Board, Kate also serves on the advisory board of IMPACT Boston, a violence prevention program.

A marketing communications professional, Carey Cort serves as the WICD Director and also operates Cort Communications, a marketing consulting company. For the last thirty years, Carey has been worked as a marketing professional with expertise in communications, outreach efforts and social media for financial services companies, start-ups, and mature companies. She has volunteered to support children, having worked for Massachusetts General Hospital for Children, the Middlesex County Concord Family and Youth Services and parent association in both public and private schools. Carey’s daughter, who is a successful dyslexic, attended the Carroll School in Lincoln, MA, an independent day school specializing in students with dyslexia.