Board of Directors - KLC

Jeanne H. Whalen
Board Chairperson
Jeanne Whalen has served on the Board of Directors since her son was a Kingsway student 32 years ago. She has been the Board Chairperson for 15 years. Ms. Whalen has worked in the field of education as a teacher, administrator and consultant for 45 years and is the recipient of a number of honors, including the Governor’s Teacher Recognition Award. She earned her Bachelor of Arts from The College of New Jersey in Elementary Education. Although retired, Ms. Whalen continues to be active in the field of education.


Michael T. Byrne
Board Vice-Chairperson
Michael Byrne has been providing financial planning services since 1987. A Chartered Financial Consultant (ChFC), he is a graduate of Fairleigh Dickinson University, and has a Masters degree from the University of Pennsylvania. Mr. Byrne is both a brother and a father to individuals with disabilities and began on the Board as a Parent Member, and currently serves on the Development Committee. He is highly regarded as a specialist in working with families affected by disabilities and is a frequent speaker at conferences on financial planning. He has been highlighted in national and local media, including a feature article on special-needs planning in Money Magazine. Mr. Byrne is also on the Board of Directors of Urban Promise, providing education and camps for children in Camden. He resides in Marlton with his wife Sharon and their two children, Kelsey, a Kingsway graduate, and Kevin, a college student at James Madison University.


Robert L. Edwards
Board Treasurer
Robert Edwards has been on the board since 1993. When his son attended Kingsway, he served as a parent representative before becoming a member. He is the current Board Treasurer and Finance Committee Chairperson. Professionally, Mr. Edwards specializes in restructuring and turnaround services. As a former CFO, he is qualified to assist companies, manage their cash flow, and improve operations by preparing budgets, forecasts, and models. He advises clients in both pre-bankruptcy and post-petition bankruptcy environments including Chapter 11 restructurings and workouts with lenders. Mr. Edwards has over twenty-five years experience as a financial executive officer. He has worked for several large international companies and start-up companies. He was a former CFO for Synova Healthcare, Inc., where he raised over $15 million of private equity capital. He has been employed as a CFO for FMC Industrial Chemical Group, Peroxide Business United, and Asea Brown Boveri for US Transportation Group. Additionally, he worked as a corporate accountant, treasurer, and controller for K-tron International, Inc as a corporate accountant, treasurer, and controller. His financial and operational experience consists of industrial equipment manufacturing, large long-term capital projects, chemical and medical devices, and pharmaceutical industries. He also has experience in the areas of turnaround, pre-bankruptcy, and post-petition bankruptcy.


Jason Breig, MD
Board Member
Jason Brieg, MD, received his medical degree from Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School and has recently returned to his native South Jersey after completing his residency in Northern Virginia. He is Board certified in Family Medicine and a member of Virtua Physicians Partners and Virtua Medical Group. Jason is long familiar with Kingsway Learning Center and during his residency actively consulted with schools of a similar type helping to improve clinical protocols and direct service to children. Jason has already made interesting suggestions on bridging to family medicine practice groups.


Dan DeFiglio
Board Member
Dan has been an attorney with Archer & Greiner since 2015. Dan earned his B.A. from Wake Forest University and his J.D. from Rutgers University (Camden). Prior to joining Archer, Dan clerked for a Presiding Judge in the Superior Court of New Jersey, Appellate Division. And, before that, Dan worked as a public school teacher in St. Louis, Missouri, teaching high school science.  Dan currently lives in Philadelphia with his wife and son.


Dr. Vito Germinario
Board Member
Dr. Germinario has spent his career in education in New Jersey, starting as a teacher in his hometown of Hoboken, NJ. His teaching career brought him to Shawnee High School for five years before moving into administration roles in Pemberton (Assistant Principal); Marlton Middle School (Principal); and Medford Lakes (Principal). He then served in Moorestown Township Public Schools as the Principal of William Allen Middle School before being named district Superintendent, a role in which he served for 14 years. Vito is currently the South Jersey Director for Teacher Preparation Programs at Fairleigh Dickinson University.

Dr. Germinario has co-authored six books on school improvement and at-risk students and has given consultations/keynote presentations in approximately 25 states. He has a B.A. from Trenton State (now The College of New Jersey), a Masters from Glassboro State College (now Rowan University), and a Ph.D. in Education Administration from Rutgers University.


Brandon Hamilton
Board Member
Brandon Hamilton is a Senior Software Engineer at Wells Fargo Bank and has developed financial systems for large corporate banks for nearly 30 years. He joined Kingsway Learning Center’s Board in 2013 as a parent representative. His son, David, has been a student at Kingsway for seven years. Brandon has volunteered at Kingsway’s golf tournament and been active in the Home and School Association. He holds a Bachelor of Computer Science degree from Rowan University. An avid marathon runner, Brandon has served as president of the South Jersey Athletic Club. He and his family live in Westmont, NJ.


Ellis I. Medoway
Board Member
Mr. Medoway has been an attorney with Archer & Greiner since 1987. He joined Kingsway’s Executive Board in 1998 at the request of friend and fellow Board member, Rob Edwards. Mr. Medoway earned his BA from Penn State, M.Ed. and JD from Rutgers University and an M.Ed. from Trenton State College. Prior to joining Archer & Greiner, he served as Deputy Attorney General with the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office, where he represented several state agencies, including the Departments of Health, Education and Treasury. Mr. Medoway lives in Cherry Hill, NJ, with his wife, and has three grown children.


Joseph Ritzel
Board Member
Joseph Ritzel is senior vice president of finance and chief financial officer for Day & Zimmermann, a construction and engineering, staffing and defense solutions company for corporations and government agencies around the world headquartered in Philadelphia. Mr. Ritzel holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from Pennsylvania State University.

Mr. Ritzel also serves on the Board and Executive Committee for Special Olympics New Jersey (SONJ) and is the Executive Sponsor of the People with Disabilities Advocacy Resource Group (PDARG) at Day & Zimmermann.