| |
Keynote Speaker: Mike Riera, Ph.D.
Michael Riera, Ph.D., is one of the country’s foremost authorities on understanding children and teenagers and a bestselling author of five books. The cornerstone of his philosophy for parents with teenagers is having parents shift from being managers in their teenagers’ lives to being consultants. His latest book, Staying Connected to Your Teenager, (2003) launched with two appearances on Oprah,has appeared on several bestseller lists and was written as the follow-up to his first book, Uncommon Sense for Parents with Teenagers, published in 1995. This wildly popular first effort established his reputation for providing no-nonsense, practical advice for parents in understanding their teens. A second edition of Uncommon Sense, with several new chapters, was released in 2004. In addition, Dr. Riera has collaborated on other books, including Field Guide to the American Teenager (2000) and Right from Wrong (2002).
Dr. Riera was the parenting correspondent for CBS-TV’s Saturday Early Show for eight years, where he appeared twice a month. For two years he hosted a daily radio show, Family Talk with Dr. Mike heard on Sirius satellite radio. For two years prior to that, he hosted a daily television show for teenagers, Life in Progress, on the Oxygen cable channel.
Dr. Riera has been working with children and teens since 1980 as a school counselor, teacher, and administrator. He is currently Head of School at Redwood Day School, an independent, co-educational K-8 school in Oakland. He was previously dean of students at Marin Academy, and, before that, served as counselor at University High School in Berkeley. Dr. Riera and his wife are the parents of two children.
2007 Honoree: Lawrence M. Schwab
Lawrence Schwab served with dedication on its Board of Directors (then Family Service Mid-Peninsula) from 1996-2002, serving as Board chair in 1999-2000. He continues his involvement with the agency as a valuable member of its Advisory Board.
Deeply committed to community service, Larry has been a leader, advisor and mentor for many mid-Peninsula non-profits for more than 20 years. He shares his professional expertise and business acumen with warmth and wit. He has or currently is serving on the Board of Directors of numerous organizations, including Vista Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired (1992-1998 and 2001-2007; Board president 1995-1996), Los Lomitas Education Foundation (1989-1995; Board president 1994-1995), Menlo-Atherton Foundation for Educational Excellence (1998-2005), California Consortium of Education Foundations (1999-present), Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Center for Visual Arts at Stanford University (2000-present), Filoli Center Governing Board (2006-present), and the Children’s Health Council (2002-present). He provides pro bono legal counsel to numerous organizations, including acting as general counsel for the Junior League of Palo Alto-Mid Peninsula, where he annually trains its Board of Directors on fiduciary and legal responsibility. Larry’s wife, Pam, is equally committed to volunteerism and is actively involved in the local non-profit community.
Larry has practiced business law for nearly 30 years and is partner at Bialson, Bergen and Schwab in Palo Alto. After completing his undergraduate education at Stanford University, Larry received his J.D. and M.B.A. from the University of Santa Clara and an M.Sc.(Econ) degree in International Relations from London School of Economics and Political Science. Admitted to practice in both the United States and the United Kingdom, his areas of professional expertise involve domestic and international business/trade creditor issues, commercial finance and insolvency. He is a frequent speaker at a wide variety of conferences throughout the country.
|
|
