Global Playground Appoints New Board of Directors

The newly elected Global Playground Board of Directors met on July 13. Joseph Jay, Ryann Tanap, Jason Maga, and Emmy Levens, join returning Chairman Doug Bunch and Vice Chairman and Executive Director Edward Branagan to serve on the Board for the upcoming year.

This Board, elected in June, brings together a variety of backgrounds inside and outside of Global Playground. Joseph Jay attended the College of William and Mary as an undergraduate and a law student. He currently works as a lawyer for Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP in Washington D.C.

“I knew about GP from the time it was founded and have followed it through its first seven years,” Jay said. “I want to continue supporting the founders’ vision for education in remote areas around the world.”

Jason Maga works for Amtrak handling contract negotiations and operational improvement issues with the companies who own the tracks. Maga has supported GP for a number of years, and met his wife at a GP fundraiser in Washington D.C. Maga hopes his past nonprofit board experience will assist him in this role.

“I was previously on the board of another organization that has since grown to over $10 million in annual revenue and provides life-changing services to over half a million impoverished people in Africa,” Maga said. “My contribution was only a tiny part of the growth, but I hope to bring to GP a bit of what I learned there and use that to help GP develop and implement its own growth plan.”

Maga resonates with Global Playground’s ability to tie two distinctive goals into one organization.

“Global Playground offers a unique opportunity to, at the same time, support basic education and a broader cultural awareness by focusing on the synergy between these two objectives,” Maga said.

Current Thailand Teaching Fellow Ryann Tanap will return to the United States at the end of July and serve on the Board for the upcoming year. She brings a hands-on volunteer perspective to the group after finishing her year of teaching.

“I have more of an understanding of what fellows may face on a daily basis,” Tanap said. “I want to provide support for incoming teaching fellows, as they are the only full-time volunteers of Global Playground.”

Tanap believes her new role on the Board connects with her every day goal to teach her students English through a cross-cultural lens.

“At the end of the day, it’s really all about the kids,” Tanap said. “I believe that GP’s work, especially with the fellows, allows for a unique learning experience. GP has been able to promote cross-cultural dialogue, and I really want to help facilitate these interactions.”