Leadership

Jennie Diemont is the founder and President / Chief Creative Officer of Deep Fried Advertising, a creative and interactive agency headquartered in uptown New Orleans. An entrepreneur at heart, Jennie created Deep Fried in 2004 after obtaining a degree from the Annenberg School of Communications at the University of Pennsylvania. Her passion is in helping businesses reach their potential, and her vision was to create an approachable space where talented creatives could craft beautiful, memorable brands and cross-channel campaigns that speak to their clients' customers. 

Now 19+ years in business, Deep Fried has grown to a full-service agency that serves the needs of some of the best-known names in regional business. She and her team have worked with numerous clients to craft their brand stories, marketing strategies and online experiences, including RESTORE the Mississippi River Delta, Tulane Doctors, Jefferson Parish, the River District, JEDCO, E Pluribus Unum Fund, Aunt Sally’s Pralines and the French Market.

In 2018, Jennie was awarded the honor of Advertising Person of the Year for Agency Executive by the New Orleans Ad Club. She serves on the Board of Directors of the New Orleans Chamber of Commerce and the Alliance Française de la Nouvelle Orleans. Deep Fried is a certified woman-owned business, and Jennie is a graduate of the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses Program.

Jennie and her husband, Kevin, joined the St. George’s family in 2019 and are proud parents to two boys in the Lower School, Hays and Miles. During her free time, Jennie enjoys cooking for friends, exploring historic architecture and visiting with family around Southern Louisiana.

Jennie currently serves as our Board Vice Chair, Marketing & Admissions Committee Chair and sits on our Committee on Employee Advocacy & Engagement.

Miguel Aguilera is an Emergency Medicine physician for the Ochsner Health System who completed his initial medical training in May of 2000 at the LSU School of Medicine here in New Orleans. He then went on to perform a general surgery internship at the Naval Medical Center in San Diego, California. After his internship, Dr. Aguilera completed Flight Surgeon training in Pensacola, FL before joining his various Navy and Marine Corps squadrons for worldwide deployments. After his last tour of duty, he returned home in 2007 to Louisiana to complete his residency in emergency medicine at Earl K. Long Medical Center in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. In addition to treating patients in the Emergency Departments of Ochsner Baptist and Main Campus hospitals, Dr. Aguilera serves as the H.O.L.A. (Hispanics at Ochsner Leading & Advocating) representative to the Ochsner Baptist Diversity and Inclusion Council. He also volunteers for the GLOBE (Globally Linked Ochsner Belonging & Engagement) and the VET FORCE 1 community volunteer groups. He also participates in the Hogs for Cause pediatric charity fundraising event with his team Deswine Intervention. Miguel and Paty joined the St. George’s community in the fall of 2015 and their son, Diego, is currently in the Middle School. 

Miguel currently sits on our JEDI Committee.

Angela Blankenship is a Director of Media Strategy at Spark Foundry, a leading media agency within the Publicis Groupe, awarded Media Agency of the Year by both AdAge and Adweek in 2022. At Spark, Angela oversees paid media customer acquisition and loyalty strategies for Starbucks Coffee. Over the last several years, she has helped drive significant gains in high value customer growth through Starbucks Rewards, as well as supported new store innovation and performance media. Throughout her career, she has worked with a diverse client roster including Verizon Wireless, Caesars Entertainment, Amazon, Bartell Drugs, Papa Murphy’s Pizza, Providence Health and other partners across the healthcare, retail and government sectors.

Originally from the Seattle area, Angela first moved to New Orleans to attend Loyola University. After completing her Communications studies in 2004, she returned to Seattle and began her career in advertising at ZenithMedia. She was eventually drawn back down to New Orleans in 2018 with her husband, Will, an anesthesiologist, and their twin daughters, Alta and Iris. Angela and her family joined the St. George’s community in the fall of 2019 and Alta and Iris are now in the Lower School. Angela became involved as a Class Captain and is an active member of the Parents Group.

Angela currently serves as President of our Parents' Group and sits on the Development Committee and JEDI Committee.

Larry Closs, owner of MaxHome®, graduated from Tulane University and the Harvard Business School Owner/President Management Program (OPM). He resides in Uptown New Orleans with his wife Amy and 2 children,  Lilly and Eric. He is past-chair of Junior Achievement of Greater New Orleans,  and founding member of Baths for the Brave – a nationwide initiative that provides bathrooms for veterans.  Larry also sits on private boards, invests in Louisiana start-ups, and guest lectures in MBA programs. 

Larry’s wide-ranging business experience includes leading an automotive insurance agency with 5 locations, founding a direct response advertising & marketing agency, and establishing multiple regional home improvement companies that were placed ten times on the INC 5000 list--once named the fastest growing construction company in the country. 

Larry currently serves as our Strategic Planning Oversight Committee Chair and sits on our Development Committee.

Jennifer Kitner is an educator and served as the Associate Director of Diverse Learning Initiatives and Compliance at Morris Jeff Community School, a charter school in New Orleans where she managed Related Services, Gifted and Talented Services and 504 plans, as well as served as the Elementary and Middle School Testing Coordinator. Jen was also a Third Grade teacher, Kindergarten Teacher and Interim Math/Reading Interventionist. Prior to her employment at Morris Jeff, Jen was the Digital Education Coordinator at the National World War II Museum where she was responsible for creating digital curriculum and other teaching resources. She has also served as a middle school math and history teacher in both charter and independent schools. 

Jen graduated from Teachers College in 2006 with a Masters of Arts in Independent School Leadership. In 2004 she also received a fellowship to attend the Klingenstein Summer Institute held at The Lawrenceville School in Lawrenceville, NJ. In 2001 she graduated from Emory University with a Bachelor of Arts in History. 

Jen and her husband, Mark, joined the St. George’s community in 2019 and their son, Zachary, is currently in the Lower School. Jen currently serves as President of the Board of Friends of the New Orleans Public Library, and she has served on the board of the Jewish Community Center of New Orleans.

Jen currently sits on our JEDI Committee and the Committee on Employee Advocacy & Engagement.

Ryan McKinnon is currently the Executive Vice President of Westfeldt Brothers, Inc., the oldest green coffee importing company in the United States. In 2019, Ryan led efforts to form a new division of Westfeldt Brothers, Green Shutter Teas. Green Shutter places a focus on value added services needed in the coffee, tea and botanical industries. Ryan serves on the Executive Board as a Vice President overseeing all operations. He has served as President of the Southern Coffee Association, Vice President of the Green Coffee Association of New Orleans, and holds a committee position with the Pacific Coast Coffee Association. 

Ryan and his wife, Mary Scott McKinnon, are both native New Orleanians and both graduated from the University of Alabama. They have three children, one of which, Dugan, is in the Lower School at St. George’s.

Ryan currently sits on our Finance Committee.

Leclare Ratterree is a Data Engineer at Optum, the technology segment of UnitedHealth Group. He has worked in Health Care related IT for over ten years, specializing in Medicaid and Medicare data management and analysis. Leclare was born and raised in New Orleans and is a proud St. George’s Alumnus. He started in kindergarten and graduated in the class of ’95. He then attended Benjamin Franklin High School. Leclare went on to New York University, where he studied Mathematics at the Courant Institute and lived in New York City for ten years. He moved back home to New Orleans and started a family with Dori Hernandez, who works in the Solar Industry. Dori has a Master of Architecture from Tulane University. They have one son, Leclare V, who joined St. George’s in 2014 for PK-3 in the Blue Room. He is currently in 6th grade and represents the Dragons for a second generation.

Ilse Falk Stough is the Director of Development for NORF Companies, a boutique real estate investment firm headquartered in New Orleans, where she manages the restoration of historic properties and implements the firm's strategic tax initiatives. Prior to joining NORF, Ilse graduated from the Vanderbilt University School of Engineering and practiced civil engineering for several years in New York City and New Orleans. She went on to receive her MBA at Tulane University where her studies were focused on real estate development and real estate finance.

Ilse is a St. George's alumnus, graduating in the class of 2000. She and her husband, Burke, have two children at St. George's in the Early Childhood program.

James Yockey is a business builder currently scouting his next venture. James has more than 20 years of experience as a founder or early team member at businesses in the start-up through growth stages. Most recently James co-founded and led a software company called Landdox, which was acquired in late 2020 by Quorum Software. James is a New Orleans native and 1999 graduate of the University of Virginia. He and his wife Zizi previously lived in New York City before moving home to New Orleans in 2011. They have four children, including a St. George’s Lower School student, Hampton. James currently serves as chairman of Holy Name of Jesus School’s advisory school board and volunteers in various alumni activities at Jesuit High School. James is an instrument-rated private pilot.

James currently sits on our Finance Committee.

Alex Breckinridge serves as Ex-Officio of the Board of Trustees. Alex is an attorney and partner in the New Orleans law firm of Jones Walker LLP, where he specializes in securities and corporate governance litigation, as well as advising clients on compliance with anti-corruption laws, trade sanctions and export/import regulations. Alex is a St. George's alumnus, graduating in the class of 1995.  He and his wife Kirsten have two children at St. George's in the Middle School.

Alex currently sits on our Committee on Trustees and our Strategic Planning Oversight Committee.

Rev. Stephanie Fox began her ministry with St. George's Episcopal Church on July 1st, 2022 and serves as the first female Rector in the 150-year history of the congregation. Stephanie has been Episcopal for 30 years. She loves preaching, teaching and pastoral care.

Stephanie called Little Rock home off and on for over 30 years. She has also lived in Hawaii, Okinawa, and Vienna. Her parents and two adult sons live in Arkansas.

Stephanie has had a variety of roles in the corporate world, from social services to HR management. She cared about her work and the people she was able to help, but always felt there was a higher purpose to serve. Ultimately, she left the corporate world when she realized her true calling was to the priesthood.

She is passionate about beaches, nature, and travel. Music has been part of her life for as long as she can remember, from classical piano to singing in a band. Buddy, her sweet rescue dog is her constant companion.