Kyle Robertson - President

Collette (5th Grade) & Cameron (3rd Grade)

Kyle’s family is fully invested in Rancho; his wife, Jessica, is currently a 4^th grade teacher, serving the Rancho community for her 8^th year, and their two children, Collette and Cameron, have attended Rancho since Pre-K 3 and Pre-K2 respectively.

Kyle has been an active participant in the Rancho community by fulfilling volunteer opportunities including the role of room parent, joining PTO meetings, and showing up on campus to support school performances, parties, and events.

As he noticed the PTO needing assistance, Kyle took an active role in assisting the PTO and consistently meeting with leadership to enhance and refine the PTO initiatives. As roles were defined and missions solidified, Kyle decided to join the running for the PTO position that best supported the Rancho community.

Kyle’s background in the financial services industry and management has helped to refine the skillset he brings to the Rancho PTO table. He has held various positions within the financial services industry for the past 17 years. Within his roles, he is known for his versatility, attention to detail, technology know-how, relationship-building skills, and he has a knack for communicating complex topics in clear terms. Kyle is currently a Certified Financial Planner^™ professional, and a Managing Director where he plays a vital role on the Jackson/Roskelley Wealth Advisors Executive Team.

Staying involved in the community is a priority for Kyle, a third-generation native Arizonan. He enjoys his family time and can be found coaching his son’s flag football team, watching the Dallas Cowboys, traveling, hiking, and searching for new trails when off-roading.

Kyle is keen to Grow Together as a strong Rancho community. He looks forward to connecting with families and fostering a supportive community. His focus is maintaining the committee’s mission which he has branded as the “Five C’s”: Communication, Community, Clarity, Charitable and Commitment.

Emily Alice – Vice President

Theo (5th Grade) & Addelyn (2nd Grade)

Emily and her husband Brandon have two children at Rancho, Theo and Addelyn. Their family first started Rancho in 2016, with Theo as a Mini-Mustang and Addelyn soon to follow.

Emily has served as a room parent for seven years. She has enjoyed supporting her teachers, working alongside fellow parents and getting to know Rancho’s fabulous students. From January 2022-May 2023, Emily served as the Greenway Parent/Teacher Liaison. In that role, Emily created a teacher board comprised of six outstanding faculty members. This Board provides a voice for faculty, working towards collective goals to foster a successful, cohesive partnership between the PTO and faculty. 

Emily is serving as Greenway's Vice President for the 2023-2024 year and her continued focus is teacher and student appreciation, as well as ensuring the PTO is assisting teachers and administration whenever possible.

In addition to being a mom, Emily graduated from Arizona State University with both her undergraduate and Juris Doctorate. She has practiced both federal and state law in Arizona. When becoming a mom, Emily transitioned into an academic legal practice as a law professor and legal guest lecturer. Additionally, Emily has created legal curricula for various educational institutions nationally. Emily loves to travel, entertain with her loved ones, and spend summers in Flagstaff.

Emily is eager for the year ahead and grateful to be able to work with such an exceptional community of parents and teachers. 

Alicia DiDonato - Secretary

Everett (2nd grade) & Isaac (PreK-4)

This will be the DiDonato family’s second year at Rancho Solano and they are happy to be part of the RSPS community.

Serving as Room Rep for both Everett and Isaac last year, Alicia enjoyed getting to know the school and its community while working with other parents and teachers to help enrich the school experience for our families, staff and students.

Originally from Florida, Alicia moved to Texas to study Psychology at Southern Methodist University (also the Mustangs) and then Arizona to pursue her doctoral degree in Family and Human Development at ASU.  After graduate school, Alicia worked in research and evaluation in a variety of academic and corporate settings but is currently focused on volunteer and philanthropic endeavors. 

Alicia has held several leadership roles in different volunteer organizations.  In this new role with PTO, she looks forward to continuing to uphold the pillars of Rancho Solano, advance the goals of the school, support our teachers and staff, and foster connections within our community.

Ryan Svendsen - Treasurer

Siena (3rd)

Ryan and his wife, Courtney, have one daughter, Siena, who is in 3^rd grade and has attended Rancho since Pre-K 4.

Ryan was born and raised in Arizona, only having left Phoenix to attend school at the University of Arizona in Tucson.  He graduated with a degree in Accounting, achieved his CPA license and worked at two large public accounting firms before joining the corporate accounting world.  Currently, he serves as Senior Vice President of Finance at Arizona College of Nursing.

Ryan and his family enjoy outdoor activities, traveling, and spending time with friends and family in Arizona.  They also spend part of the year living in the Guanacaste region of Costa Rica. 

Ryan is excited for his first year as Treasurer and looks forward to advancing the goals of the PTO while also overseeing and upholding all its fiscal responsibilities.

Kristin Goldberg – Room Rep Liaison

Ellie (K)

Kristin and her husband Andrew are proud parents of Ellie, who will be starting her fourth year at Rancho. Ellie spends her free time figure skating and has four Labrador Retriever siblings.

Kristin is completing her second year as Room Representative Liaison. Kristin's first year as Room Representative Liaison resulted in a complete restructuring of the roles and responsibilities of the Liaison and the room reps. The result was a more cohesive group of room representatives and successful working relationships between the room reps and their teachers. Kristin has also served as a room representative for two years and works in tandem with her team to execute numerous teacher appreciation programs. Kristin has thoroughly enjoyed being Room Rep Liaison and is committed to supporting Rancho’s outstanding students and staff in any way they need. She also currently serves on the Parent Advisory Committee (PAC).

Kristin graduated from Tulane University with a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Sociology and a Minor in Spanish. She then attended Pepperdine University where she obtained a Master of Arts in Marriage and Family Therapy, followed by a Doctorate in Clinical Psychology. Kristin practiced for seven years before becoming a mom. She also owns and operates a global eCommerce company with her husband. Kristin’s passion is dog rescue and she loves to travel internationally.

Kristin is honored to be part of the Rancho PTO. She is committed to making the Rancho experience for students, families, and staff extraordinary.

Jennifer Gray - Fundraising/Grant Liaison

Grayson (1st)

Jen and her husband Justin, have two children: Grayson (1st grade at Rancho) and Declan (PreK3 at Pinnacle Presbyterian Preschool). This will be their second year as part of the Rancho family.

Jen is from Palo Alto, CA and graduated from Colgate University with a Bachelor of Arts degree in English and Theatre. After college, she returned home to become a senior marketing executive in San Francisco for several Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) startups. Over the next 13 years, she led go-to-market efforts for several high-growth B2B and B2C companies – that is until she was stolen away by marriage to Arizona almost 9 years ago. Since then, Jen has focused on growth of a different kind, the kind with diapers! However, she’s still managed to consult for various tech startups and maintain several leadership and volunteer positions for non-profits such as the Junior League of Phoenix, Support My Club, the Boys & Girls Club and more.

Before joining Rancho’s PTO ecosystem as the Fundraising and Grant Liaison, Jen has served on multiple PTO committees and as a Room Parent for their preschool. Jen is a people person, constantly putting her theatre degree and improv comedy experience to good use, but she also loves spending time with her family, traveling, hiking, yoga and she is on a never-ending search for the perfect squid ink pasta!

Cindy Runels - Communications Liaison 

(Connor PK4) & Henry (2nd)

Cindy and her husband, Dave, have two children at Rancho, Henry and Connor. This is their 4^th year at Rancho. Cindy served as a room rep followed by secretary of the PTO and this will be her 2^nd year as the communications liaison. She has enjoyed getting to meet the many wonderful families of Rancho through this role as well as contributing to a culture of support for our students, staff and parents.

Cindy is a registered nurse who practiced at hospital bedside for 7 years followed by case management and now utilization review for insurance. Working from home brings a nice balance to family life!

They have 3 giant dogs, a big floofy cat and a horse. As a family, they enjoy getting outside, swimming, hiking and visiting new places and family. Cindy enjoys volunteering for animal rescues, a good book and travel adventures. She looks forward to continuing the collaboration of the PTO, staff and families to make 2023-2024 an amazing year!