Governance

Chairman, Audit Committee

Aziz Bidah’s background is in auditing and consulting services. He serves on the board of the Chartered Accountant body in Morocco as Chairman of the Professionals Training Committee, and acts as Partner in charge of Price Waterhouse Morocco. Mr. Bidah is vice president of AMCHAM-Morocco.

Ambassador Edward M. Gabriel was the U.S. Ambassador to the Kingdom of Morocco from November 1997 to March 2001, during which time a new U.S.-Morocco strategic relationship was launched on political, military and economic levels. In other positions during his career, he has convened multilateral policy forums involving national security, environmental, and trade and energy issues, and has been involved in matters of Russian and European nuclear non-proliferation. Currently, Ambassador Gabriel is President and CEO of The Gabriel Company, LLC, which represents American corporations and international entities on investment and policy strategies and projects.

Elizabeth McPhillips Stringer, M.D., is a medical doctor specialized in the field of obstetrics and gynecology at the University of North Carolina Hospital. She previously spent 10 years in Zambia providing medical care and helping the Zambian government scale up  public health programs. While in Zambia, her three children attended the American International School of Zambia, a school with many similarities to AST and ASM.  Dr. Stringer has served as a member of the ASTC board of trustees since 2014.

Jennifer Rasamimanana is the Director of the Tangier American Legation Institute for Moroccan Studies, the only U.S. national landmark located overseas and America’s oldest diplomatic property.  She was a U..S. Foreign Service Officer for over 23 years, serving in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, including as U.S. Consul General in Casablanca.  After so many years of traveling, she and her sons are delighted to be putting down roots in Tangier.  She joined the board in 2022.

Chairman, Nominating and Governance Committee

Mr. Magagna has a long and distinguished career in overseas education. Through the support of two Fulbright grants, he began his overseas teaching career at The American School of Tangier. He subsequently became Headmaster there, and later moved on to become Headmaster at the Community School in Teheran and at Jakarta International School; he also served as Headmaster of Rutgers Preparatory School and La Jolla Country Day School in California. John is a past Director of the Near East/South Asia Council of International Schools (NESA), and The East Asia Regional Council of Overseas Schools (EARCOS). Mr. Magagna returned home from a very successful seven years as Headmaster of the Jakarta International School and founded his company, Search Associates, in 1990.

Larbi Menebhi has been a businessman in Marrakech since 1977, founding Menara Tours and three transportation companies. Mr. Menebhi has decades of experience building bridges across cultures through tourism. He has brought this same passion to ASM’s local committee since 2017. Mr. Menebhi speaks five languages; is a Board Advisor for L’Association des Amis d’Aghmat (12th century archaeological site); and lives in Marrakech with his American wife Nancy and son Adam, who is a student at ASM.

Larry Kardon has been a member of the board since 1979. He previously resided in Tangier, where he and his wife Susan opened the first Montessori School in North Africa and his two daughters attended the American School of Tangier. Mr. Kardon currently resides in Pennsylvania. He is involved in real estate sales, marketing, and investment as the owner of Realty Executives-West Chester and as managing partner of Nodrak Partners, LLP.

Madison Cox, a garden designer and author with
offices in both New York City and Morocco, has
worked extensively in North America, Europe and
Morocco. He serves on a number of boards of
foundations including as President of the Fondation
Pierre Bergé in Paris, the Fondation Jardin Majorelle
in Marrakech, and as an Advisory Board Member of
the Aangan Trust in Mumbai, India. Mr. Cox has been
actively involved with the American School of
Tangier and the American School of Marrakech for
several years.

Mohammed Kadrouch has a background in business management and since 2000 has held senior commercial positions at several international companies. He currently manages the Sabre Airline Solutions business for West and North Africa. Mr. Kadrouch joined the ASTC board in 2013 and his children attend the AST school.

Richard Schuhmann is currently the President of the Landing School of Boatbuilding and Yacht Design in Arundel Maine.  Previously, as an engineering faculty member at Penn State, and then at MIT, he facilitated innovative design collaborations between his students and students in Rabat at L’Ecole Mohammadia d’ingénieurs and L’Ecole nationale de l’industrie et des mines respectively.  Dr. Schuhmann was elected to the ASTC board of trustees in 2015.

Saïd Eastman is a technology executive with over 25 years of experience.  He is currently the CEO of several companies, one being in Tangier Morocco.  He is a board member of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Small Business Council in Washington DC as well as several other nonprofits and associations. Saïd attended the American School of Tangier until 1979 finishing his education in the US. He returned in the 90-91 academic year to work at AST after graduating from college. He is the Secretary of the AST Alumni Network and is an active alumni of Colby College as Class President. Saïd joined the AST Corporate board in 2022 and was nominated as Vice Chair in 2023. He brings a wealth of non and for profit experience to support the leadership of the schools. He is also a Fellow of the Tangier American Legation in Morocco. He lives in the US with his wife Mim and their four children.

Yahya Rouach is a self-taught artist and sculptor of international renown based in Marrakech, Morocco. His multicultural background has served as a main inspiration for his work, and his designs are featured in some of the most beautiful private residences in the world and the occasional public project like the Royal Mansour hotel in Marrakech. His sculptures are currently the focus of a special joint exhibition with Mehdi Qotbi at the Institut du Monde Arabe in Paris.

Mr. Rouach has been actively involved with the American School of Marrakech since 2009 and joined the board in 2011.