Board of Directors

Rufus Pichler | Director, Chair of the Board

Rufus grew up in Berlin, Germany, and has lived and worked in the Bay Area and New York City for over 20 years. He studied law at the University of Freiburg, Germany, and at Stanford Law School. He is currently a partner at Fenwick & West LLP, where he advises clients on a wide range of transactional matters involving technology and intellectual property.



Kay Naumann | Director, Secretary

Kay grew up as a “global citizen,” spending her early childhood through young adult years in North Africa and South East Asian countries, and ultimately receiving her undergraduate and law degrees in the United States. She began practicing law 25 years ago, initially focusing on litigation and insurance coverage work in the maritime/insurance field, and eventually shifting to more transactional work. Currently, she owns and operates an insurance consulting and claims firm in Oakland, California. Kay’s family heritage is German, although her father did not pass down his German language skills. Determined to bring the German language back into the family, Kay and her husband enrolled their daughter in the school’s kindergarten program several years ago and she is now in sixth grade at EBGIS. Contact Kay at knaumann@ebgis.org.



Bess Daubenmire | Director, Treasurer

Bess is a Bay Area native who was born and raised in San Jose, lived and worked in San Francisco before moving to Berkeley where she and her husband have raised their 3 boys. She began working in finance after receiving her undergraduate degree from UC San Diego. Today, she is enjoying her role in making family films with the production finance team at Pixar Animation Studios. In 2013, her family was preparing to move to Switzerland which prompted her and her first child to begin their German language education. Though they did not finally make the move abroad, their love for the school and the community has kept them here at EBGIS to this day. Contact Bess at bess@ebgis.org.