LAUREL CLAIRE TAHIJAFOUNDER & CHAIRMAN, DHARMA BERMAKNA FOUNDATION
Laurel is passionately engaged in developing resources to support teaching and learning in Indonesia. She has lived in Jakarta since 1984 on assignment with the Chase Manhattan Bank, NA and, since 1988, with her husband George.

In 1995 Laurel co-founded the PSKD Mandiri School, an independent K-12 “A” accredited Indonesian school in Menteng, Jakarta. Now called SPM, Sekolah Perkumpulan Mandiri, the school operates as a FranklinCovey Education Services The Leader in Me™ program Lighthouse School and teaches an integrated Indonesian National and Cambridge International Curriculum.

As Founder and Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Laurel, with her husband George as Cofounder and Trustee, in 2012 established the Dharma Bermakna Foundation with a vision of developing new approaches in Indonesian education that cultivate all learners’ potential.

With the Faculty of Psychology, University of Gadja Mada, Dharma Bermakna Foundation is currently developing a cognitive assessment test battery to identify cognitive strengths and weaknesses in Indonesian children ages 5-18 years.

Laurel serves as a Member of the Tahija Foundation Board of Supervisors. She values integrity, compassion and lifelong learning. She holds a B.A. in Psychology from Clark University, Worcester, MA, and an M.A. in Economics and Middle Eastern Studies from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, Washington, DC. Laurel taught in the US Peace Corps, Ivory Coast, and studied as a Fulbright student in Sudan.