Carrie Chapin

Board Member

Growing up in Upstate New York, Carrie Chapin spend many winters ski racing all over the northeast. Including, calling Northwood School in Lake Placid, New York home for several years. All through college, at The State University of New York, she ski raced as well as began coaching children. She moved to Big Sky in 2007 in search of more outdoor adventures. She and her husband had spent many years moving every six months. From summers in Maine, as rafting and kayaking guides, to winters in New Hampshire, as the Director of Youth Ski Racing at Cranmore Mountain. They were looking for a place to settle that had both of their summer and winter passions in one location. When Carrie is not working on maintaining and growing the family business, she enjoys all that South West Montana has to offer with her husband and two children. Being part of the Big Sky Discovery Academy, she is exciting to see the vision and growth of a Montessori education advance children’s love for learning.

Barbara Rowley

Board Member

Barbara Rowley has been deeply involved in creating educational, recreational and creative opportunities for children in the Big Sky area for 28 years. She is the founder and chair of Camp Big Sky, the founder and producer of Big Sky Broadway, a founder of the Big Sky Preschool, which operated from 2005-2010 in the Ophir School, a founding board member of Friends of Big Sky Education–the organization that led the effort to establish Lone Peak High School–and a founding board member of the Warren Miller Performing Arts Center. She has also served on the boards of the Big Sky Chapel, the Big Sky Arts Council, and the Big Sky Community Organization, and is a past president of the Ophir School Council (now PTO) as well as a founding board member of a large outdoor education center and camp, Colorado Outdoor Education Center. A graduate of Washington University in St. Louis (BA, Political Science and English) and Northwestern University (MA, Journalism), Barbara spent two decades as a contributing editor and writer to Outside, Parenting, and Family Fun magazines, as well as many other publications, websites and film, including a book on activities for young children (Hyperion/Disney) and a book on family computing (Microsoft Press). She and her husband Taylor Middleton have raised their two girls in Big Sky since birth; both daughters are graduates of Lone Peak High School.

Laura Sacchi

Board Member

Laura is originally from Pennsylvania and spent almost 20 years living and working as an international investment banker in NYC. She is a graduate of Colgate University and holds an MBA from Columbia University. She is fluent in French and conversant in Italian and Spanish. Laura visited Big Sky in the summer of 1994 and purchased her first piece of Big Sky real estate, where she now lives with her two children. She moved to Big Sky full time in the summer of 2001 and has since been very active in the community. Laura is the founder and former Executive Director of Morningstar Learning Center, co-owner of Big Sky Brochures and an active member of All Saints in Big Sky. She is passionate about pursuing the many outdoor activities that Big Sky has to offer, especially skiing, snowshoeing, fly fishing, golfing, hiking and camping with her kids. 

Marla Ganoom

Board Member

Marla Ganoom brings decades of experience both as a full time Big Sky resident and as a banker with local institution American Bank. She raised two children here, and their educational experiences inform her insight as a Discovery board member. In fact, her daughter Grace is Discovery’s High School program lead teacher. She is an active community member in both civicly and recreationally, and a great new addition to our board!

Nancy Hagen

Board Member

Nancy Hagen is our newest board member, and brings both educational and business management experience to the Discovery team. She earned her undergraduate education degree from Purdue University and her masters in education from Ball State University. She was an elementary school educator before taking over her family business – she is the CEO/Owner of Superior Sample Company, a manufacturing plant in Northern Indiana. In addition to being responsible for overseeing all operations and managers, strategic business planning for growth, and maintenance of a highly efficient and productive samplebook plant, she supports numerous nonprofits in Big Sky, Bozeman, Indiana and Florida. With her extra energy, she stays very active skiing, snowshoeing, alpine hiking, and kayaking.