The Mental Health Association in Santa Barbara County welcomes three new members to its board of directors: Aaron Clark, Ned Emerson and Ashley Woods.
Clark is the president and CEO of Monarch Wealth Strategies in Santa Barbara, and is responsible for the direction, strategy and focus of the firm.
Before co-founding Monarch Wealth Strategies in 2008, Clark worked with A.G. Edwards & Sons Inc., a full-service securities broker-dealer in the United States and Europe. Clark was recognized as being one of the firm’s top financial consultants while working with high-net-worth individuals. He was employed by Wachovia Securities LLC after its acquisition of A.G. Edwards & Sons in 2007.
Clark, a Santa Barbara native, graduated with honors from San Diego State University with a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice administration and a minor in sociology. He is working toward a master’s degree in personal financial planning. He recently received his Certified Financial Planner certification and is an Accredited Asset Management Specialist.
Clark is a member of the Financial Abuse Specialist Team for Santa Barbara County and serves on the board of the Rotary Club of Montecito.
Emerson brings to the organization nearly 50 years of experience in sales and management. While attending college, Emerson and a partner began a screen-printing company, which later became Shoreline Sportswear, and operated the business for 25 years.
He later moved on to serve as an independent sales representative, selling sportswear to college bookstores for more than 20 years.
Emerson graduated from UCSB with a bachelor’s degree in industrial management. In addition to the Mental Health Association, he serves on the board of United Cerebral Palsy/Work Inc. of Santa Barbara County.
Emerson’s wife, Ann Lippincott, is also a Mental Health Association board member.
Woods is executive director of the Morris B. Squire Art Foundation and founder/executive director of Rumble Art.
A graduate of Cate School in Montecito, Woods has a master’s degree in contemporary art from Sotheby’s Institute of Art in London and a bachelor’s degree in literature and art from Pitzer College in Los Angeles.
She held a summer internship for the Getty Museum and is a certified Americorps JumpStart teacher.
In addition to the Mental Health Association in Santa Barbara, Woods sits on the board of Art From Scrap.
— Daniella Elghanayan is a publicist.