Our Staff

Meet Our Staff

There are seven staff at Macomber Center, and together we cover a wide range of knowledge, experience and skills. We make available the resources – people, information, tools – that our members need to pursue their interests. Most of all, we give them the time, space and trust to take control of their own education.

Ben Draper

Our Executive Director is Ben Draper. Ben grew up in a self directed educational environment. Confronted with the eventual decision we all need to make about what to do with our lives, Ben decided to create a place where children are free to follow their own paths, continue to love to learn (as that is innate), and be themselves. Ben has been our executive director for the past 12 years, since the opening of the center. Ben not only brings his guiding philosophy and his lifetime of experience to the center but his passion for the idea that children are not unmolded adults, that they are human beings with just a bit less experience. Ben's natural connection to the members is invaluable. His discussion of any subject with any child at any time provides a needed, loved, and rare foundational resource. Ben would list his MFA from The Boston Museum School and his Fellowship from MIT in his 'Other Interests' section, as well as having his work displayed at the MFA.

Denise Geddes

Denise is the centers' Administrative Director. Denise is not only one of the founding staff but has been the foundation upon which the center has been built. Denise is at the center before it opens and doesn't leave until everyone has gone home. Her knowledge of and daily attention to every single member that has ever come through the doors of the center is also invaluable and irreplaceable. On top of Denise's daily administration work she still finds time to photograph life at the center daily, cook large group spaghetti meals, and check in on every member every day. Denise has also had a lifetime of experience within the larger self-directed education community with 24 years of experience as staff at the Sudbury Valley School in Framingham and then a full 12 years here at the Macomber Center. Denise would also list her Bachelor in History with a minor in Psychology under her 'Other Interests'.

Vanessa Niro

Vanessa joined the Macomber Center staff in 2024 and she is excited to be in a place where children truly have freedom, autonomy, and control of their own education. She has her Master’s Degree in Early Childhood Education from UMass Boston, and years of experience working in early childhood programs, including nature and forest schools. In her free time, she runs workshops helping educators incorporate outdoor play and nature-based learning. Vanessa believes that children learn best with minimal adult interference, the time and space to explore their interests at their own pace, and the opportunity to create and coexist in a community. Her hobbies include playing bass guitar in metal and punk bands and visual arts, focusing primarily on cut and paste collages.