President & CEO

 

Andy Schaum – President & CEO

P. Andrew Schaum, or Andy, as most know him, has proudly led Children’s Country Week Association (CCWA) as its President & CEO since 2005.

Andy was raised in Chester County and graduated from West Chester East High School in 1980.  He attended Pennsylvania State University, where he received his B.S. in Business Administration, with a Marketing Major, in 1984.  Next up was Villanova Law School, where he received his Juris Doctor in 1987.  He started his law practice with the firm of Cozen O’Connor, based in Philadelphia, PA, where he spent two years specializing in nationwide insurance litigation matters.  Wanting to return to his hometown and focus his energies within his community, he joined Lamb & McErlane, based in West Chester.  He was fortunate to handle a wide variety of matters with the firm, though his primary focus was in civil litigation.

In addition to his law practice, Andy was actively involved in consulting on behalf of numerous nonprofit organizations.  He got his start in the sector through his passion for land preservation.  In 1999, he began consulting with the Chester County Community Foundation, working on behalf of their affiliated fund, Chester County 2020.  Thereafter, he served as Director of Development for both the French & Pickering Creeks Conservation Trust and Tyler Arboretum, helping both organizations secure significant funding to further their missions.

Through Andy’s leadership, CCWA has become a strong and sustainable youth development organization.  He has helped create a positive and supportive culture within the organization.  Andy considers himself truly blessed to work with an exceptionally talented team at Paradise Farm Camps.  And, he looks forward to helping CCWA realize its full potential in the years ahead.

Andy has always volunteered his talent and time to help protect and preserve our region’s critical natural resources.  Some of his more noteworthy projects include founding the Valley Creek Restoration Partnership, launching the restoration of the Plum Run Watershed, and helping establish the Brandywine Trail System.  He presently serves in the appointed positions of Zoning Hearing Board Member and Trails Committee Member in East Bradford Township.  In the past, he served in appointed positions including the Open Space Plan Task Force and West Chester Regional Planning Commission. In recognition of his efforts within the community, Andy was honored with the Senator Robert Thompson Service Award in 2013, presented by the Exton Region Chamber of Commerce.

The Schaum family resides in The Strode’s Mill National Register Historic District in East Bradford Township.  Andy’s wife, Jennifer, is an educator with the Delaware Valley Association for the Education of Young Children (DVAEYC).  Their son, Casey, graduated from West Chester’s Bayard Rustin High School and is a sophomore at Penn State.