 |
 |
About ALearn
Overview
Board of Directors
Board of Advisors
CEO's Letter
|
|
Board of Advisors
Ann Danner, Non-Profit Consultant
A consultant with Compass-Point to non-profit organizations, Ann Danner draws on her extensive background leading, advising
and raising funds. From 1993 to 1997, Ann was executive director of the Nonprofit Development Center (now CompassPoint),
where she spearheaded development of a strategic plan, increased the budget and staff, and added new programs to better
meet the needs of the nonprofit sector.
Before that, Ann was executive director of the Foundation for HOPE for eight years, helping to raise more than $3 million for
HOPE Rehabilitation Services. For this, she was honored as Professional Fund Raiser of the Year by the National Society of
Fund Raising Executives, Silicon Valley Chapter. Ann has served on the board of directors of RAFT (Resource Area for Teachers),
HIP (Housing for Independent People), Foothill-DeAnza Foundation, United Way, YMCA, San Jose Museum of Art and HOPE Rehabilitation
Services. She is past president of the National Society of FundRaising Executives and the Junior League of San Jose and was a
founding board member of the Volunteer Exchange and theNonprofit Development Center.
Bernadine Chuck Fong, Education Consultant; former President, Foothill College
Bernadine Chuck Fong is a member of the Board of Directors. Bernadine Chuck Fong is president emerita of Foothill College and a
visiting scholar at the School of Education at Stanford University, where she served on its Board of Trustees. She has worked as
an educational consultant and as executive coach for the national Achieving the Dream Initiative, a national initiative focused
on the success of low income Hispanic and African American students. She is the co-director of the Dale Tillery Summer Institute
on Community College Leadership for the University of California, Berkeley, and is the community college consultant for Engines
for Education, a nonprofit organization focused on story-centered curriculum.
She also serves on the executive committee for the Board of Directors of The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching,
and is on the Board for the Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital at Stanford, the John W. Gardner Center at Stanford, and the Silicon
Valley Community Foundation. She recently authored a chapter on an institutional response to open source and content for Opening Up
Education for MIT Press. Fong received her BA, MA and Ph.D. from Stanford University.
Melissa Dyrdahl, CEO, Bring Light Inc.
Melissa Dyrdahl is currently CEO and Co-founder of Bring Light Inc. (www.bringlight.com), a website for social changethat connects
donors and charities for more informed and effective online fundraising. Prior to founding Bring Light, Melissa was Senior Vice
President of Corporate Marketing at Adobe Systems where she was a member of the executive team responsible for growing the company
from $800M to almost $3B.
In 2004, Melissa was named “Best Marketing Executive” by the American Business Awards. She is also a recipient of the YWCA Tribute to
Women in Industry award, and in 2006 was named one of San Jose’s Distinguished Women in Business. Melissa is Vice Chair of the Board of
Directors for the Humane Society of Silicon Valley, and is also a former trustee of the San Jose Museum of Art. Melissa received her
bachelors from the San Jose State University College of Business, and currently serves on its advisory board.
Oscar Garcia, President, Mesa de la Comunidad.
Oscar is co-founder and President of Mesa de la Comunidad Mountain View, a nonprofit advocacy group addressing education, social and
business issues impacting the community of Mountain View. In 2006, Mesa received the Mayor’s Award for creating programs that promote
inclusivity, tolerance and diversity, and the Mountain Chamber of Commerce Organization of the Year award. Most recently, Oscar and his
family received the Hispanic Foundation of Silicon Valley La Familia Award for their community work. Oscar is a member of Challenge
Team, the Gang Task Force, on the board of MV PAL, a member of the Workforce Development Advisory Council with the Mountain View
Chamber of Commerce. He is also an alumni of Leadership Mountain View.
For the last 15 years, Oscar has worked in the high tech field in various capacities. Oscar graduated from UC Berkeley, with a BA in
Chicano Studies and a double minor in Ethnic Studies and Spanish. He is the only member of his family of 12 to graduate from college.
James McCanna, Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, iWatt
James is a member of the Board of Directors. He is currently the Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of iWatt, a fabless semiconductor company, responsible for Finance and Human Resources.
Previously, James was Vice President and the Chief Financial Officer at Tranax, a manufacturer of ATM equipment for the retail,banking and self-service markets and was responsible for overseeing their worldwide finance, accounting, operations, legal, IT, and facility functions. Prior to that, James held the position of Vice President of Finance and Worldwide Operations, as well as Chief Financial Officer for 3Dconnexion, a Logitech company. He was also the Financial Officer with Silicon Motion, a fabless semiconductor focused on 2D and 3D graphics, and Innergy Power Corporation, a battery manufacturer as well as spent fifteen years with Quantum Corporation, a manufacturer of hard-drives, as Director, Finance and Corporate Controller.
James holds a Bachelor of Science in Commerce and Finance from Santa Clara University and a Master of Business Administration with honors from Santa Clara University. He is also a member of Beta Gamma Sigma National Honor Society in Business and Commerce.
T. Mike Nevens, former Partner, McKinsey & Co.; Education Activist
Mike Nevens serves as a senior advisor to Permira on the Technology Sector. Permira is an international private equity fund with
21 billion euros of funds under management. He retired as a Director (senior partner) of McKinsey & Co. in 2002 having led McKinsey’s
global technology practice. He also served on the board of the McKinsey Global Institute which conducts research on economic and policy
issues.
He also serves on the on the boards of directors of Borland Software, Exeros Software, and ModelN Software. Mike is also a member of
the executive committee of the board of trustees of the San Jose Museum of Art and is a past president of that board. He is a member
of the board of the California Prison Healthcare Receivership Corporation, and ZER01: The Art & Technology Network. Mike received a
B.S. in Physics from the University of Notre Dame and a Master of Science in Industrial Administration from the Krannert School at
Purdue University where he was designated a Krannert Scholar.
Deborah J. Stipek, Ph.D., Dean, School of Education, Stanford University
Deborah Stipek is the James Quillen Dean and Professor of Education at Stanford University.
Her scholarship concerns instructional effects on children’s achievement motivation, early childhood education, elementary education and
school reform. In addition to her scholarship, she served for five years on the Board on Children, Youth, and Families of the National
Academy of Sciences and chaired the National Academy of Sciences Committee on Increasing High School Students’ Engagement & Motivation
to Learn.
Dr. Stipek served 10 of her 23 years at UCLA as Director of the Corinne Seeds University Elementary School and the Urban Education
Studies Center. She joined the Stanford School of Education as Dean and Professor of Education in January 2001. She is a member of
the National Academy of Education. Her doctorate is from Yale University in developmental psychology.
Colleen B. Wilcox, Ph.D., Executive Director, Alliance for Teaching
Dr. Colleen Wilcox is the Executive Director of the Alliance for Teaching, an initiative of Joint Venture: Silicon Valley Network.
Prior to assuming that role, Dr. Wilcox served as a superintendent of schools for 20 years, most recently as the County Superintendent
of Schools for Santa Clara County for 14 years where she managed the Office’s $250 million budget and a staff of over 1,900 employees.
Her 35 years of experience in education include teaching, speech and language pathology, and administration.Dr. Wilcox holds a Ph.D.
from the University of Southern California; an M.S. in Speech Pathology from the University of Arizona; and a B.S. in Speech and
Hearing Sciences from the University of Iowa. She has served in the Peace Corps in Guatemala, and on numerous boards, including the
YMCA, and the Commonwealth Club of Silicon Valley. In 1999, she served as the President of the California County Superintendents
Educational Services Association and was selected as the California Superintendent of the Year. She was also selected by the Women’s
Fund for its Woman of Achievement Award and was inducted into the Silicon Valley Business Hall of Fame by Junior Achievement in 2004.
Fernando R. Zazueta, Incorporator and Founding Chair, Mexican Heritage Corporation
Fernando R. Zazueta has had a long and distinguished career as a lawyer both as a partner in Boccardo Law Firm and in private practice
focused on personal injury matters. Fernando has long been active in local, county, state and national bar associations as well as in
Hispanic bar groups. As a law student at UC Davis, he did ground-breaking research on the use of Spanish interpreters in law courts
which was published in the UC Davis law review. He is the Legal Advisor to the Mexican Consulate General of San Jose. Fernando was
born in México, came to California as an infant and was raised by a migrant farm worker aunt and uncle in the San Joaquin and Santa
Clara Valleys.
Fernando is well known in Silicon Valley as the incorporator and founding chairman of the board of the Mexican Heritage Corporation
(MHC), which hosts many cultural and civic events. He is currently the Chevalier of the Sovereign Order of St. John of Jerusalem, a
philanthropic organization which raises funds for local needy children and their mothers, the elderly, war veterans, and the sick and
poor. He has received many awards, including the first Leadership Excellence Award granted by the San Jose Silicon Valley Chamber of
Commerce in 2000, the “Father of the Year” award by the Silicon Valley Chapter of the American Diabetes Association, and in 2006 the
St. Thomas More Award from the Santa Clara County St. Thomas More Society. Fernando received his B.S. degree in Business and
Industrial Management from San Jose State College, and his law degree from UC Davis.
|
|
