Advisory and Board of Directors

Josephina Fernandez is Director of Infrastructure Security in Cisco Global Infrastructure. She is an alumni of UCLA in Computer Science and Engineering. She has fifteen years experience in Technology and Information Services. Her passion is in learning languages and education for minorities and woman in engineering.​

Dr. Harvey Cohen, MD, PhD is Professor at Stanford University Medical Center, Lucile Packard Children's Hospital Stanford, Dept. of Pediatrics. His research interests extend from hypothesis-driven studies in biochemistry and cell biology to discovery-driven interests in proteomics and systems biology to clinical treatment.

Gil Gallardo is an alumni of the Alum Rock School District, the East Side Union High School District, Santa Clara University, SJSU, and UC Davis School of Law. He has served as a senior legal advisor, business leader and legal executive for over twenty years. He is a resident of the City of San Jose and is passionate about education in his community.

Jerry Davis is CIO at NASA Ames Research. Jerry’s primary mission is to provide thought leadership and technology solutions in support of NASA’s mission to answer mankind’s most pressing questions: How did we begin, are we alone and what is our future? In addition to his CIO role, Jerry also serves as the Program Executive for NASA’s global Security Operations Center. Previously, he held the position as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Cyber Security at the Department of Veterans Affairs, the Chief Information Security Officer (CISO) for NASA and the Director of Information Assurance for the Department of Education.

Sanya Attari, Manager of User Experience Research at Immersion Corporation, leads research activities in a wide variety of verticals involving physical interactions, including smartphones, wearables, AR/VR, gaming, advertising, and automotive interfaces. Her research background includes qualitative and quantitative user experience research for Cisco systems and pervasive computing academic research during her PhD studies at Virginia Polytechnic Institute.

Marcos Herrera has graduate degrees from UC Berkeley and Santa Clara University and Bachelor’s degree from SJSU in Engineering. In addition to serving on the Olimpico Learning Board, he serves on Boards for Alum Rock Counseling Center, Amigos de Guadalupe, Respite and Research for Alzheimer's Disease, Mabel B. Wright Education Fund, José Valdés Math Institute, MESA, Companions in Ignatian Service and Spirituality as well as part of the Pastoral Care Staff at Regional Medical Center. He is involved with Santa Clara and USA Catholic Charities.

Chris Cheng is an Associate General Counsel at Zoom. He grew up in the South Bay and is an alumni of Columbia University, graduating with a degree in Electrical Engineering. He attended University of California, Hastings College of Law. After working as an engineer, Chris worked in the legal departments of various technology companies. His passion is to mentor students to help them achieve their dreams.

Monica Starr Feldman is a Lead Software Engineer at Apple. She is passionate about working with people and code to turn great ideas into great products. By trade, her focus is on software and web development, and when she's not "at work", she enjoys creating things (with some combination of yarn, thread, fabric, metal, leather, wood, paint, code, food, etc), learning (specifically the French language), meeting new people, and trying new things.

Cameron Steinback is an educator with a decade of experience in formal and informal learning environments. Currently, a graduate student at Antioch University Seattle, Cameron is working on a Master of Education in Urban Environmental Education. His work includes environmental justice, community engagement, curriculum development, and education for a sustainable future.

Nicholas Verzic is a senior at Khan Lab School with a passion for robotics and artificial intelligence. He interns at NASA Ames working on Project PHALANX. Currently, he leads his school's COVID-19 task force, where they 3D print sanitary door handles. He co-founded ChildrenGiving.org and partnered with Microsoft in order to design and deliver weekly free virtual programming workshops.

Clarence Hurt is a freshman at Purdue University and is currently pursuing a degree in Engineering. He is a member of the Childcare Design Solutions EPICS team, which focuses on designing innovative engineering products for local daycares, and the Purdue Engineering Outreach club, which teaches STEM classes to students from elementary through high school.

Elena Kamas is a junior at Stanford University studying product design. Currently a product design intern at the firm Designs By White, Elena is a maker at heart - she loves sewing, 3D printing, machining, and finding the intersections between design and engineering. With Olimpico, she hopes to create hands-on STEAM curriculum accessible to all students worldwide.

Cassie Lee is a student at Mountain View High School and the Secretary of the MVHS Science Olympiad Club. She is an officer of STEAM Club, a club that goes to underserved elementary schools on a bi-weekly basis during the school year to introduce students to STEAM topics. She hopes to pursue a future in biology and encouraging children to be curious about the world around them.

Katherine Healzer is a student at Mountain View High School who is passionate about bioengineering and teaching. She is the founder of Student2Student Tutoring, a free online tutoring service where she leads over 50 tutors. She is a science and music TA. She received the FujiFilm Innovation Award and hopes to inspire students in bioengineering, innovation, and a desire to make a difference in the world.

Suhrith Bellamkonda is a student at Mountain View High School who has a wide array of interests, ranging from physics to poetry. He is the founder and president of the MVHS Physics Club, and is an avid member of MVHS Science Olympiad team. He hopes to pursue a career in STEM, and to maintain strong ties with the community around him.

Susan Germeraad, PhD, has had a long standing career as a science educator. In her first career, she was a Research Scientist and University Professor. For the past fifteen years, she has taught Middle School science and served as an advisor to the CA Dept. of Education on STEM testing materials. She is an advocate of educational leadership for teachers.

Susan Kim attended Title I schools, and then became a teacher serving the same population. She has taught for twenty years. She has an Education degree with Multi Subject Credential with Cross Cultural Education Emphasis, ESL, LDS, CLAD and two single subject in English and History. She loves to design ELA curriculum with a focus on students’ life-long success.

Doris Watson is currently an instructional technology specialist and has taught for twenty years in 3rd-5th grades. She has an Education degree with emphasis in Instructional Design and Technology and holds both a Multiple Subject BCLAD and a single subject credential in ICT.

Sharren Cayetano is a 3rd grade teacher at Kennedy and has taught STEM for twelve years. She has been a science instructor with Girl Scouts and currently the technology support at her school site. She has a Multiple Subject Credential from SJSU. She provides students with the opportunity to experience inquiry-based hands on projects while learning important science concepts. She is lead teacher implementing the NGSS.

Carolina Rodriguez is a 6th grade science teacher that has taught engineering courses and is the coordinator of the STEM program at DCP Alum Rock Middle School. She is excited to work with Olimpico Learning's campers in order to cultivate creativity and curiosity in the sciences!

Perry Siniard is a 5th grade teacher at a bilingual, dual-immersion charter school in San Jose. Perry was recruited by Teach for America to teach in the Bay Area. His passion is social justice and working in Latinx communities. He is pursuing his graduate degree in education and looks forward to traveling abroad.

Carla Williams-Namboodiri has taught English, Humanities, and Social Studies at Escuela Bilingüe Internacional and Oakland Schools. She is also a coordinator for BAWP’s Young Writers Camps and after-school writing enrichment programs in OUSD, BUSD and WCCUSD, supported by the California State Library Student Author Program grant partnership.

Jun Xie is a senior software engineer at Google. Her technical expertise are enterprise infrastructure software development, cloud computing, storage virtualization and object-oriented software design and programming. She has graduate degrees in Computer Science and Biostatistics. Her passion is to inspire girls to pursue careers in technology.

Socorro Anaya is a Corporate Real Estate Program Manager at Adobe. She has over twenty years experience working in Technology industry including at Adobe, Apple and Exodus. She educates parents about the innovative public school systems in the Silicon Valley. Her passion is to be an advocate for the San Jose community and parents.

Christopher Liu is the president of the Biology Club at Mountain View High School, Communications Director, and an AP Biology tutor for the Student2Student Tutoring, a free service online. He also volunteers for his local soup kitchen and the team leader of his Church, where he provides services to underserved communities. He aspires to pursue a career in medicine.

Patty Buchanan is a former English Learner and Spanish teacher. She has a Bilingual Multiple Subject Credential and has taught in bilingual immersion schools. She is currently serving her second term as a Trustee in a Bay Area school district and is an ESL teacher for the Community Committee for International Students at Stanford University.

Nancy Rafati is the founder of Olimpico Learning. She is a Teaching Fellow at EnCorps STEM Teachers Program. She has served on the board at Camp Galileo, AYSO, Music boosters, Kiwanis, and other educational foundations for the past ten years. Her vision is to ensure access for underserved K-5th graders to enrichment learning essential for them to compete, contribute, and enjoy meaningful and productive lives.

Nicole Data is a 2nd grade teacher at Mariano Castro Elementary, where the focus is on closing the Achievement Gap for minority students and those living in poverty. Nicole is passionate about serving students and implementing curricula that is both engaging and will prepare students for the future. She has a strong background in the Arts. She earned her BA in Child and Adolescent Development at San Jose State University and earned her MA in Education from UC Santa Cruz.

Natalie Gallagher is an Intervention Resource Teacher and collaborates on reading and writing for K-5th. She taught 4th and 5th grades at Castro Elementary School. She is serving on the leadership team that is closing the Achievement Gap with Latino students and implementing turnaround model for School Education Excellence Honor Roll. She is passionate about designing curriculum for ELA. She taught summer school and provided support to Beginning Teacher Support induction program.

Linda Yung is a kindergarten teacher at Theuerkauf Elementary School. She celebrates the diversity of her students and sees every challenge as an opportunity for growth for her students. Linda helped start a bilingual preschool called Living Stones Academy. She developed early childhood curriculum that fostered creative learning and implemented parenting workshops and family events to engage parents. Her experience has broadened her perspective of preparing her students for a future that embraces global education.

Deepti Devanagondi has an MBA in Finance and will be responsible for finances at Olimpico Learning. She is part of a private school in Los Gatos. She believes in equality in education and wants to help all students attain their dreams.

Hung Le has been an engineering and product technology leader in circuit chip design. He is an alumni of MIT in Electrical Engineering with Specialization in Device Physics. He is a longtime volunteer and active in his community. His passion is eliminating poverty and promoting educational excellence.

Elizabeth Alvarez is Director of Franklin McKinley Children's Initiative, Catholic Charities of Santa Clara County. She is an alumni of San Jose State University and a long-term Community Organizer with PACT. Her passion is to focus on narrowing the education and opportunity gap in Silicon Valley.

Mike Yaghmai is an Associate General Counsel at Facebook. He has advised the leadership on navigating IP and product legal matters. He is a Bay Area native and an alumni of San Jose State University. He attended DePaul University College of Law. Mike has been a trusted counsel to high tech companies. His passion is improving access to outstanding education for all students.

Shara Hegde founded Cornerstone Academy with the support of the Building Excellent Schools Fellowship. Cornerstone Academy has been amongst the highest performing schools in the City of San Jose and was named a California Distinguished School.

Francesca Barrientos is a senior UX designer and strategist at Cisco and previously worked at NASA. She is a product of the California public school system. She earned her PhD in computer science at UC Berkeley and has a mechanical engineering degree from Cornell University. She tries to do good in the world and bring out the creativity in teams.

Cynthia Miller has a MBA from Stanford University and holds Computer Science and Economics degrees from Dartmouth College. Her work has focused on product marketing and strategic planning. She volunteers in K-8th helping with math and science. She is interested in technology as a way to improve and better differentiate learning. She is a member of a bay area school board and volunteers with the American Association of University Women's Tech Trek STEM summer camp for middle school girls.

​Jeannice Fairrer Samani, PhD, MBA is an operational leader at Anita Borg Institute, Grace Hopper celebrating woman in computing. She is an entrepreneur, professor at Menlo College and drives initiatives in long-term operational excellence and sustainability. Her focus is to bridge Silicon Valley with Africa and the Middle East and expose young minds to global solutions.

Tali Weissberger has worked in the technology and design field and co-founded the photo-editing website Citrify. Tali has developed tutorial for Rhino CAD and other 3D printing technology via her learning website DrawingPost.com. Tali is working with Olimpico as the 3D Printing Designer and she is currently pursuing her teaching credential in Information Communications and Technology and looks forward to becoming a credentialed teacher.

Kelsey Fargas is a Technical Program Manager Intern at Facebook. She is student at USC studying Applied and Computational Mathematics. She serves on The Society of Women Engineers and promotes Computer Science among young women. Her passion is to mentor students to explore STEM. ​

Malia Schoch-Rodriguez is a Strategic Planning Manager at Intel. She is an alumni of MIT Sloan School of Management and has graduate degrees in Business Operations and Naval Architecture. Her passion is to be a role model for young women and minorities and inspire young leaders toward careers in technology.

Feixing Tuang is a senior UX Designer at Cisco. She is passionate about discovering delightful practical solutions to challenging problems using Technology. She actively engages in a few socially-driven projects as lead designer, helping to identify and shape user experience. She also serves in hospital lobbies as a pianist.