Who We Are

Oakland Enrolls is overseen by a governing board, whose members are Luis Rodriguez, David Castillo, Akil Hollis and Dorothy Young (bios below). In addition, an independent steering committee advises on ensuring the organization fulfills its mission to Oakland families. If you have any questions about our governance structure or would like a copy of our 990 forms, please email contact@oaklandenrolls.org.

SANDRA DIAZ

Sandra Diaz is the Program Associate at Oakland Enrolls. Having lived in Mexico and attended school in Mexico for 5 years, she brings with her an in depth knowledge of the culture of the Hispanic community that we serve in Oakland as well as language skills and over 13 years of experience in direct marketing and Medical Interpreting, to provide families with over the phone support and outreach to create awareness of choice in Oakland’s public school system. Prior to Oakland Enrolls and Direct Marketing for Bay Area News Papers she was an International QA Specialist for several HI-Tech companies in the Silicon Valley. She has a BA degree in Business Information Systems and is a California Native.

LISA GIBES DE GAC

Lisa Gibes de Gac is the Director of Outreach and Operations at Oakland Enrolls. She is an education strategist with 10 years’ experience working to provide better and more equal educational opportunities to all kids. She most recently managed the education grantmaking portfolio at Emerson Collective, a social change organization. Prior to this, she served in several roles throughout her tenure at 50CAN, a national education advocacy and policy nonprofit. As 50CAN’s Vice President of Strategy and External Relations, she managed organizational strategy, fundraising, and communications. Prior to working at 50CAN, she was a third grade teacher in The School District of Philadelphia through Teach For America. Lisa earned her Masters of Science in Education at the University of Pennsylvania and her BA in Journalism and English at Michigan State University.

JULIA JUDGE

Julia Judge is the Family Experience Coordinator at Oakland Enrolls. She has spent most of her career in the non-profit sector working in homeless services. At Bay Area Community Services in Oakland, she directly supported individuals experiencing homelessness with securing and maintaining permanent housing. At Compass Family Services in San Francisco, she was a manager at their homeless shelter, where she supported staff working with families experiencing issues related to housing, mental illness, domestic violence and child well-being. Prior to that, she served two AmeriCorps terms with Rebuilding Together Acadiana in Louisiana, where she led groups of volunteers and students in home-repair projects for low-income seniors to help keep them in their homes. She also worked for several organizations in Boston that supported adults with disabilities, the homeless community, and aided with community development. Julia has seen firsthand how inequitable access to resources, specifically education, can maintain oppression and poverty and is excited to be a part of an organization that seeks to combat that disparity. Julia is a Massachusetts native, got her BA from Northeastern University in Boston, and will love the Red Sox forever.

LUIS RODRIGUEZ, M.A. Ed.

Luis Rodriguez is the Executive Director with Oakland Enrolls. After more than a decade of experience in management and technology consulting, Luis transitioned from the private to the public sector through the Broad Residency in Urban Education program. Prior to joining Oakland Enrolls, Luis was a partner at The Learning Accelerator, a non-profit focused on accelerating the implementation of high-quality blended learning in public schools. Luis also served as the Director of the Office of Digital Learning for the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, where he was responsible for improving digital literacy and capacity across the state. While at the state department, he also helped implement an educator effectiveness framework and served as a technology advisor on several Race to the Top initiatives. As a result of his efforts in Massachusetts, Luis was awarded the Manuel Carballo Governor’s Award for Excellence in Public Service. Luis has a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Oklahoma State University, a Master of Science in Strategy from the University of Texas Dallas Jindal School of Management, and a Master of Arts in Educational Leadership from The Broad Center.

BRANDIE ALBRIGHT

Brandie Albright is Chair of the Board of Directors for North Oakland Community Charter (NOCCS). She currently sits in Accentures’ Strategy organization with a focus on workforce learning and development. She also leads several Accenture Inclusion & Diversity efforts in the West. Her passion for learning, technology, social justice, and their intersections see her working to bring STEAM practices to K-8 students. Brandie also spends significant time partnering with the City of Oakland and BART to bring thoughtful and inclusive capital improvement projects to fruition. She graduated Arizona State University with a BIS in Organizational & Behavioral Studies and lives in Oakland with her two dogs and two cats.

STEPHANIE BERNARDI

Stephanie is the Sr. Manager of Growth and Enrollment at Envision Schools, a mission-driven organization committed to transforming the lives of low-income, first-generation, college-bound students. Stephanie has overseen enrollment at Envision for the last two years and has first-hand experience partnering with EnrollOak and guiding Oakland parents through the enrollment process. Her current role includes strategy, data analysis, and project management for multiple Envision sites. Prior to joining Envision, Stephanie was a middle school teacher, first with Teach for America in Nashville, and then at the School for Examining Essential Questions of Sustainability in Hawaii. She holds a B.A. in Integrated Educational Studies from Chapman University and an M.Ed. in Instructional Practice from Lipscomb University.

DAVID CASTILLO

David lives in, works in, and is dedicated to his East Oakland Community. He’s a parent and former teacher who is deeply passionate about bringing high quality public education to all students. David is the current Principal at Leadership Public Schools in Oakland, CA. Leadership Public Schools is a public charter high school network that transforms educational outcomes for students that have been historically under-represented in college, empowering them for a range of college, career and community leadership options.

David is the former Executive Director at Oakland Charters, an advocacy organization for the city’s dynamic public charter school sector. Prior to that role, David was Head of School at Urban Montessori Charter School (UMCS), a nationally-recognized breakthrough model, based in Oakland. Before UMCS, David was with the California Charter Schools Association (CCSA) as the Oakland Regional Director for two years. There, David spearheaded citywide advocacy for Oakland’s growing and controversial charter sector. From 2002-2012 David served as founding teacher then Principal at Oakland Unity High School, a high-performing charter school transforming lives for first-generation college students. His work in the public education landscape also includes several years as a team leader with the Charter Schools Development Center’s annual charter leader intensive boot camp program.

David’s served on multiple charter school and community boards, including Unity Schools, Community School for Creative Education, Oakland Families for Quality Schools, Enroll Oakland Charters, and GO Public Schools. David also co-chaired the Oakland Public Schools Equity Pledge enrollment working group. Prior to his career in public education, David worked in the private tech sector. A first generation college student, he earned his bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of California at San Diego, then a single subject teaching credential in social science from San Francisco State University. He obtained a Master’s in Educational Leadership from California State University East Bay in 2009.

MARGARET (MAGGIE) CROUSHORE

Maggie currently serves as the Director of Operations for the Oakland Promise, a cradle to career initiative launched in 2016 in partnership with the City of Oakland Mayor’s Office, the Oakland Unified School District (OUSD), East Bay College Fund, the Oakland Public Education Fund and over 30 implementation partners including hospitals, community organizations, and schools. In her role, she leads operations and collaborates with staff in order to reach the collective vision of dramatically expanding educational equity and opportunity throughout Oakland. Previously, Maggie created KidFit Academy, a program promoting health, enhancing achievement, and improving school culture through purposeful fitness education. She was also the founding fitness instructor at East Bay Innovation Academy in Oakland, where she created and implemented a holistic wellness curriculum. Maggie began her career teaching middle school literacy in Washington, DC through Teach for America, teaching at Cesar Chavez Public Charter School for Public Policy and KIPPDC: KEY Academy. Maggie holds a bachelor’s degree from Boston College, a Masters of Teaching from American University, and a Masters of Public Policy—focusing on education and nonprofit leadership—from the University of Maryland. While completing her MPP, Maggie was a Philanthropy Fellow at the J. Willard and Alice S. Marriott Foundation and an Urban Leaders Fellow working for Colorado State Senator Mike Johnston.

ARLETTE DE LA CRUZ

Arlette De La Cruz is the project manager for enrollment, operations and facilities at Aspire Public Schools, supporting the Bay Area with its student enrollment and recruitment, operations, and facilities projects.  Arlette is currently in her second year of The Broad Residency.  Prior to Aspire, Arlette was a strategic fellow with Oakland Unified School District, where she supported the district’s enrollment and projections processes and school portfolio management. Before her transition to the education sector, Arlette worked for AIDS Healthcare Foundation, as director of program and business development, where she oversaw strategic growth and expansion through mergers, acquisitions, and program development. Arlette earned her bachelor’s degree in sociology and Spanish from Amherst College and a master’s degree in business administration from the University of Southern California’s Marshall School of Business.  She is currently a candidate for a master’s in education leadership at the Broad Center for Urban Education.

AKIL HOLLIS
Akil’s work with Oakland charter school boards is facilitated by Oakland Families for Quality Schools. He is currently Head of Corporate Planning at Visa Inc., the largest credit card company in the world. Prior to Visa, Akil managed eBay’s balance sheet by managing their debt issuance, stock buyback and free cash flow. Previously he has worked in strategy, mergers and acquisitions, business development, and investment banking at firms including Goldman Sachs, AIG, and Koch Industries. Akil has a degree from Yale Law School, where he was an inaugural member of their Supreme Court Litigation Clinic, and is a member of the Georgia State Bar. Akil is a proud alum of Howard University.  Akil lives in Castro Valley, California with his wife and two daughters.

CIARA MARTINEZ
Ciara Martinez is the Founder and Chief Inspiration Officer of The LightBulb, a creative agency serving clients in crafting effective brand stories and campaigns from start to finish. Ciara recently moved to the Bay Area with her husband from New Mexico where she spent the previous eight years serving as a Development Officer and Creative Director in the non-profit landscape at the University of New Mexico and Presbyterian Healthcare Services. Her experience highlights a successful track record of creative direction and implementation of marketing strategy, fundraising, sponsor partnerships, facilitating campaigns and executing special events. Ciara earned a bachelor’s degree in Organizational Management and an MBA in Marketing from the University of New Mexico.

JONATHAN PERRY

Jonathan Perry is the Associate Director of Operations, Recruitment and Enrollment, for KIPP: Bay Area Schools, where he drives recruitment and enrollment efforts to provide students across the region with access to a high-quality education. Jonathan transitioned from a 12 year career in international development and education policy to K-12 public education via the Broad Residency for Urban Education. Previously he worked with the World Bank, where he consulted national governments on safety net policies, cash transfer programs, and early childhood development in low- and middle-income countries. Before then, he worked with the National Ministry of Education in Bogotá, Colombia, as an author on the 10-year education policy framework for Early Childhood Education and an advisor the Director of Early Childhood. Jonathan earned a bachelor’s degree in anthropology and Latin American studies from Tufts University and a master’s degree in law & diplomacy focused on international development from the Fletcher School at Tufts University together with the Harvard Kennedy School. He is currently a candidate for a Masters in Education Leadership at the Broad Center for Urban Education.

MAYA WOODS-CADIZ

Maya Woods-Cadiz is CEO/Superintendent of American Indian Model Schools, the top performing CMO in Oakland, CA. She is a fifth generation “Oaklander,” and the product of both independent and public schools. An educator with 20+ years of experience in public, independent, and charter schools, Maya understands the importance of giving parents a choice when it comes to educating their children. Her educational pedigree consists of a Masters of Education from UC Berkeley, a Superintendent Certificate from the Association of California Schools Administrators, an Administrator Credential, a Multiple Subject Teaching Credential, and a Bachelor of Arts from California State University at Hayward (East Bay). She is currently a Doctoral Candidate in the field of Transformational Leadership. Maya and her husband feel blessed to have been able to have options when educating their own children.

DOROTHY YOUNG

Dorothy Young is a graduate of California public schools, from elementary school through college and law school. She taught kindergarten in district public schools for four years in New Orleans, LA. She is an attorney and works in the government sector investigating employment discrimination.