Alpha’s Mission

Peter is an executive in high tech and specializes in negotiating and managing corporate partnerships. He is currently head of strategic partnerships at Snowflake, a data analytics company. Prior to that he spent over 10 years at Microsoft and previously worked at Yahoo, Netscape, the Boston Consulting Group, and the National Academy of Sciences.

Peter has long had a passion for the education of underprivileged children. He tutored inner city youth in Washington, DC, after graduating from Dartmouth College. He later tutored students in East Palo Alto while a student at Stanford’s Graduate School of Business, where he co-chaired the Public Management Initiative on Education.

Adam is a private equity investor at Symphony Technology Group (STG), focused on investing in software, technology-enabled services and data services businesses and transforming those companies by partnering with management to build customer-centric market leaders. Adam sits on the board of several STG portfolio companies.

Adam’s public school upbringing in the Midwest and prior experience working with Minds Matter of San Francisco serving low-income high achieving high school students have driven him to be passionate about ensuring that all students have access to quality education and the tools and opportunities for college success. Adam earned a B.S.B.A. in Finance and Marketing from Drake University and attended the UCLA Anderson School of Management.

Silvia Scandar Mahan leads the San Jose region at the nonprofit Innovate Public Schools. In that role, she brings together Innovate’s community organizing, research and policy work, and schools expertise toward a vision of a world-class school for every student in San Jose. Previously, Silvia led Innovate’s Communications team, where she developed and executed subscriber communications, web development, social media strategy, content development, and press relations. She also managed Innovate’s partnership with GreatSchools, expanding the accessibility of school data and advocacy tools to parents of underserved students.

Before joining Innovate, Silvia founded and ran an e-commerce company and online art community where she led product development, partnerships, and online marketing.

A native of Miami, Florida, Silvia holds a BA in Economics from Harvard College and a JD from Georgetown Law. Silvia also has experience producing social impact films, and was a volunteer digital producer for the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia in 2016. She is passionate about civic engagement and quality education for all. She previously served as Bay Area board chair of Generation Citizen, a nonprofit re-imagining civics education.

Cindy is a seasoned product and business leader who is passionate about building great consumer experiences, products, brands, and communities. She has a proven track record of delivering top-notch products, defining strategies, driving revenue and user growth, and building teams at companies such as Shutterfly, Disney, Gap, and Philz Coffee. In recent years, she has been an independent consultant for consumer-oriented start-ups providing marketing, product, and general management support.

Cindy has a keen interest in education and improving access to quality education for all children given her own experience in the public school system in Asia and the US. After graduating from Harvard Business School, she became involved with the HBS Community Partners in SF where she has worked on a number of projects for education-related non-profits such as the Bay Area Discovery Museum, YMCA Youth & Government, and Readworks.org. Cindy earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial Engineering and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from Stanford University.

Janine Ramirez is an education advocate with over a decade of experience and a track record of collaborating with community stakeholders to bring educational opportunities to underserved communities. She currently serves as the Regional Director for Rocketship Public Schools in the South Bay, where she is responsible for regional leadership, strategy and vision setting, navigating external politics and showcasing Rocketship’s impact externally while fostering collaboration with external stakeholders. Janine was identified as a 40 under 40 by the Silicon Valley Business Journal in 2018 for her strategic partnership, vision setting, cross-functional initiatives and bridge-building which has led to an impact for thousands of students across the Bay Area. 

Previously Janine served as Regional Director for the California Charter Schools Association (CCSA) supporting statewide policy efforts and prior as Executive Director of Parent Institute for Quality Education (PIQE) where her leadership directly impacted nearly 2,500 students annually. 

Janine served on the board of directors for Latina Coalition of Silicon Valley (LCSV), serving as Board President in 2017. She is a proud alumni of the Latino Board Leadership Academy (LBLA), Latino Leadership Alliance (LLA) and SVO’s Leadership San Jose Class of 2020. Janine begins the Aspiring Latino Leaders Fellowship with Latinos for Education in the Fall of 2021.

Cheria Funches is originally from Boston, MA. She has a Master’s in Education Leadership from Queens University in Charlotte, NC and currently serves as the Director of Innovation and Design at Teach for America – Bay Area.  Cheria begin her career in education as a founding 3rd grade teacher in New Orleans, and has since served as an elementary school teacher and leader in Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools and in San Jose, CA.  She is passionate about working alongside schools to create equitable educational experiences for students.

Ms. Hegde serves as Chief Executive Officer for Alpha Public Schools, a K-12 network of charter schools in San Jose, CA, focused on preparing students for college and career. In this role, she provides leadership, vision, and strategic direction for the organization. 

Before assuming the role of CEO, she served as Alpha’s Chief Schools Officer, directing the academic program vision and providing coaching and management to several key senior leaders. Prior to joining the Alpha team, Ms. Hegde served as the Founder, Executive Director, and Principal of Cornerstone Academy, a K-8 elementary charter school that is now part of the Alpha network of schools.  Since its opening in 2010, Cornerstone Academy has been amongst the highest performing schools in the city of San Jose and was named a California Distinguished School in 2014 and 2018.

Ms. Hegde received her Bachelor’s Degree in History from Brown University in Providence, RI and has her Masters Degree in Education Policy, Organizations, and Leadership Studies from Stanford University. She also has an additional Master’s Degree in Instructional Leadership from the Reach Institute for School Leadership in Oakland, CA.

As Chief Operating Officer for Alpha Public Schools, Chris Kang manages the operations and finance teams. Prior to joining Alpha, Chris worked as Senior Director, KIPP School Leadership Programs Operations at the KIPP Foundation.

Chris began his career in education as an AmeriCorps member at Partners in School Innovation in San Francisco. After moving to New York City, Chris worked for the next five years as a middle school math teacher in public and charter schools in New York City and Hoboken, New Jersey. Chris then served as the Director of Operations of the Excellence Boys Charter School Middle Academy, part of the Uncommon Schools network in Brooklyn, New York.

Chris holds a BS from the University of Michigan, an MA from Bank Street College, and an MBA from Yale University.

Angelica Ruiz is the Executive Assistant to Alpha’s CEO, Shara Hegde. In her role, she has a high level of responsibility for being the groundskeeper at the Network office while also managing the CEO’s scheduling and correspondence. She has also taken on additional duties that have expanded her skills in project coordination especially with Network-wide events and executive board meetings.

Angelica started her career with Alpha Public Schools as an Office Assistant at Alpha: Blanca Alvarado. Her transition to the Network has helped her learn more about the organization as a whole and it has allowed her to make a positive impact across all four campuses.

This community is near and dear to her as she was born and raised in East San Jose. She believes in helping all of our scholars achieve greatness and helping our community excel forward.

As the Chief Schools Officer, Nava provides direct support, management, and coaching to our principal team, special education team, and academic team, driving the vision and implementation of Alpha’s academic model, and ensuring strong outcomes for all our students.

Ms. Nava began her career at Alpha in 2015-16 as an Assistant Principal. That year, the Principal at Blanca transitioned out of her role in October, and Ms. Nava immediately stepped in. Despite being new to school leadership, she effectively managed the school and held the team together, and was ultimately promoted to Principal for the 2016-17 school year. Over the next four years, Ms. Nava built strong foundational systems for the school, improved the adult and student culture, and led the team to achieve stronger results year after year. Blanca was twice recognized as a top school for underserved students by Innovate Public schools, a testament to Ms. Nava’s strong leadership.

Ms. Nava holds an undergraduate degree from the University of California, Berkeley and earned a M.Ed. in Education Policy and Management from Harvard’s Graduate School of Education.

Nicole is Alpha’s Chief Strategy Officer. She oversees Talent as well as Development for Alpha Public Schools.

Nicole began her career as a first grade teacher in Atlanta, GA, where her students achieved nearly two years of reading growth in a school year. From there, she joined DC Prep Public Charter School in our nation’s capital and was responsible for academic performance management and data-driven decision making. In addition to her experience in education, Nicole spent several years with the Boston Consulting Group, advising clients on topics ranging from change management and organizational culture to blended learning and nonprofit growth strategy. Nicole holds an MBA and an MA in Education from Stanford University and a BA in History from Yale University. She is currently participating in the Broad Residency in Urban Education.

Originally from the East Coast, Emma earned a dual Bachelor’s of Science in Mathematics and Mathematics Education at Syracuse University.  After college, she served in an AmeriCorps program in her hometown by building community awareness around public health.  After her experience in AmeriCorps, Emma joined Teach For America and moved to Memphis, TN, to teach high school Mathematics.  Her passion for teaching math led her into leadership and she decided to move to San José.

As the Associate Director of Talent Acquisition at Alpha Public Schools, Alfonso helps drive the recruitment strategy to ensure that we are bringing the most talented folks to work at Alpha’s four campuses and network office.

Alfonso was born in San Antonio, Texas (so don’t be caught off guard with his use of “y’all”) and raised in Las Vegas, Nevada. After attending Arizona State University, Alfonso returned to Las Vegas to complete a term of service with AmeriCorps, advising for first-generation and low-income college students. This experience, coupled with his own collegiate experiences, fueled his passion for higher education access, and he completed a Master’s degree in Higher Education Leadership from University of Nevada, Las Vegas. After some time in nonprofit fundraising, Alfonso returned to higher education, working in admissions and recruitment. A move to Austin, Texas took him into the world of Talent Acquisition with KIPP, where he was responsible for managing the hiring process for middle school teachers and substitutes across the district.

Alfonso is passionate about getting the best educators in front of Alpha students to help them be successful on their educational journeys!

As the IT Manager, Andrew is the principal manager of technology and its implementation across Alpha’s schools, focusing on solving the real problems faced by our students and staff. Additionally, Andrew works closely with each school’s Leadership Team, ensuring their specific needs are met.

Born and raised in San Francisco, Andrew joined Alpha in 2014 as a contractor, eventually becoming the senior IT member. He is committed to bringing practical solutions that serve the priorities of the Alpha community.

As Alpha’s Senior Director of  Teacher and Leadership Development Beth Barrett leads initiatives to support the growth and development of our teachers, leaders, and staff.

Originally from Michigan, Beth earned her Bachelor’s Degree at the University of Michigan, where she also completed the Program in Secondary Education. She joined Teach For America and moved to Houston, TX, to teach English and English as a Second Language. In 2009, she moved to San José in order to teach at a local charter high school; after a few years, she became a Vice-Principal. For seven years, Beth coached and managed teachers in several departments, handled student disciplinary issues, supervised grade level chairs and initiatives, and developed and implemented the vision for school culture and discipline. Her current role allows Beth to focus on the two things she enjoys the most, teaching students and developing teachers!

Beth is currently working on her M.A. in Curriculum and Supervision from Pennsylvania State University and clearing her Administrative Services Credential through SCCOE.

As the Finance Manager for Alpha Public Schools, Claudia assists in managing day-to-day finance requirements. She began her career at Alpha as an Office Assistant at Alpha: Jose Hernandez. Before joining our team, Claudia worked as the Food Program Analyst for a non-profit corporation that served suppers and snacks daily to low-income youth in the Bay Area.  Claudia earned her B.S. in Accounting from Santa Clara University.

David is thrilled to return to the Alpha Public Schools Family. David is excited to work alongside the Alpha team to help students develop skills that will allow them to succeed in college and throughout their professional careers.

He has spent the majority of his career advising and directing college services/programming for students of San Jose, and David cannot wait to continue that work here at Alpha. David recently served as Director of TRiO Upward Bound at Evergreen Valley College and as an Academic College Coordinator for the University of California, Santa Cruz. His goal is that my expertise of college knowledge, access, and programming can support all Alpha Schools and help continue to foster a college-going culture on our campuses. Ultimately, David is committed to working hard to ensure that our students can graduate with the skills necessary to thrive after high school and accomplish their goals.

Joceline is the Regional Operations Associate at the Alpha Network Team. In this role, she supports state reporting, school site office and lunch staff, and handles facilities maintenance to ensure a safe space for all students and staff.

Joceline was born and raised in East San Jose and holds this community dear in her heart. Because she attended all of her schooling in the East side of San Jose, she understands what it’s like to grow up in a community that is traditionally underserved and relates well not only to our students but to our families as well.

Besides living a few years in Mexico as a child, East San José has been Jorge’s home for over 25 years. Jorge’s academic and professional career started in San José City College, where he took general education classes before transferring to Santa Clara University. During his 3 years there, he worked with special needs students and students who were not doing well in school. At SCU, Jorge attached a Bachelors in Sociology while working at the Bill Wilson Center as a counselor and continued there until getting his teacher credential and Masters in Education.

For the past 4 years, Jorge has been in charge of academic culture, discipline, recruitment, parent participation, special education, and teacher coaching in a charter high school with a similar mission to Alpha. He is excited to bring his life and professional experience to Alpha and looks forward to continue to develop a culture of high expectations and academic excellence in his new role as Senior Director of Advocacy and Community Engagement.

As the Associate Director of Development for Alpha Public Schools, she oversees grants and cultivating new relationships with individual and corporate partners.

Before joining Alpha, she served as the development manager at Sacred Heart Community Service here in San Jose where she provided leadership in efforts to identify, cultivate, and secure financial support and community awareness of their vision, mission, and work.

Ms. Michael received her Bachelor’s Degree in Communication Studies from San Francisco State University and has her Masters Degree in Public Administration from San Jose State University. Shawnte has a passion for community building as well as fundraising and believes that long term meaningful relationships hold the key to successful development work.

Nelly is one of the founding mothers of Rocketship Los Sueños and Alpha Public Schools. Her energy and passion for Alpha’s mission is limitless. She oversees student recruitment and ensures that families feel compelled and empowered to demand an excellent education for their children.

As the Managing Director of Academics and K-8 Schools, Dr. Carlson provides direct support to our K-8 principals and Academic Team, supporting the vision and implementation of Alpha’s model and driving academic excellence for our students.

Dr. Carlson began her teaching career in East Palo Alto as a 3rd grade teacher. While she was there, she also taught 5th grade and was the Math and Technology coach. Upon her acceptance to University of Southern California (USC) for her master’s degree in teaching, she moved to southern California. She moved out of the classroom as a Dean of Instruction and worked closely with the principal to create and monitor the instructional program as well as to provide workshops for families. Dr. Carlson went back to school where she received her doctorate degree in educational leadership and also completed a principal-leadership residency.

She was most recently the principal of Alpha: José Hernández, where she built strong foundational systems for the school, invested in building the adult and student culture, and led the team to achieve stronger results year after year.

As Alpha’s Managing Director of Special Education, Russ Michaud oversees the development, staffing, execution and measurement of Alpha’s special education services and programs across the network’s four schools. He is also responsible for supporting all of Alpha’s special education staff, including teachers, paraprofessionals, counselors, psychologists and the designated instructional services team.

Originally from Boston, MA, Russ joined Teach For America and moved across the country to work with students in East San José. He spent 5 years in the classroom teaching elementary-aged students with emotional disturbance. Russ’s support helped students make significant progress on their academic, behavioral, and social/emotional goals. Russ simultaneously coached new teachers at Teach For America’s Summer Institute and helped in the development of first and second year special education teachers in the Bay Area.

Russ earned B.A. in Psychology from Ithaca College, an Administrative Credential and M.A. in Educational Leadership from San José State University, where he focused on the effective implementation of special education programs in the charter school setting.

As the Alpha Parent Learning Center Lead at Alpha Public Schools, Alejandro works with a passionate group of leaders to provide free and accessible educational and professional programs to Alpha students and parents, as well as community members in Eastside San José.

Alejandro was born and raised in Mexico and later grew up in Eastside San José. Because of the positive influence that the Eastside community has had in his life, Alejandro holds the families that he works with dear to his heart.

Alejandro is inspired by the actions that families take every day to ensure that their students have access to an excellent education and a secured pathway to college.

Born and raised in Orange County California, Scott understands the challenges that come with working in a technology-driven world; and is committed to providing the best experience for end-users.