It gives the Cotsen Foundation great joy to see so many alumni, mentors and fellows alike, taking on new challenges and roles as leaders in their schools/districts. The following is a list of Cotsen alumni who have taken on new leadership roles as of the 2017 – 2018 academic year and/or have received advanced degrees in 2017:
Atoosa Abascal (Alumna mentor ‘15) formerly a mentor at Linwood Howe Elementary School in Culver City Unified School District, Atoosa is now an Instructional Coach for both ELA and Math.
Kathy Anderson (Alumna fellow ’13) formerly a fellow at Hover Elementary School in Whittier City School District, Kathy is now Principal at Hover Elementary.
Trine Apfelberg (Alumna fellow ’06) formerly a fellow at Franklin D. Roosevelt Elementary School in Lawndale Elementary School District, Trine is now the English Language Arts TOSA for the district.
Andrea Arias (Alumna fellow ’09) formerly a fellow at Mark Twain Elementary School in Lawndale Elementary School District, Andrea has completed an Ed.D in Organizational Leadership from Pepperdine University and is now the Vice Principal for Anaheim Elementary School District.
Cindy Bak (Alumna fellow ‘09) formerly a fellow at Blandford Elementary School in Rowland Unified School District, Cindy is now principal at Valencia Park Elementary School.
Susan Bernstein (Alumna mentor ‘11) formerly a mentor at Robert E. Lee Elementary in Long Beach Unified School District, Susan is now an English Language Arts TOSA for LBUSD.
Michelle Ciecek (Alumna fellow ’12) formerly a fellow at Myford Elementary School in Tustin Unified School District, Dawne his now the Secondary ELA & Humanities TOSA for TUSD.
Adrienne Clay (Alumna fellow ’11) formerly a fellow at Vejar Elementary School in Pomona Unified School District, Adrienne has received a M.Ed. in Reading from the University of La Verne.
Alyssa Davis (Alumna mentor ’16) formerly a mentor at Rio del Mar Elementary School in Pajaro Valley Unified School District, Alyssa has received her administrative services credential.
Yvette Garcia (Alumna mentor ‘10) formerly a mentor at Main Street Elementary School in Soquel Union Elementary School District, Yvette is now Principal at Bay View Elementary School.
Penny Gower (Alumna fellow ’10) formerly a fellow at Riley Elementary School in Long Beach Unified School District. After 21 years of teaching in LBUSD, Penny is retiring from the classroom.
Linda Grilli (Alumna mentor ’15) formerly a mentor at Oak Ridge Elementary School in Oak Grove School District. After 26 years of teaching and four years of full time coaching, Linda is retiring as a literacy Coach from Edenvale Elementary school in OGSD.
Amanda Heineman (Alumna fellow ’13) formerly a fellow at Loma Vista Elementary School in Tustin Unified School District, Amanda has completed an Ed.D in Educational Leadership from University of Southern California.
Amy Hodge (Alumna fellow ’15 & Mentor ’17) formerly a mentor at Linwood Howe Elementary in Culver City Unified School District, Hodge is now a Math Instructional Coach at El Rincon Elementary. Hodge also recently completed an Ed.D in Educational Leadership from University of Southern California.
Kristen Holm (Alumna fellow ‘05) formerly a fellow at Jane Addams School in Lawndale Elementary School District, Kristen is now principal at Richman Elementary School in Fullerton School District.
Cheryl Hyon (Alumna fellow ‘15) formerly a fellow at Hicks Canyon Elementary School in Tustin Unified School District, Cheryl Hyon completed her M.A. in Educational Administration at Concordia University.
Jill Kroese (Alumna mentor ‘09) formerly a mentor at Los Alamitos Elementary School in Los Alamitos Unified School District, Jill is now a Teacher on Special Assignment as LAUSD’s CGI Math Coach.
Sarah Lyons (Alumna mentor ’15, ‘17) formerly a mentor at Beswick Elementary School in Tustin Unified School District, Sarah has completed her M.A. in Reading from National University.
Teri Malpass (Alumna fellow ‘05) formerly a CGI math coach/trainer at Los Alamitos Unified School District, as well as a 6th/7th grade math teacher at Oak Middle School, Teri has completed a Master’s in Administration from National University and is now the Assistant Principal at McGaugh Elementary School.
Gia Meade (Alumna fellow ‘17) formerly a fellow at Hicks Canyon Elementary in Tustin Unified School District, is now a Connect Coach at Orchard Hills and Columbus Tustin Middle School.
Jeffrey Ng (Alumna fellow ’12) formerly a fellow at Camino Nuevo Charter Academy – Castellanos, Jeffrey is now the Assistant Principal at Wallen L. Andrews K-8 School.
Carly Payne (Alumna fellow ’15) formerly a fellow at Coeur D’Alene Avenue School in Los Angeles Unified School District, Carly has completed a Master’s in Education with a concentration in Technology from Cal State Fullerton.
Robyn Stankiewicz (Alumna fellow ’13) formerly a fellow at Golden Springs Elementary School in Pomona Unified School District, Robyn has completed her M.A. in Education with a focus on STEM at Concordia University – Portland
Shelly Tallman (Alumna mentor ’07) formerly a mentor at Burnett Elementary School in Long Beach Unified School District, Shelly is now a TOSA K-5 intervention Specialist at Holmes Elementary LBUSD.
Laila Taslimi (Alumna fellow ’12) formerly a fellow at McKinley Elementary School in Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District, Laila is now the founder of a non-profit nursery school called Untitled No. 1.
Joanna Wakeland (Alumna mentor ’13) formerly a mentor at Camino Nuevo Charter Academy – Harvard, Joanna is now the manager of professional learning at the University of Chicago Urban Education Institute.
Kristin Welch (Alumna fellow ’15) formerly a fellow at Coeur d’Alene Avenue School in Los Angeles Unified School District, Kristin has completed a Master’s in Education with a concentration in STEAM from University of San Diego.
Wendy Wood (Alumna fellow ’09) formerly a fellow at Lee Elementary School in Los Alamitos Unified School District, Wendy is now a Teacher on Special Assignment as Administrative Designee.
If you know of Cotsen alumni that have risen to new leadership positions or academic challenges, but are missing from this list, please email us at icox@cotsen.org and we will be sure to add them to the list. Thank you.