Foothill-De Anza · Trustee Area 4
Foothill and De Anza have a strong foundation, but changing times call for leaders who understand both the classroom and the world students are entering.
I bring firsthand experience as a current Foothill-De Anza student and parent, educator, Silicon Valley technologist, grassroots community advocate, and experienced public servant—perspectives that help me listen broadly, ask different questions, and focus on what students will need next.
I know community college from the inside as both a student and a parent.
Our family’s connection with De Anza began when my sons were in preschool. They attended De Anza’s Child Development Center, where future early-childhood educators gained hands-on experience. Years later, they returned to community college classes, helping them graduate from college early and save on tuition. Now I am a Foothill-De Anza student myself.
Over several quarters, I have taken Foothill-De Anza courses in civic leadership, business, technology, and film. My classes have included in-person, fully asynchronous online, and synchronous online formats, giving me firsthand experience with what works well—and what can be challenging—in different learning environments.
I have seen firsthand what makes community college remarkable: excellent instructors, affordable opportunities, flexible learning, and students from many different backgrounds.
I also see the everyday friction students can encounter—from course costs and scheduling to navigating programs while balancing work and family.
My teaching experience spans middle school, high school, university, and graduate education—from students needing additional help to advanced computer science and engineering students.
I spent three years as an Assistant Professor at Iowa State University and later taught or volunteered in K–12 classrooms through the Wonderland Explorer Math Circle, EnCorps, and TEALS, including both in-person and remote instruction.
That breadth has given me firsthand experience with students of different ages, preparation levels, learning needs, and learning environments—the kind of diversity community colleges serve every day.
I bring nearly three decades of Silicon Valley engineering and technical leadership experience, much of it at the intersection of software and hardware design. My work has ranged from compilers and design automation at Quickturn and Cadence to code-based and AI-assisted hardware design at JITX, along with continuing technology and startup work.
That experience gives me a current view of how quickly AI, automation, and other technologies are reshaping work and the skills people need throughout their careers.
Future-ready education is not simply about teaching more technology. Students need both technical fluency and durable human skills—critical thinking, communication, creativity, judgment, collaboration, and the ability to keep learning.
Ideas matter. Results matter too.
Nearly a decade on a school board and City Council has given me experience with budgets, labor negotiations, facilities, contracts, policy, government accountability, and implementation.
Across that work, I have tried to make government more accessible, find practical and cost-conscious solutions, explore new ideas and expand what works, and help community-driven ideas move through the public process.
At Foothill-De Anza, I would bring the same approach: study the details, listen carefully, ask tough questions, follow the money, work through disagreements, and follow decisions through implementation.
My path to public service began as a parent and community advocate. I saw community concerns going unheard and came to believe that someone had to step up to challenge the status quo and work for change. Eventually, I decided to jump in and run for office myself.
That connection did not end after I was elected. Throughout my years on the school board and City Council, I have continued engaging outside official meetings with schools, neighborhoods, nonprofits, service organizations, cultural communities, seniors, small businesses, volunteers, and residents.
That is what rooted in community means to me—and it shapes how I see Foothill and De Anza: not simply as colleges located in our communities, but as community anchors closely connected to the people they serve.
Foothill and De Anza have a strong foundation. But changing times also call for leaders willing to bring new experiences, ask different questions, and examine long-standing assumptions.
I would bring perspectives shaped by recent Silicon Valley and AI experience, teaching across many levels, firsthand experience as a Foothill-De Anza student and parent, grassroots community involvement, and nearly a decade in elected public service. My community engagement has also kept me connected with people across different backgrounds, ages, interests, and needs.
I believe good decisions come from listening to diverse perspectives, working collaboratively to solve problems, questioning assumptions, and exploring new approaches as students, technology, the workplace, and our communities change.
Protect what works. Rethink what can improve. Innovate for what students will need next.
Community colleges serve people at many different stages of life, with different goals, responsibilities, and reasons for learning.
High school students · Transfer students · Working adults · Career changers · Students with disabilities · Lifelong learners
Foothill and De Anza should remain academically strong while continuing to adapt to the changing needs of students, the workforce, technology, and the communities they serve.
