Staff

Dr. Christopher Nellum (he/him/his) is the interim Executive Director of The Education Trust–West, a nonprofit education equity organization focused…

Clara E. Medina Maya (they/them/theirs) is an unapologetically queer and undocumented education justice advocate. They join the Education Trust-West…

Mariah (she/her/hers) joins the Education Trust–West with a range of experience in communications for social change and community engagement.…

Isabella Gordillo (she/her/hers) joins the Education Trust-West team as Communications Associate. Prior to this role, she has worked in…

Mariel (she/her/hers) joins The Education Trust–West with a background in K-12 education and expertise in writing, storytelling, press relations,…

Stephanie Ong (she/her/hers) is a communications professional with over twenty years of experience leading strategy for nonprofit organizations, electoral…

Brian (he/him/his) has been working to improve educational opportunity for disadvantaged students in California for nearly twenty years. His…

As a first generation son of immigrants, Manny (he/him/his) strongly believes in equity and has a passion for supporting…

Denise Castro (she/her/hers) is a Policy Analyst at The Education Trust—West. Denise joins The Education Trust—West with experience in…

Hana (she/her) leads The Education Trust - West’s early learning portfolio and contributes to research and analysis of policies…

Before joining the Ed Trust–West team, José (he/him/his) taught statistics as a Summer Bridge instructor while simultaneously working on…

Yvonne Muñoz (she/her/hers) is a Higher Education Policy Analyst at the Education Trust–West. She contributes to research and analysis…

Carolina supports The Education Trust—West’s qualitative research. Her work focuses on the undergraduate experiences of marginalized students and is…

Abby Ridley-Kerr (she/her/hers) joins The Education Trust–West to support the Research and Policy Analysis team. She comes to Ed…

Since Natalie (she/her/hers) joined The Education Trust—West in 2014, she has supported the organization’s policy research, analysis, and position…

Since joining The Education Trust–West in 2013, Leni (she/her/hers) has led and contributed to research and policy analysis in…

At a young age, Dr. Mayra A. Lara (she/her/ella) immigrated to the United States from Mexico with her parents…

Jana Luft (she/her/hers) joins the Education Trust–West as a Senior Educator Engagement Associate. She brings experience as a teacher,…

Rachel Ruffalo’s (she/her/hers) career in education spans more than twenty years of serving as a teacher, new school developer,…

Margaret (she/her/hers) has an extensive background in administrative operations and executive support and has worked in both the public…

Brittney Jackson (she/her/hers) was born and raised in Oakland, CA. She attended Oakland public schools K-12 and graduated from…

Erika (she/her/hers) comes to Ed Trust–West with over 12 years of operational support experience in the private and non-profit…