We are you.
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We are a community of volunteers. Parents, teachers, and residents who care about the educational opportunities available to Albany's children.
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Rossana Ramirez
Board President |
Rossana first got involved with SchoolCARE by helping with the annual Spring Fundraiser. For that event, she helped organize parents to drop off brochures to every household in Albany, and in the process learned about SchoolCARE in more detail and how it supports Albany students. “Once I understood the unique role SchoolCARE plays in supporting our community, I wanted to contribute in more meaningful ways.”
Fun fact: Rossana is an avid traveler, and has traveled to 60 countries across six continents |
Hannah Levy
Secretary |
Hannah is a writer and mother to a Cornell elementary school kid. She believes that one of the biggest gifts we can give our kids is a love of learning. Hannah helps fundraise for the PTA, volunteers at the Cornell garden and library, and serves as Secretary of SchoolCARE.
Fun fact: Hannah has traveled to 17 countries and has taken her daughter on international trips to Mexico, Portugal, and Japan! |
Amy Waxman
Treasurer |
Amy joined SchoolCARE when she learned their funds are heavily relied upon (and have been for decades) by each school in the district. It is Amy’s belief that children can’t learn or contribute to their school community until their emotional needs are met first. Among many other things, SchoolCARE funds serve to bridge the monetary gap for vital staffing related to mental health and wellness in Albany schools.
Fun Fact: Probably one of Amy’s most risky, yet memorable endeavors, was scuba diving at max recreational depth in the Blue Hole off the coast of Belize. |
Zoe Pehrson
Board Member |
Zoe is a 4th grade teacher at Marin. She loves teaching in Albany- the families, students and fellow staff members make it an amazing community. She first got involved in SchoolCARE through her friendship with Courtnee, current SchoolCARE president, and loves being on the board with brilliant people. Zoe grew up in Richmond and began teaching at the tender age of 21! She has taught in three states: Colorado, Michigan and California. She believes that all students are capable of thriving in school with the support of a loving community and a robust, engaging education.
Fun Fact: Zoe has baked a wedding cake using over six dozen eggs! |
Jean Zoch
Board Member |
Jean was born and raised in Canada and moved to Berkeley for graduate school in Physics, where he quickly fell in love with the Bay Area’s culture and nature. He’s the proud father of two amazing kids and enjoys spending time with them playing games, reading books, and staying active. Jean first got involved with SchoolCARE by volunteering his technical skills to help manage the database, and later joined the board, inspired by the organization’s mission to support public education.
Fun Fact: Jean works in the video game industry and has contributed to some of the world’s most popular games, enjoyed by hundreds of millions of players. |
Sabah Sulaiman-Tilghman
Board Member |
Sabah was introduced to SchoolCare by Yael (former SchoolCare president) and recently coordinated the 2025 Annual Spring Fundraise Brochure Drop. She is the proud parent of a Marin student and has been volunteering since her daughter was in kindergarten (library, room parent and her favorite… pencil sharpener). Sabah believes every child should be given the educational tools to thrive, and that the work SchoolCare does to support these essential staff roles, provides just that.
Fun Fact: Sabah is an avid hot sauce aficionado and has sampled over 100 varieties, including the “Hot Ones Hot Sauce Challenge.” |
Nina Ziebarth-Pavlovich
Board Member |
Nina believes strong schools build strong communities. Nina joined SchoolCARE after learning about the essential positions funded by the organization and the ongoing uncertainty around state funding. Nina has two children at Marin, and appreciates the opportunity to engage across the district through SchoolCARE board membership and community outreach.
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Whitney Birge
Board Member |
Whitney Birge is new to the SchoolCARE board this year. She has one child in elementary school and another at Albany middle, including a neurodivergent learner. She hopes to support the district provide the best start for the kids. She manages a data analtyics team for Kaiser, focused on data monitoring and quality improvement.
Fun Fact: Whitney and her now husband lived in Australia for a year and a half. |
Gal Heyne
Board Member |
Gal is a parent of children in the Albany Unified School District. At work, Gal is a Product Manager for Amazon Web Services, where she leverages her background as a former data engineer to design data and analytics tools used by customers worldwide. In the past, Gal has created online courses, delivered training programs, and worked as a math and computer science tutor. She brings her technical and organizational skills to support the CRM system for financial and donor management efforts. Gal is passionate about making learning accessible and engaging, and believes that every child should have the tools and encouragement to thrive.
Fun Fact: When she’s not managing data products or family logistics, Gal can usually be found with a cup of coffee, her cats, and a good book. |
Nicole Nappi
Board Member |
Nicole joined the SchoolCARE board to help keep essential student supports like counselors, wellness staff, and classroom support roles in place at a time when districts are facing budget cuts and education feels especially contentious. As a parent in the district and a professional in community health policy and non-profit development, she is excited to support SchoolCARE’s work and help strengthen resources for students and families. Outside of work, Nicole finds pleasure spending time with her 14-year-old son, her fiancé, and their dog Zora.
Fun Fact: Nicole finds a lot of strength, both mentally and physically, through weightlifting and sees it as a metaphor for life, believing that the hardest reps and moments that feel like failure are often where real growth happens. Her max bench is 150lbs |
Yael Bloom
Former President & Member |
Yael got involved in SchoolCARE when her daughter Eliana (AHS '19) was in Kindergarten. She heard a presentation at the PTA meeting and was inspired by the emphasis on an organization that was deeply involved in the education, funding and policy of all AUSD schools. She has coordinated the phonathon & brochure drop and was President of SchoolCARE for 8 years. She was thrilled that we pulled off the 15th anniversary event at Sam’s Log Cabin and loved being presented with an air-plant crown by Anne Marie Sanders.
Fun fact: Yael recently acted as the volunteer responsible for coordinating photos and autographs at a Flip the West fundraising event for David Crosby of (Crosby, Stills and Nash). It was a highlight to talk politics with him! |
Helene Class
Founder & Board Member |
When AUSD was facing severe cuts, Helene joined other parents in realizing: “If we want to have great schools, we are just going to have to start paying for them!” And so this group of parents began to ask for donations to make up the difference in needed funding. Helene has helped with practically every aspect of SchoolCARE. Helene's favorite memory is of helping in the middle school library at lunch, where many kids go for refuge. Without SchoolCARE there wouldn’t be a library space to go during lunch.
Fun fact: Helene loves teachers. Her parents were both teachers. But she hates speaking in front of crowds. It would terrify her to be a teacher! |
Charlie B.S.
Webmaster |
Charlie will be working as the webmaster at Albany SchoolCARE. He has a passion for web design, graphic design and engineering. His friends would describe him as a bit of a nerd, he engages in some DND here, and a bit of coding there. He's lived in Albany his entire life and is excited to have this opportunity to give back. He hopes to see you around!
Fun Fact: One of Charlie's first jobs at SchoolCARE was to update this very webpage you're viewing! (He very much hopes you're enjoying it!) |
Summer S.
Social Media Coordinator |
Summer is one of the high school interns for SchoolCARE this year. She will be helping with social media and outreach, and is excited to combine her love for technology and communication with this role. She decided to join after seeing the positive impact SchoolCARE has on Albany schools and programs she's a part of.
Fun Fact: Dance is one of Summer's biggest passions. |
Madison G.
News Letter Author |
Madi will be the intern in charge of the SchoolCARE newsletters. She joined SchoolCARE to learn more about the marketing aspect of how organizations operate, while hoping to help their small Albany community. Some of her passions are art, piano, and swimming. She's excited to implement her art and marketing skills into helping Albany thrive! She says to: "Make sure to keep an eye out for our newsletters!"
Fun Fact: Madison has a pet dog named Benji |