2007 Cohort Bios
Christina Casillas
Christina Casillas is presently the Site Special Education Administrator at Mira Mesa High School in San Diego Unified School District. Prior to administration, Christina supported district staff as a Site Support Teacher for students in the Emotional Disturbance program and as a Diagnostic Resource Teacher.
Christina completed her undergraduate studies at San Diego State University earning a B. S in Biology in cellular and Molecular Biology. Finding her passion in working with students, Christina pursued an MA in Education. Christina also holds a Special Education Teaching Credential and Administrative Credential.She is currently interested in supporting at-risk students at the secondary level, specifically students in foster care.
Christina is the proud mother of Xico, Malea and Cristian. Together with her husband, Fabian, they enjoy spending time cheering their children on and traveling.
Debbie Costa-Hernandez
Debbie Costa-Hernandez is currently in her second year as the principal of Lincoln Acres School in the National School District. Her professional background spans 18 years of experience as an educator and as a leader. Her teaching experience includes service as bilingual teacher, Title VII Resource Teacher, Language Arts Specialist and Distinguished Teacher in Residence at Cal State University, San Marcos. Debbie's leadership background includes work with the San Diego Region of California Reading and Literature Project, were she contributed to the development of content modules and coordinated professional development institutes for hundreds of teachers in San Diego County. Before her appointment as principal of Lincoln Acres, she served the NSD as the Coordinator of Educational Services. An unbending commitment to social justice undergirds Debbie's work as an educator and as a leader.
Pat Crowder
Pat Crowder completed her B.A. in American and British Literature at Revelle College, UCSD, in December 1976 and graduated Magna Cum Laude. She began teaching for San Diego Unified School District in February 1979 with positions teaching English at Morse High School and in 1982 at La Jolla High where she taught for 14 years. At La Jolla High she taught all levels of English including ESL and A.P. English Literature. She was the first AVID Coordinator in the first group of 10 coordinators when the AVID Founder, Mary Catherine Swanson moved to the San Diego County Office of Education. Pat Crowder undertook many leadership responsibilities including English Department Chair, Site Governance Chair, LJHS Scholarship Foundation Board Member, Cum Laude Society Coordinator, Title I Coordinator, and WASC Coordinator among others. In 1984 she obtained her M.S. in School Administration and Administrative Credential from National University.
In 1994 she served as the district's Mentor Teacher Coordinator, responsible for the training of 500 mentor teachers and providing professional development for the district's new and experienced teachers. In 1996 she was appointed Vice Principal of Wilson Middle School and in 1997, Vice Principal of Lewis Middle School in Del Cerro. She became principal in 1999.Pat Crowder worked at Lewis M.S. to raise the school's Academic Performance Index by 150 points in three years while changing the focus in the school to improved literacy, writing, and math achievement for all students. In 2002 Pat was appointed Principal of Patrick Henry High School where she has led her staff of over 120 teachers and counselors and 2,500 students in raising student achievement and preparing students for the 21st century. Her emphasis has been to transform student learning to small learning communities and developing academies to begin career training in engineering, teaching, medical science, and transportation technology in addition to a strong liberal arts and science with over 25 different Advanced Placement courses. The Henry API has improved by 50 points, and she has increased student attendance rates and student a-g preparation.
Pat's goals are to become a district leader who can support principals in transforming their schools to support all students' educational goals, improving academic achievement, and ensuring all students are college ready. She is also a great mentor to new principals in school management, budgets, leading with vision, and supporting staffs to help them to perform at a high level. She is pursuing research in understanding how outdoor learning improves student achievement and engagement in rigorous learning. Her non-academic interests are in traveling, gardening, swimming, helping with her new granddaughter.
Matt Fallon
Past Experiences: After graduating with a BA in English and American Literature and a minor in History from UC Santa Cruz, Matt earned his single subject credential in English and Psychology from USD. Later, he received a PPS Credential and a MA in Counseling from Chapman University. He has worked for the San Diego Unified School District for the past eleven years, beginning as an AVID tutor. Matt taught at The Charter School of San Diego before becoming an English Teacher at Mira Mesa High School.
Now: Matt is currently finishing his fifth year as a counselor while also serving as an interim Vice Principal. He is also a seasonal employee for UCSD as an External Reader for the Office of Admissions and Records. While Matt will tell you that he does not have a specific job title in mind as an ultimate aspiration, he has found that the longer he works in public education the more he wants to be a part of the process of making improvements.
Personal: Matt is married to Donna Fallon, for the past four years. They are expecting their first child, a boy, David Thomas Fallon. Matt’s interests include: traveling, collecting water, reading, video games and waiting for his son to call him da-da.
Gina Gianzero
Throughout her career, Ms. Gianzero has served as a program manager and consultant for a variety of international, community economic development, and education programs and projects. Her professional experience includes economic and educated-related research and writing, policy analysis, and program oversight and management.
For the past three years, Ms. Gianzero has served as a National Fellow with the SDSU-based National Center for Urban School Transformation, leading teams to evaluate high-performing urban schools. She is a co-author of a donors’ guide to improving K-12 math and science education in San Diego County for the nonprofit Building Engineering and Science Talent. She serves on the San Diego County Office of Education’s Preschool-for-All Demonstration Project Advisory Board and helped to co-author its master plan for universal preschool. For six years, she served as an Education Research Fellow with San Diego Dialogue, a UCSD-based policy group, where she helped build its research program on K-12 reform issues.
An involved mother of three children in San Diego public schools, she has served on the San Diego Unified School District’s Parent Involvement Work Group, where she co-authored the district’s standards for parent involvement. She has served as a parent representative on the district’s Gifted and Talented Committee, Math Advisory Council, and Parent Congress. She has also been a PTA president and governance team memer children’s elementary school.
Karen Janney
Karen Janney is in her third year as the Assistant Superintendent of AcademicGrowth/Development in the Sweetwater Union High School District, the largest secondary school district in California. This position supervises and supports the nine schools in the district that have not met Adequate Yearly Progress targets.
Before moving to a district-level position, Karen served the district for 26 years as a teacher, assistant principal and principal at both the middle and high school levels.
In addition to her role in Sweetwater, Karen has been a faculty member in the Educational Leadership Department at SDSU for the past three years. She teaches the introductory course, Educational Leadership in PreK-12, to the administrative candidates in the South County Cohort.
Karen graduated from Point Loma Nazarene University with a B.A. and earned her M.A. from Azusa Pacific University. Team Captain for the Annual South Bay YMCA Fundraising Campaign and serving on ACSA’s State-level Urban Education Committee adds a community and professional organization dimension to her educational experience.
Olympia Kyriakidis
Olympia Kyriakidis is currently a second year principal at Lemon Crest Elementary School in Lakeside Ca. Olympia served as a middle school vice principal for one year and a middle school humanities teacher for 6 years. When Olympia was 11 her father was killed in a car accident and her mother primarily spoke Greek. Olympia helped her mother run the family restaurant from the age of 11 to until she became a teacher. Her restaurant management experience has helped her as a principal. Olympia speaks Greek, Spanish, and English. She is married to an aerospace engineer and has an eleven year old daughter.
Stephanie Pierce
Stephanie Pierce serves as the principal at Chet F. Harritt School in the Santee School District. She began her administrative career as a Vice Principal at Cajon Park School. Prior to this, she taught 4th and 5th grade students and students with special needs as a Resource Specialist.
Stephanie holds an M.P.A. from San Diego State University and a BA in Psychology from the University of California, San Diego.
She enjoys spending time with her husband and two children, and in her spare time, sails, runs, and kayaks.
Sid Salazar
Sid Salazar is the principal of Southwest High School in the Sweetwater Union High School District (SUHSD). He has been an educator for 25 years at the secondary and community college levels. Throughout his career, Sid has also served students as a teacher, counselor, and assistant principal.
As a proponent of school improvement strategies, Sid recently participated in the development of SUHSD’s Five Year Strategic Plan. The plan calls for district-wide actions founded on a set of beliefs that support the futures of all students. His collaboration with teachers, post-secondary institutions, and the community has led to the establishment of Project Lead the Way, a pre-engineering program.
Sid’s participative leadership style empowers teachers to also become leaders who contribute to a culture of change. His relentless efforts to close student achievement gaps engage teachers in professional learning communities that analyze data and make right decisions about instruction and assessment. Including student voices in making these right decisions has been Sid’s passion.
Carol Whaley
I have been fortunate to have worked in many capacities as an educator for the San Diego Unified School District. My 31 year career to date includes teacher, counselor, head counselor, vice-principal, central office administrator, and principal of both middle and two comprehensive high schools.
The schools I have worked for include: PB Middle School, Standley Middle School, Morse High School, Keiller Middle School, Wilson Middle School, San Diego High School, Serra High School, Taft Middle School, Montgomery Academy, and
Madison High School.
Some Highlights:
Montgomery Academy: Raised test scores on STAR testing 88 points in a two year period; Graduated 171 parents from the Parent Institute
San Diego High School: I provided the leadership to successfully redesign a large underperforming comprehensive high school into six small schools.
Madison High School. Providing leadership to address low test scores. College readiness and college acceptances have increased. 90% of 2007 were college bound. 100% AVID 2008 students admitted to a 4 year college; 261 2008 seniors acceptances to a 4 year college.
My other passion is my family. My husband Sean, Engineer for SPAWAR is very supportive. My four children have also encouraged me to pursue my dream. Sara, works as a Director at Girl Scouts; Noelle, High School English teacher, Clairemont; Lauren, School Psychologist, Montgomery and Colin is an architect student at Cal Poly San Luis Obsipo.