Cassie Braun
Cassie Braun is a Finance Manager for LinkedIn, based in San Jose. She was schooled in the Livermore public school system from kindergarten through 12th grade, when she graduated as valedictorian from Livermore High School. She was a recipient of the Mario Pedrozzi Scholarship in the program’s first year, and is thrilled to be on the board to support this wonderful program and future scholarship recipients.
Sharon Draggoo
(President) is a retired educator who, in a career spanning 1985 to 2015, taught in four elementary schools in the Livermore School District. The Pedrozzi Foundation is the perfect home for her continued interest in, and passion for, education. Included in the values statements of the Pedrozzi Foundation are these: “We believe that all students can succeed,” and “We believe that education leads to a more prosperous and productive populace.” Sharon is eager to play a role in an organization that brings her values as a classroom teacher to the attention, and resulting support, of a whole community.
Linda Kubiak
(Treasurer) After almost 14 years at the Fannie and John Hertz Foundation, Linda recently retired as the Chief Financial Officer. Prior to that, Linda was an active volunteer and an employee with the Livermore Valley Joint Unified School District. She also worked at Stanford University; the University of California, Berkeley and San Jose State University. Her two children attended elementary, middle and high school in the LVJUSD. She has been a resident of Livermore since 1984.
Goud Memula
is a first generation college graduate. He came to the United States when he was 23 years old for post graduate studies. He obtained his doctorate degree and worked in the US for over 50 years in various engineering management positions and managing a medical practice before retiring in 2018. He is very passionate about helping students in need of financial support for higher education both in India and the US. He serves on the Pedrozzi Foundation Board of Directors and participates on the financial committee. He shares that the Pedrozzi Foundation is an outstanding organization with strong commitment to help the Livermore community and he is proud to be part of it.
Monica Moya
(Ph.D.) is both a Group Leader for Bioengineering and Advanced Fabrication, Materials Engineering Division and a Research Engineer for the Center for Micro and Nanotechnology at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL). Her passion and drive for promoting educational opportunities stems from her personal experience as a low-income first-generation college student. The knowledge, support, and resources she received from mentors and scholarship programs were critical to her higher education achievement. They provided her insights to experiences that her immigrant parents did not know and became part of the community that shaped her future. She strives to enrich her local community and actively seeks opportunities to empower students to achieve their goals.
Lisette Rocha
Lisette Rocha is a first generation college graduate and former Pedrozzi Scholar. She currently works at Las Positas College as an Outreach Specialist and is happy to be back in her community supporting students as they achieve their higher education goals. She is passionate about the work the Mario Pedrozzi Foundation does and is thrilled to be able to support the foundation as a board member.
John Williams
is a retired electrical engineer who spent more than 20 years as a disk drive engineer and hardware design manager. He finished his career as a Consulting Engineer integrating advanced design verification tools into the design methodology at various Silicon Valley and Fortune 500 technology companies. He was born, reared, and educated in the Richmond, California school system and completed his education at UC Berkeley. A lifetime member of the Cal Alumni Association, he is a regular supporter of their scholarship programs. After 30 years in San Jose, he moved with his family to Livermore in 2007. Currently, he is a member of the Advisory Board for the Quest Science Center. He believes, strongly, in the importance of all kinds of education.
Committee and Working Group Members:
- Bryan Balazs
- Gina Bonanno
- Nalley Cervantes
- Kathy Coyle
- Michelle Dawson
- Tom Felter
- Peg Folta
- John W. Houghton, Jr.
- Kathryn Kaldhusdal
- Francis Reisner
- Stephanie Shang
- Jackie Stamps
- Dayna Taylor
- Stephanie Ueland
We appreciate the contributions of our former board members:
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- Andrew Aguilar
- Bryan Balazs – Past President
- Kathleen Banke
- Steve Bell
- Gina Bonanno
- Kelly Bowers
- Kathy Coyle – Past President
- Kevin Drake
- Steve Faith – Past President
- Tom Felter
- Nancy Gomes
- Richard Gumbs
- Gene Hale – Past President
- Karen Haliday
- John W. Houghton, Jr.
- John Howard
- Art Krakowsky
- Lisa Lagorio
- Maurie Louis
- Pam Luster
- Pat McMenamin – Past President
- David Mertes
- Paula Orrell – Past President
- Steven Pangelinan
- Abbie Rockwell
- Anthony Santos
- Julie Schnitter
- Mark Shawver
- Howard Storms
- Nancy Stoyer
- Elizabeth Trutner – Past President
Office Manager
– Destany Cardwell