Board of Directors
Vanessa Coleman, Co-President
Operations consultant to local education and non-profit organizations, Ms. Coleman recently completed her PhD in education at Mills College. She is the former executive director of SummerBridge National, and also served as Co-Executive Director at the Coalition of Essential Schools.
Robert Spencer, Co-President
An economist with 22 years of experience, Mr. Spencer runs a financial consulting practice focused on funding public infrastructure to serve a community's growth or revitalization. His interest in education reform began as an elected member of the Oakland Unified School District Board of Education from 1994 to 1998. He serves on the boards of several local nonprofits dedicated to making systemic changes in public education. Mr. Spencer is a member of two family foundations, the William H. Donner Foundation (WHDF) and the Donner Canadian Foundation (DCF).
Jose Corona, Vice-President
Jose Corona is the Executive Director of Inner City Advisors, an organization that helps build sustainable and responsible inner-city businesses that create quality jobs, reinvest in the community, and contribute to the local economy. Previously, Mr. Corona was the Director of Development for Mission Economic Development Agency in San Francisco. He is a member of the Board of Directors of OBDC Small Business Finance, YMCA of the East Bay, People’s Grocery, and Oakland Workforce Investment Board. Mr. Corona has more than 12 years of community development experience focused on improving the quality of life in low-moderate income communities. He has been an Oakland resident since 1999.
Brendan Cullen, Secretary
Vice President of Strategic Growth and Development for Education Pioneers, Mr. Cullen is a former Project Manager for the New York City Department of Education’s "Empowered Schools Initiative."
Sedrick Tydus, Treasurer
Division President at Torrey Pines Bank (Northern California), Mr. Tydus has had a long and successful career in banking and business development and brings a wealth of financial knowledge to OSF. He earned a Masters of Business Administration from Stanford and has been an Oakland resident since 1979. Mr. Tydus has made a personal commitment to volunteer service in which he can use his skill set in business and finance in the interest of youth and education.
Samir Bolar, Member-At-Large
A recent graduate of UC Berkeley's Haas School of Business graduate school, Mr. Bolar is a project manager for DeLoitte Consulting.
Lillian Cordova-Lopez, Member-at-Large
Human Resources and Community Support Programs Specialist for Wells Fargo Bank and Oakland Community Organizations (OCO) leader, Ms. Cordova-Lopez was co-chair of OCO when that organization led the way with OUSD and BayCES (Bay Area Coalition for Equitable Schools) to pass the small schools policy in 1999.
Jonathan Klein, Member-at-Large
OSF CEO from 2004 to 2006, Mr. Klein is now Chief Program Officer for the Rogers Family Foundation. Formerly he was Special Assistant to the State Administrator of the Oakland Unified School District (OUSD) as a Broad Fellow. He served as Teach for America's Bay Area Executive Director from 1999 to 2003, and before that he taught elementary school.
Mark McClure, Member-at-Large
Mark McClure is a Partner at California Capital and Investment Group and an Oakland native. He is a former Oakland Planning Commissioner and is currently a Port of Oakland Board of Commissioner. Mr. McClure serves on the Board of The Crucible in West Oakland and the Oakland 100 Club, benefiting Oakland Boys and Girls Club.
Brian Rogers, Member-at-Large
Executive Director of the Rogers Family Foundation, Mr. Rogers is also a Board Member of Lighthouse Community Charter School and lead community investor in OUSD's “Expect Success!” Redesign Project.
Brian Steel, Member-at-Large
Brian Steel is Vice President, Corporate Development, for PG&E Corporation and leads its strategic development efforts, which are focused on unregulated investing on behalf of the holding company and its shareholders. Steel joined PG&E Corporation in September 2009 after nearly two decades of building high-growth companies, primarily in the digital media and technology arena. Steel has been an active board member and angel investor, serving on the boards of directors and advisory boards of more than 20 technology companies. He served for seven years on the board of directors for Pandora, the leading Internet radio service in the U.S., and is currently a board observer and consultant there. He is also on the advisory board of Care2. Steel holds a Bachelor of Arts in economics magna cum laude from Duke University, where he conducted graduate work in corporate strategy. He also did graduate work in international marketing and finance at the Pacific Asian Management Institute and negotiation at Harvard University.
Last updated October 2011