Staff and Board

STAFF

Jody Lewen is the founder and President of Mount Tamalpais College.

Jody’s involvement dates back to 1999, when she started working as a volunteer. Over the years, she has served as a thought leader in the field of prison education, advocating for the values of high academic quality and inclusivity, as well as serving as a resource to policymakers, practitioners, academics, and the administrations at San Quentin State Prison and the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. She was the 2006 recipient of the Peter E. Haas Public Service Award from the University of California, Berkeley, and a 2015 recipient of the James Irvine Foundation Leadership Award in recognition of her work to support higher education for incarcerated people in California. In 2016, the organization received the National Humanities Medal from President Barack Obama.

Jody received her BA from Wesleyan University in Modern European History; her MA from the Freie Universität, Berlin in Comparative Literature and Philosophy; and her PhD in Rhetoric from the University of California, Berkeley. Her publications include “Punishing Evil: A Psychoanalytic Perspective on the Spectre of Inmates in the Public Imagination” (in Evil, Truth, and Reconciliation, Rodopi, 2004) and “’So eine Gemeinheit’: On the Use of Irony in Hugo Bettauer’s Die Stadt Ohne Juden” (in Austria and Austrians: Images in World Literature. Stauffenburg Verlag, 2003).

President

Amy Jamgochian

Amy Jamgochian is the Chief Academic Officer and Accreditation Liaison Officer of Mount Tamalpais College. She received her BA in English from Mills College, her MA in English from Auckland University in New Zealand, and her PhD in Rhetoric from UC Berkeley. She taught in the Rhetoric Department at UC Berkeley for almost 15 years, first as a graduate student and then as a lecturer. As a lecturer in the Rhetoric Department, she ran the pedagogy seminar for graduate student instructors, and taught all levels of courses, with topics ranging from freshman composition to introductory rhetorical theory to hermeneutics. Amy’s research interests include the 19th and 20th century British and American novel, ethics, political theory, and pedagogy.

Chief Academic Officer

Corey McNeil

Corey has been a student since 2011 and joined the staff of Mount Tamalpais College as a program clerk in 2017 until recently when he became MTC’s Alumni Affairs Associate. He graduated in 2019. He enjoys studying languages, theology, and history.

Alumni Affairs Associate

Denisse Manrique

Before joining Mount Tamalpais College, Denisse worked as the Development Coordinator for the Jewish Community Center of San Francisco for five years. She has been involved with several organizations, including WashPIRG, La Voz Latina, and Glide. She brings with her a passion for equity and creating community. She graduated from the University of Washington with a BA in Sociology and Philosophy.

Development and Community Outreach Manager

Jacob Kernodle

Jacob joined the staff at Mount Tamalpais College after working for nearly ten years serving students and staff in higher education. Through his work as an educator and manager of student systems and records, he has developed a keen devotion to student needs and well-being. He is dedicated to serving marginalized students, especially in the creation of policies and procedures, so he is thrilled to contribute to the Mount Tamalpais College team in their mission. He holds an interdisciplinary BA focused on ethics and leadership from California State University, Monterey Bay.

Registrar and Director of Advising

Jen Juras

Jen brings a unique blend of community research and higher education institutional research experience to Mount Tamalpais College. She began her career in Michigan, where she earned her PhD in Community Psychology with concentrations in evaluation research and statistics and methodology. While in graduate school, she was the research director for a statewide nonprofit focused on criminal and juvenile justice reform. She has focused her career on research, evaluation, and participatory action research to create healthier and more equitable communities. Before joining the staff at Mount Tamalpais College, she was the Director of Institutional Research at California College of the Arts for five years. She served on the American Public Health Association’s Book Publications Board for eight years and often speaks at conferences and writes about community driven change efforts.

Chief of Institutional Effectiveness and Research

Kirsten Pickering

Kirsten is a former philosophy instructor and tutor at Mount Tamalpais College, where she co-taught her first course in 2011. She served as the college’s first Accreditation Liaison Officer in its successful candidacy application in 2019. As the Research and Program Fellow, Kirsten supports college staff as they restart in-person courses, and carries out research projects aimed at strengthening the field of higher education in prisons. Outside her work for Mount Tam, Kirsten is a co-founder of Mourning Our Losses, a national memorialization project to remember people who have passed away behind bars during the COVID-19 pandemic. She enjoys thinking about ethics and political philosophy, watching movies, and reading mystery novels.

Senior Researcher for Policy and Practice

Mauricio Avello

Mauricio brings more than 13 years of experience in leadership and higher education in Chile and the US. Before joining Mount Tamalpais College, he worked in community colleges serving economic and academically underserved students. He received his BS from the Pontific Catholic University in Chile and holds a Master’s degree in Organization and Leadership from the University of San Francisco.

Program Manager

Amy Shea

Amy Shea has a PhD and an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Glasgow, where she has written a collection of essays titled, Not All Deaths are Created Equal. Her work has appeared in the Portland Review, The Massachusetts Review, Spry Literary Journal, Fat City Review, From Glasgow to Saturn, & the Journal of Sociology of Health & Illness. As an avid hiker, she likens her doctoral experience to that of her climb up Mt. Kilimanjaro – both immensely challenging and rewarding.

Writing Program Director

Richard Bonaru Richardson

Richard “Bonaru” Richardson is a Mount Tamalpais College graduate and Communications Associate. He has played a key role as Executive Editor of the San Quentin News and has contributed to its growth since 2008.

Communications Associate

Volker Kirchharz

Volker Kirchharz received a business degree from a professional academy in Germany and started working with non-profit organizations until he moved to the US over 20 years ago. He continued his work in non-profit administration and finance with a variety of human and social service agencies, mainly in the Bay Area. Most recently he was the school administrator for a German Saturday school, responsible for the entire operation of the school. He enjoys working in teams and likes to apply his experience to strengthen organizational structures.

Finance and Human Resources Manager

Bekki Lee-Wendt

Bekki has dedicated her career to supporting organizations that work to benefit marginalized communities. She hopes to bring the best of her experience to her work for MTC’s students.

Chief of Staff

Carson Temple

Carson brings five years of development experience to Mount Tamalpais College. She previously worked as the Development Coordinator at At The Crossroads, and prior to that as the Intake Assistant at the New England Innocence Project. She is passionate about permanent criminal justice reform and ensuring every person has access to high-quality higher education. She graduated from Northeastern University with a BS in Criminal Justice and Political Science. In her free time, she enjoys hiking, reading, and finding the best nachos in the Bay Area.

Development and Communications Manager

Frances Santiago

Frances brings over five years of experience in student learning disability resources to Mount Tamalpais College. Her passion for social justice and serving students from marginalized backgrounds has positively impacted families and students with disabilities in meeting their academic goals. She holds a master’s degree in Special Education with a concentration in Mild/ Moderate Disabilities from San Francisco State University. In her free time, she enjoys a variety of crafts including cross stitching images of her favorite musicians.

Learning Specialist

Astrid Hoover-Batt

Astrid brings multiple years of experience in various facets of the communications field to Mount Tamalpais College. Prior to joining the team, she worked in public relations in the medical technology field and is passionate about creating a more equitable world for all. Astrid holds a BA in Communications and a minor in Earth and Space Sciences from the University of Washington, and is currently pursuing her master’s degree in Higher Education and Student Affairs at the University of San Francisco.

Institutional Effectiveness Manager

Sarah Manley

Sarah Manley has been involved in prison higher education since 2017. Prior to joining Mount Tamalpais College, she was the Program Coordinator for the University of Utah Prison Education Project (UPEP). Sarah earned her MA in World Languages and Cultures from the University of Utah and her BA in Feminist Studies from the University of California, Santa Cruz. Her academic research has appeared in the Journal of Literary & Cultural Disability Studies and the Rocky Mountain Review of Language and Literature.

Humanities and Social Sciences Program Director

Zaw Min Htet

Zaw holds a PhD in Biophysics from Harvard University and a BS in Engineering Physics from UC Berkeley. Prior to joining Mount Tamalpais College, he worked as a postdoctoral researcher studying the essential cellular process called protein degradation at UC Berkeley. During that time, he volunteered in several programs that aim to promote the retention of historically underrepresented minorities in higher STEM education. He is excited to continue his passion to promote equitable higher education opportunities at Mount Tamalpais College. In his free time, he enjoys watching movies, hiking, and photography.

Math and Science Program Director

Danny Ho

Danny Ho completed his Associate of Arts degree from Mount Tamalpais College in Spring, 2016, and a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration from Adams State University in June, 2021. Higher education has been truly exciting for him; he envisions himself obtaining a Master’s degree in Business Administration by 2026. Danny joined the MTC team in October, 2022. He enjoys hiking, traveling, visiting family and friends, singing karaoke, and playing guitar.

Academic and Student Affairs Associate

Sasha Morozoff

Sasha is the Chief Operating Officer for Mt. Tamalpais College, with responsibility for our planning, finance, systems, and people functions. Sasha brings more than 20 years of experience in the private sector in various leadership positions, helping organizations scale their capabilities and impact while staying true to their people-centric values. He believes strongly in the power of higher education to transform people’s lives.

Chief Operating Officer

Charles Crowe

Charles Crowe joined MTC as our Program Clerk in August 2023 and has been an MTC student for the last four years. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Social Sciences and previously worked with San Quentin News as a Senior Editor. Charles calls himself a “lifetime learner” and has been teaching himself Spanish for the last 10 years. As a Program Clerk, Charles assists with the day-to-day functioning of the college by helping to coordinate classes, making sure faculty have all of their supplies, and tracking student needs.

Program Clerk

Victor Olguin

Victor Olguin joined MTC as our Library Clerk in July 2023 and started his first semester as an MTC student in January 2024. Victor’s favorite subject is history, and particularly enjoys learning about the World War II era. As an MTC Library Clerk, Victor is responsible for keeping the library organized throughout the year and distributing course supplies and textbooks at the beginning of each semester. He also manages all the audio and video equipment for special events at MTC. His favorite part of his job is working on a college campus and interacting with faculty and other students.

Program Clerk

Douglas Pentland

Douglas Pentland (he/him/él) is the Senior Program Administrator. Douglas is a passionate fourth generation educator and former classroom teacher. His teaching background includes creative writing and reentry classes, dual language classes, and horticulture at Rikers Island jail. Most recently, Douglas managed a federally and California registered teacher preparation apprenticeship and job training program in both carceral and community settings. In college, he studied Critical Theory and Social Justice with a critical race theory emphasis and a minor in Spanish.

Senior Program Administrator

Sam Waterstone

Sam received a B.A. in Communication with an emphasis in Sport Management from UC Santa Barbara. He also studied abroad at the University of Cape Town, South Africa, where he began his career in philanthropy, interning for a nonprofit focused on the development of micro-entrepreneurs in the township communities outside of Cape Town. Prior to joining Mount Tamalpais College, Sam worked in communications and development at the Santa Barbara Foundation before returning to Africa in 2022 with the sport-for-development nonprofit Shooting Touch. As Director of Communications at Shooting Touch, he led marketing, communications, and public relations efforts for both U.S. and Rwanda-based programs, while also supporting donor relations, fundraising, program operations, and strategic growth. During his three years on-ground in Rwanda, Sam helped cultivate and execute major cause-marketing partnerships with the NBA, Giants of Africa, UNESCO, and the U.S. Embassy in Kigali. Originally from Marin County, Sam is excited to return home to join MTC and contribute to the phenomenal work being done to uplift incarcerated individuals through higher education – at San Quentin and across the country.

Communications Manager

Oriane Delfosse

Oriane Delfosse has spent her career supporting local and national nonprofits with development and communications, with a particular focus on ensuring access and equity in education. Before moving to the nonprofit sector, she taught writing at the high school and college level in New York and Dubrovnik, Croatia. She is a former creative writing instructor for MTC, edited a collection of MTC student writing, and has supported the college with various communication projects since 2020. Her own writing has appeared in Best New American Voices, Storyscape Journal, and The Rumpus, among other publications. She has a B.A. in English and French from the University of Virginia and an M.F.A in Creative Writing from Sarah Lawrence College.

Creative Director

BOARD

Jeff Feinman

Board Chair
Chief of Partnership
National Summer School Initiative

Theresa Roeder

Board Vice Chair
Professor and Chair, Decision Sciences
San Francisco State University

Kelly Daggs

Board Secretary
Educational Foundation Executive

Will Bondurant

Chief Financial Officer
Pareto Health

Lilly Fu

Board Treasurer
Senior Director of Finance and Administration
George Lucas Educational Foundation

Izu Akamiro

Vice President with
Goldman Sachs

Meredith Levy

Founder
Meredith Levy Design

Marc Greenberg

Chief Financial Officer
Altruist

Zachary Bookman

CEO
OpenGov Inc

Puneet Singh

Managing Director
EY Consulting

Larry Norton

Trustee Emeritus
California State University System

Sha Stepter

Founder
Slow And Steady Media

Staff and Board

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Please note: Prior to September 2020, Mount Tamalpais College was known as the Prison University Project and operated as an extension site of Patten University.

Tax ID number (EIN): 20-5606926

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