Staff
Since 2010 the School Alliance has undergone a dramatic transformation: the board has hired new leadership who are uniquely qualified to understand and play a significant role in education system reform in San Francisco. The new executive director and her staff have forged a deeper relationship with SFUSD and its leadership, building an unprecedented level of trust and collaboration.
Dr. Terry Bergeson
Executive Director
Dr. Bergeson joined the San Francisco School Alliance as Executive Director in January 2010. Dr. Bergeson has an extensive background of success in education. She drove the development of Washington’s statewide academic standards and a statewide assessment and accountability system to measure student progress on standards over time. In 1997 Dr. Bergeson was elected Washington State Superintendent, and served until January 2009. By 2008, over 91% of high school seniors in Washington met or exceeded the state’s graduation requirements. Dr. Bergeson holds an MA in Counseling and Guidance from Western Michigan University, and a Ph.D. in Education from the University of Washington.
Barbara Bellissimo
Chief Operations Officer
Barbara Bellissimo joined SFSA as Development Director in March 2010, with over twenty years of marketing, fundraising and entrepreneurship experience. She’s held executive director positions at the Palo Alto Community Fund and the Martha’s Vineyard Donors Collaborative, and led development teams at People Acting in Community Together, JobTrain and BUILD. Ms. Bellissimo has also consulted with many nonprofit organizations in the areas of fundraising and strategic planning, and with individuals in the areas of women’s leadership and life/career transition. Prior to entering the nonprofit sector, Ms. Bellissimo led marketing teams at Apple and several Internet service providers. She also co-founded Privada, an Internet privacy services company that created patented technology to allow individuals to control the dissemination of their personal information over the Internet. Ms. Bellissimo holds a BS degree in Economics from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.
Fred Tse
Director of Finance
Fred Tse joined SFSA in June 2005. He has provided non-profit accounting expertise since 1994 to organizations such as at the Shanti Project, NAMES Project, Institute on Aging, Mount Zion Health Fund, San Francisco School Volunteers, and others. Fred follows the financial markets, and practices tai chi once in a while. Fred has a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration from San Francisco State University.
Stephanie Greer
Office Manager & Executive Assistant to Terry Bergeson
Stephanie Greer joined SFSA in March of 2010. She divides her time between assisting Terry, keeping the office running smoothly, and providing HR services to SFSA staff and employees of SFSA’s fiscally sponsored programs. Stephanie previously spent 10 years in the legal industry doing human resources, attorney recruiting and law office administration. She has a B.A. from U.C. Berkeley in Humanities with an emphasis on European Social and Economic History of the Middle Ages. Stephanie’s current extracurricular obsessions include her adorable nephews, reading historical mysteries and creating handmade jewelry from pearls and semi-precious stones.
Jessica Hulce
Fiscal Sponsorship Coordinator
Jessica Hulce joined SFSA in April 2011. Jessica divides her time between coordinating SFSA’s 18 fiscally sponsored programs and assisting Terry with the Math initiative at the District. Recently, Jessica joined the Board of Managers at the Shih Yu-Lang Central YMCA. Jessica volunteers with Rotaract and Rotary International fostering local community service and international collaboration. She currently runs the Rotary Youth Leadership Awards camp for Rotary District 5150 and has a decade of experience with these experiential learning youth camps. Previously, Jessica worked with Chronicle Books, Forests Forever, Kip Fulbeck (artist), and the Smithsonian Institution: National Museum of American History. Jessica has a Bachelor’s degree in History with a minor in English from University of California at Santa Barbara.
Kathleen Stavis, MBA
Communications and Development Manager
Kathleen Stavis joined SFSA in September 2010. She brings her considerable skills to donor and media outreach, event management, and redesigning SFSA’s database system and website. Kathleen spends her off hours volunteering for the San Francisco AIDS Foundation and PlayWorks or learning to throw pottery. Previously, Kathleen has worked in development with the Epilepsy Foundation of San Diego County, Pets Are Wonderful Support (PAWS), and the San Francisco AIDS Foundation. Kathleen has a Master in Business Administration with a Non-Profit concentration from Mills College in Oakland, CA where she lives.
Jim Ryan
Project Manager for Common Core State Standards in Mathematics
Jim Ryan joined SFSA in January 2012. Jim spent the past 10 years in private industry working on educational products. Most recently, Jim was the Vice President for Educational Services at Key Curriculum Press. Prior to working at Key, Jim was a team lead for Apple, developing educational software. Before working on the development side of educational products, he was a consumer of these same products as both a teacher and administrator in San Mateo County.
Sonya Brunswick
Maisin Scholar Award Director
Sonya Y. Brunswick joined SFSA in October 2007. Sonya has worked with minority and under-served youth for over 25 years as a family counselor, youth counselor, youth pastor, youth director, and site coordinator on the East and West Coasts and abroad. Sonya has a diverse background with experience in the United States Air Force (proud veteran), College Board's International Education department, Department of Agriculture, a small business owner in real estate, and several years in Silicon Valley as a Systems & Network Engineer before leaving the IT industry and returning to community work to make a more focused impact on the lives of young people. Sonya is a native San Franciscan with strong Southern roots in Louisiana.
Liz Amrhein, M.Ed.
Maisin Scholar Award Program Associate
Elizabeth (Liz) Amrhein joined SFSA in February 2011. As the Program Associate for the Maisin Scholar Award Program, Liz handles the daily administration of the scholarship, including student support, communications, overseeing the selection process, and program reporting. Originally from New York, she brings a strong background in nonprofit administration, classroom teaching experience, and a passion for improving college access. Prior to SFSA, she was a member of the Research and Evaluation Department at Larkin Street Youth Services, and in 2007-2008 she was an Americorps volunteer at the Stanford New Schools, where she directed their Early College Program. Liz has a Bachelor’s degree in Sociology from Western Connecticut State University and a Master’s degree in Education Administration from Manhattanville College and is an accomplished equestrian.