Staff

Executive Office

Sandra R. Hernández, M.D. [bio]
Chief Executive Officer

Scott J. Owens, Jr.
Executive Assistant to the CEO

Philanthropic Services

Lisa Rose [bio]
Donor Relations Officer

Tanya Clark Marston [bio]
Donor Relations Officer

Kristen Angel
Coordinator, Philanthropic Operations

Joshua Jones
Donor Services Assistant

Ashlee Flores
Donor Services Assistant

 

Public Affairs and Communications

Sara Ying Rounsaville [bio]
Vice President of Public Affairs and Communications

Talya Gould Sanders
Public Affairs and Communications Officer

Susan Macintyre
Public Affairs Assistant

 

Finance

Monica Pressley [bio]
Chief Financial Officer

Roberta Schutz
Assistant to the CFO and the COO

Susan Frohlich
Controller

Susanne Ginn Meza
Senior Accountant

Elayne Chin
Senior Accountant

Hidelita Sarmiento
Accounts Payable Administrator

Grants Management

Jade Nelson
Manager of Grants Administration

Cynthia Gonzales
Grants Assistant

Human Resources and Administration

Dee Dee Brantley [bio]
Chief Operating Officer and Vice President of Human Resources

Jamillah Washington-Weaver
Administrative Services Manager

Hidelita Sarmiento
Payroll/Benefits Administrator

Angela Tompkins
Administrative Assistant

Esperanza Canes
Receptionist

Choi Man Wong
Maintenance Assistant

 

Information Technology

Fred Jacob
IT Manager

Brian Harter
Systems/Database Administrator

Program Department

James W. Head [bio]
Vice President of Programs

Anna Karrer Manley
Program Assistant

Tessa Rouverol Callejo
FAITHS Coordinator

Yolanda Alindor
Organizational and Professional Development Officer

Arts and Culture
Moy Eng
Interim Program Officer, Arts and Culture

Kevin Seaman
Program Assistant

Community Development
Vanitha Venugopal [bio]
Program Director, Community Development and Investment

Jessica Pitt
Bay Area Workforce Funding, Collaborative Coordinator

Gloria Bruce
Program Associate

Michelle Myles Chambers
Program Assistant

Community Health
Denise Martin [bio]
Program Director, Public Policy, Advocacy, and Community Health

Andrea Zussman
Disaster Preparedness Project Coordinator

Josaphine Stevenson
Program Associate

Maria Healey
Program Assistant

Emily Rosenberg
Program Assistant

Education
Lisa Villarreal [bio]
Program Officer, Education

Tara Genea Wilson
Program Fellow, Education

Brandon Dunng
Program Assistant

Environment
Arlene Rodriguez [bio]
Program Director, Community Leadership and Sustainability and Environment

Heather Hood
Initiative Officer, Great Communities Collaborative

Jessica Buendia
Program Fellow, Environment

Sarah Chun
Program Assistant

Koshland Program
Retha Robinson [bio]
Director, Koshland Program 

Harmony Karp Hayes
Koshland Program Coordinator

Evelia Perez
Program Assistant

 

 

Staff Bios

Sandra R. Hernández, M.D., is chief executive officer of The San Francisco Foundation. Dr. Hernández is a graduate of Yale University, Tufts School of Medicine, and the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. Prior to becoming CEO of the Foundation she served as the director of public health for the City and County of San Francisco. She is an assistant clinical professor at University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) School of Medicine and maintains an active clinical practice at San Francisco General Hospital in the AIDS clinic. Dr. Hernández currently serves on the boards of Blue Shield of California and Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital. She is also a trustee of the Western Asbestos Settlement Trust and serves on the UCSF Advisory Councils of Pediatric Leadership for the Underserved, Clinical and Translational Sci­ence Institute, Lesbian Health and Resource Center, and the Program in Medical Education for the Urban Underserved. Dr. Hernández was named Hispanic Business Magazine’s 2008 Woman of the Year and has received the 2008 Silver SPUR award. She was recently the cover feature of Tufts Medicine Magazine. Her prior affiliations include President Clinton’s Advisory Commission on Consumer Protection and Quality in the Healthcare Industry; The Pew Commission on Environmental Health; the Council on Foundations; The Foundation Consortium for California’s Children and Youth; Grantmakers in Health; American Foundation for AIDS Research (amfAR); the Volunteerism Project; Stern Grove Festival Association; the National Alliance for Hispanic Health; Corporation for Supportive Housing; the Institute of Medicine’s Committees on the Consequences of Uninsurance and the Implementation of Antiviral Medication Strategies for an Influenza Pandemic; Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government Executive Session on Philanthropy; Blackbaud, Inc., a leading provider of software and online services for the nonprofit community; the Latino Community Foundation, a supporting organi­zation of The San Francisco Foundation; and the California Managed Risk Medical Insurance Board, which is the governing body for California’s Children’s Health Insurance Program. Dr. Hernández also co-chaired San Francisco’s Universal Healthcare Council.

 

James W. Head is vice president of programs at The San Francisco Foundation and has more than 25 years of experience in the field of community and economic development. Previously, Mr. Head served as president of the National Economic Development and Law Center for 18 years. A lawyer by training, Mr. Head has significant nonprofit management, programmatic, and legal experience and has worked on nonprofit legal and finance issues as a consultant to foundations, business, and government, and as a professor of law. His past and present affiliations and community service include the community advisory board of Union Bank of California, member and past board president of the National Legal Aid and Defender Association; board member of Northern California Grantmakers, the National Center for Youth Law, and the Neighborhood Funders Group; as well as adjunct professor of law at U.C. Hastings, U.C. Berkeley (Boalt) and Santa Clara University Law Schools in the Bay Area. Additionally, Mr. Head has recently been appointed Commissioner for the Port of Oakland and serves on the Aviation and Commercial Real Estate committees. He has also formerly served as an advisor to the 2001 Race Commission in Cincinnati, Ohio, as a member and chair of the Consumer Advisory Council of the Federal Reserve Board, and was a founding board member of the California Community Economic Development Lending Initiative. Mr. Head holds a Bachelor’s degree from the University of Georgia and a law degree from the University of Georgia, School of Law. He holds state bar memberships in Georgia, Florida, and California.

Monica Pressley has been the Foundation’s chief financial officer for six years, managing finance, grants management, and information technology. Over this time the Foundation reached $1 billion in assets. She previously served as a chief administrative officer for Barclays Global Investors, director of finance for Dividend Development Corporation, and as a consultant for Charles Schwab & Co. She has deep experience in finance and accounting, information systems, budget administration, and strategic planning. Through her affiliation with Harvard Community Partners, she has completed consulting projects for Bay Area nonprofits including Haight Ashbury Free Clinics, Enterprise for High School Students, and Global AIDS Interfaith Alliance. She received the 2002 Jim Stocker Award for Volunteer Excellence. She earned her Masters of Business Administration from Harvard Business School and graduated summa cum laude with a Bachelors in Economics from UCLA.

 

Sara Ying Rounsaville serves as The San Francisco Foundation's vice president of public affairs and communications. With over twenty years of communications experience in the private, public, and philanthropic sectors, Ms. Rounsaville is responsible for the Foundation's integrated communications strategy and brand. Before joining The San Francisco Foundation, Ms. Rounsaville was director of public affairs at California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco. She has previously served as senior policy advisor to Lieutenant Governor Leo McCarthy, and producer, writer, and reporter for Asian Health Reports on KTSF-Channel 26. She has served on the boards of Asian Pacific Islanders in Philanthropy and Planned Parenthood Golden Gate. She is a member of the Independent Sector's Public Affairs Committee, The Council on Foundation's Media and Public Affairs Committee, and Nihonmachi Little Friends Public Relations Committee. Ms. Rounsaville holds a Bachelors in Science from the University of California at Berkeley.

 

Dee Dee Brantley is the Foundation's chief operating officer and vice president of human resources. She has extensive background in business and human capital management. Her experience spans multiple industry sectors, geographies, and disciplines throughout the business community. Before joining The San Francisco Foundation, Ms. Brantley served in a variety of senior positions with Sun Microsystems, PeopleSoft Inc., and Korn/Ferry Futurestep, Inc. She is a current member of Bay Area Blacks in Philanthropy and the National Center for Black Philanthropy and has previously served on the International Human Resources Information Management Board. Ms. Brantley is also on the HR committee of the Fiscal and Administrative Officers Group for community foundations. She earned a Bachelor’s in Business and Economics and a Master’s degree in Business Administration from Holy Names College.

 

Lisa Rose serves as the Foundation’s Donor Relations Officer. With more than 14 years of senior leadership in the nonprofit and philanthropic sectors, Lisa’s focus is working in partnership with donors to deepen their philanthropic impact. Her dedication allows for close collaboration with donors to ensure they realize their philanthropic goals, strategies and intended outcomes. She brings to the Foundation a deep knowledge and respect of donor interests, and a passion for making the connections between donors’ philanthropic vision and tangible results. Lisa is highly skilled in identifying nonprofit organizations that accurately reflect the values and ideas of our donors. Many of the Foundation’s donors stay informed with reports and convenings about the most pressing issues facing our region. Before joining The San Francisco Foundation, Lisa served in senior management roles at the San Francisco Education Fund, the SF Food Bank, and the San Francisco Community Music Center. She currently serves on four advisory committees for various nonprofit organizations and has served on numerous boards in the past. Lisa has traveled extensively throughout Europe and Asia, including Spain, Germany, the Czech Republic, Laos, Vietnam, and Thailand. She studied German, Czech and Spanish languages. She graduated from Mount Holyoke College in Massachusetts with B.A.s in Philosophy and Critical Social Thought.

 

Tanya Clark Marston serves The San Francisco Foundation as a Donor Relations Officer. Her new position comes after working as a program consultant for the Foundation where she focused on strategic planning, partnership initiatives, and business development strategies. Before her consulting role, Tanya worked for three years as a Program Coordinator for the Foundation where she assisted the Vice President of Programs. Tanya is a Community Fellow at the Full Circle Fund, a board member and fundraising chair of Streetside Stories, and a former member of the Bay Area advisory board of the Young Nonprofit Professionals Network (YNPN). She previously served as assistant director of Extended Education at the California College of the Arts. Tanya received her M.B.A. from UC Davis Graduate School of Management and her B.A. in American Studies from Trinity College in Connecticut.

Denise (Denny) Martin, program director for public policy, advocacy, and community health, focuses on programs designed to improve the health of communities, particularly underserved populations, by expanding access to services, promoting prevention to reduce illness, and advancing health policy reform. Most recently Ms. Martin served as president and chief executive officer of the California Association of Public Hospitals and Health Systems (CAPH) and its affiliated research foundation, the Safety Net Institute. She has worked on initiatives to increase access to healthcare, expand the Medi-Cal and Healthy Families programs, and secure adequate funding for safety net hospitals and clinics. Under her leadership CAPH worked closely with the Administration and other major stakeholders to craft the state’s first historic five-year Medicaid waiver, helped launch the state’s two-plan Medi-Cal managed care system, and served as the representative for the Local Health Plans of California during its initial start-up. Ms. Martin previously served as a clinical manager at Chicago’s Cook County Hospital and San Francisco General Hospital, as well as other facilities working with substance abuse clients. She has served on a variety of advisory committees, including the Attorney General’s on Charity Care, the Frequent Users Campaign, the Insure the Uninsured Project, and the UCSF Health Care Improvement for Diverse Populations project. Ms. Martin also served as a guest lecturer at the School of Public Health at UC Berkeley. She received her Bachelor’s of Science in Nursing from Northwestern University and her Masters’ in Public Health Policy and Administration from UC Berkeley.

 

Retha Robinson is the director of the Koshland Program, a community development program that is working toward civic unity, leadership development, neighborhood partnerships, and encouraging civic participation and celebrating unsung community heroes. Under Ms. Robinson's guidance, each year the Koshland Program chooses a neighborhood in the Bay Area and makes a five-year commitment towards improving the quality of life. Ms. Robinson has been with the Foundation for over two decades, working primarily in community building efforts throughout Bay Area neighborhoods. She is chair of the board of directors of the Girls After School Academy and chief financial officer of Bay Area Blacks in Philanthropy. Ms. Robinson is a member of the Association of Black Foundation Executives, the National Center for Black Philanthropy, and Neighborhood Funders Group, and an advisory board member of the Bay Area Women and Children's Resource Center. She received a Bachelor’s degree from San Jose State University.

Arlene Rodriguez is the program director for community leadership and sustainability and environment, and promotes environmentally sustainable development practices by addressing urban and natural environmental issues that focus on ecosystems protection, climate change, equitable growth and development, the reduction of toxins, and advancing environmental health and justice for the San Francisco Bay Area. Ms. Rodriguez has extensive experience and strong leadership in organizational development, program planning, community development, and the environmental field. She served as senior program officer for the environment at the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, was the director of community programs and founding director of the Crissy Field Environmental Center with Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy, and served as urban program director for the western region of The Trust for Public Land. She is president of the board of trustees for the Funders Network for Smart Growth and Livable Communities, serves as co-chair for the California chapter and as a steering committee member of the Health and Environmental Funders Network, and serves on the board of the Courtney Foundation. In the past, Ms. Rodriguez also served as board chair of the San Francisco Education Fund and was a commissioner for the City and County of San Francisco Department on the Environment. Ms. Rodriguez has a Bachelor’s of Science in Electrical Engineering from the University of Illinois. She also holds a Bachelor’s of Science in Landscape Horticulture and a Master’s in Landscape Architecture, with a minor in Urban Planning, from North Carolina State University.

 

Photo of Vanitha Venugopal, program officer for community development. March 2009.

Vanitha Venugopal, program director of community development and investment, has worked in the field for more than two decades, as an urban planner, facilities and policy analyst, and legislative aide. Most recently, she served as a senior program officer for community revitalization at the Surdna Foundation, a national family foundation based in New York City where she developed a portfolio of grants focused on transit-oriented development, energy efficiency retrofits in affordable housing, and building new voices for equity. She is a co-founding member of Chhaya CDC, which provides housing services to South Asians in New York City, and a former board member of Habitat for Humanity-NYC and Asian Americans for Equality. Vanitha holds a Master’s in Community and Regional Planning from Iowa State University, and a Bachelor’s of Architecture from the JNT University in India.

 

Lisa Villarreal, program officer for education, has over 25 years of experience in public education, serving as a teacher, counselor, and administrator at the local level, a director of grants and professional development programs at the county, state, and university levels, and a national consultant on education reform and community school partnerships. Before coming to The San Francisco Foundation in 2005, Lisa was the executive director for the CRESS Center (Cooperative Research and Extension Services for Students), the Center for Community School Partnerships, and the Healthy Start Field Office, all at the University of California, Davis. She currently serves on the national board of directors for Grantmakers for Education, and is vice-chair of the National Coalition for Community Schools. A first-generation Mexican American, Lisa holds a Bachelor's in Psychology and a Master's in Education.