Faculty Leadership
Executive Board
About Us
Alexis Sheridan-Rucker
Principal
Mrs. Sheridan-Rucker was born and raised in Southern California and earned her Bachelor’s Degree with a double major in Psychology and Criminology, Law, and Society from UC Irvine. Upon graduation, she began working for the Boys and Girls Clubs and learned that she wanted to further her work with children. After relocating to the Bay Area, she earned her Education Specialist credential and Master’s in Special Education & Education Administration from San Francisco State University. Mrs. Sheridan-Rucker has worked in different educational settings around the bay, including public and nonpublic schools since 2007.
Under the tutelage of the founding directors, Mrs. Sheridan-Rucker grew into her position of Principal, where she has flourished and revitalized the program. Having worked for six years as an Education Specialist for Springstone, she has a strong framework for understanding the needs of the students and faculty. Working in partnership with Mrs. Wong and the Board of Directors, Mrs. Sheridan-Rucker has established herself as an executive with excellent leadership skills and a strong commitment to the unique and vital role that Springstone plays in our community.
Marian Kidder
Dean of Operations
Ms. Kidder is a proud Bay Area native with a deep love and appreciation for the history and cultural diversity of her community. Raised by three generations of teachers, administrators, and educators, her keen eye for detail and enthusiasm for learning and teaching have been life-long. While studying at City College of Alameda and San Francisco City College, Ms. Kidder began her work in education as a teacher’s assistant in Hayward, and honed her professional skills first in her family business, then later in running a boutique real estate office. Having grown up in a family floral and event production business, creativity is a way of life for Ms. Kidder. She has had the honor of supporting numerous Bay Area non-profits with her professional event planning and event design skills, helping to raise hundreds of thousands of dollars for education-related organizations. In her most recent position, she handled business administration and human resources as Operations Director at a non-profit, non-public school in Alameda. Ms. Kidder is pleased to have joined Springstone in the summer of 2019, bringing over 13 years of experience in the Special Education administration field. Ms. Kidder is honored to work with the dedicated families, and faculty to help build bright futures for Springstone students.
Stephanie Brown
Faculty
Stephanie Brown is an Education Specialist and parent of neurodivergent children. She has a special education teaching credential from St. Mary’s College of California in Moraga, an MA and PhD in Cultural Anthropology from the University of Texas at Austin, and a bachelor’s degree at Pitzer College in Claremont, California. Dr. Brown is especially interested in California history, project-based learning, and the connections between learning and social-emotional development. In 2022, Dr. Brown was awarded a Fund for Teachers fellowship to adapt the writing of Jane Austen for neurodivergent learners. She is also involved in outdoor education, as a certified California naturalist and member of the board of directors of a wilderness adventure camp in the Sierras.
Eli Chan
Faculty
Ms. Chan joined the Faculty of Business at the Queensland University of Technology in Brisbane, Australia after receiving her Bachelor of Arts degree from The University of Calgary in Canada. She also spent a number of years in Hong Kong and in Beijing where she had the opportunity to teach students from preschool through adulthood. In 2009, she returned to North America to raise her family and sought to provide the best educational experiences for her own children. She has since worked in the Lafayette School District serving special student populations. Ms. Chan has earned her Master’s of Education from Saint Mary’s College of California and holds a Mild/Moderate Education Specialist credential. Ms. Chan enjoys sharing her passion for lifelong learning with the students at Springstone each school day.
Dora La Flora Czifra
IT Support
James Huang
Faculty
Wesley Martian (formerly Creasman)
Faculty
Mr. Creasman hails from San Francisco and currently resides in Walnut Creek. He has been committed to working in education since he was picked to join the Teachers Academy program and participated throughout his high school career. The Teachers Academy was designed to foster a love for teaching while training as an aid to teachers in classrooms with students ranging from kindergarten to 5th grade with various learning challenges. This experience allowed him to establish a professional understanding of working with children while job shadowing and working with industry professionals. From there he continued his work with the youth through summer programs for special education students. Mr. Creasman graduated from Saint Mary’s University of California with a degree in Psychology, he returned to earn his Mild/Moderate Education Specialist Credential through the Saint Mary’s Teaching Program. In his free time Mr. Creasman enjoys running, cycling, and reading. Mr. Creasman loves volunteering and contributing his time to beach clean ups, food banks, and collecting and donating items for housing-insecure families. Mr. Creasman is elated to to bring his love of science and hands-on experiments to Springstone.
Christina Mendoza
Faculty
Born and raised in the Bay Area, Ms. Mendoza came to The Springstone School as our guidance counselor after her experience working with students and families in both the hospital and classroom setting. She earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Anthropology with an emphasis in Linguistics at the University of California, Los Angeles where she also gained the opportunity to study Language and Culture in Florence, Italy and taught English to Italian-Speaking third grade students. Ms. Mendoza continued her academic experience back in the Bay Area at Mills College in Oakland where she received her Masters of Art in Education. Ms. Mendoza spent time in the pediatric hospital setting working with Child Life professionals, music therapists, and art therapists as she studied for her Masters in Education. She is currently pursuing her second Masters degree in Special Education through National University and working toward her Mild/Moderate Education Specialist Credential. She is passionate about creating environments that are both therapeutic and inviting for children and adolescents to learn and grow in. With her devotedness to establishing therapeutic relationships with the students she works with, Ms. Mendoza is pleased to be joining Springstone as our guidance counselor.
Zack Miller
Faculty
Mr. Miller is a Bay Area native with roots in Lafayette. His main hobby growing up was working in video production, acting on stage and in front of the camera. However, Mr. Miller has always had a passion and a drive to work in the special education field. He attended college at San Francisco State University, receiving his Bachelor’s in Liberal Studies, and later attended St. Mary’s College of California earning his Master’s degree in Education. Mr. Miller holds a Mild/Moderate Education Specialist Credential. Mr. Miller has worked alongside and with adults and students with special needs in Alameda, Piedmont, and Lafayette. His goal is to help individuals with special needs to reach their highest potential and gain as much independence as possible.
Ben Nahman
Office Assistant
Corbin O'Connor
Faculty
After completing his high school education in Belgium, Mr. O’Connor moved to California and attended Saint Mary’s College where he earned his Bachelor’s of Liberal Arts. As a graduate of The Integral Program, his specialties are history, political science, and economics. In respect to his teaching method, Mr. O’Connor seeks to have students understand the nature of cause and effect, rather than the memorization of arbitrary dates and events. Mr. O’Connor earned a Master’s of Education degree from Saint Mary’s College of California. Mr. O’Connor holds a Mild/Moderate Educational Specialist Credential. In his free time, he enjoys backpacking and experiencing the great outdoors.
Jonathan Sanchez
Administrative Assistant
Andrew Steele (formerly Fosburgh)
Faculty
Mr. Fosburgh attended Laney College in Oakland and then received his Liberal Arts Associate Degree at Sacramento City College before transferring to California State University of Sacramento where he received his Bachelor’s in English Literature. While studying at CSU Sacramento, Mr. Fosburgh worked in the TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) program with other teachers on and off campus and completed his TESOL certificate. After graduating from CSU Sacramento, Mr. Fosburgh taught beginner guitar classes before making the decision to pursue Teaching as a career. Mr. Fosburgh has his Master’s of Education from National University and holds a Mild/Moderate Education Specialist Credential. Mr. Fosburgh is excited to be an integral member of the Springstone team, where he can work directly with students in order to make a positive impact and help them accomplish their educational goals.
Bronwyn Turney
Faculty
Miss Turney started teaching in the 2004-2005 school year in the general education setting, teaching 4th, 5th, and 6th grades in a Title 1 Elementary School in Sacramento. While teaching General Education, she received her Masters of Art in Cross-Cultural Education. After teaching in Sacramento, she went to Japan and taught for a year at four different high schools. When she returned to the United States from Japan, she moved to the Bay Area and attended San Francisco State University to receive her Mild/Moderate Special Education Credential. She began working at The Springstone School in the 2011-2012 school year as the middle school Language Arts teacher and has been working with students in the middle school on building their reading and writing skills ever since. In addition to teaching academics and experiential learning, she also teaches yoga to both the middle school and high school students. She loves seeing the tremendous amounts of progress that Springstone students make! In her free time, Miss Turney enjoys traveling, being in nature, yoga, and reading.
Brooke Walsh
Faculty
Mrs. Walsh grew up in Australia and completed a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Sydney. After working in advertising and marketing in both Sydney and Singapore, she undertook a Master of Teaching (Secondary Education) from Charles Sturt University in Australia. She has experience in a range of educational environments including large international schools with diverse student populations and special education classrooms. Mrs. Walsh has a keen interest in career development and preparing students for bright futures that feature as much independence as possible. Her subject specialty areas include science, economics, business studies and geography. In 2022, she moved to Lafayette, California with her husband and daughters. Mrs. Walsh enjoys sharing her passion for lifelong learning with the students at Springstone each school day.