Faculty & Staff

History Teacher
Upper School
alexandra@khanlabschool.org

Alexandra received her BA in History of Art & Architecture from the University of Santa Barbara and is about to complete a Single Subject Teaching Credential in Social Science from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo. After working as an Archivist at The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina, where she taught college-level courses and learned in-depth about historical research practices, Alexandra decided to pursue a career in education as a history teacher. Currently an eleventh grade US history teacher at Nipomo High School, Alexandra uses project-based learning and primary source analysis to make learning come alive for her students. Although she has primarily worked with high school students, she is looking forward to taking on a new role at KLS as a middle school history teacher. She has already utilized Khanmigo and other AI to enhance the educational experience for students and she looks forward to taking our middle school students to archives in the area.

Visiting Computer Science Specialist and Technologist
rehana@khanlabschool.org

Rehana is an educational and creative technologist, with 5+ years of experience working at the intersection of maker education, physical computing, robotics, wearable and creative technology. As a Fulbright Scholar from the Netherlands, she most recently researched maker education and digital fabrication at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and MIT. With a background in Pedagogical Sciences (Utrecht University, the Netherlands) and Psychology (Brunel University, United Kingdom) she specializes in designing STEAM learning experiences that are creative, engaging, interdisciplinary and hands-on. Rehana has led workshops for Girls Into Coding and Code First Girls. Rehana will be at KLS from July through the end of term two.

Chief Financial Officer
kateanthony@khanlabschool.org

Formerly the COO at ASU, Learning Enterprise, Kate brings a deep background in finance, strategic planning, and operations/legal compliance to her new role as CFO at KLS. She has designed, implemented, and overseen organization-wide strategic planning including multi-year forecasts to inform decision making. Prior to ASU, Kate was an Engagement Manager at McKinsey and Company, where she led comprehensive strategic and financial transformations in the education and public sectors. Kate holds a B.Sc. from Georgetown and a MSc. from Oxford.

Director of Enrollment Management & External Affairs
michelleargel@khanlabschool.org

Michelle Argel comes to KLS from the Stratford School where she was the Campus Director of Admissions leading all aspects of the campus level admissions and enrollment activities for a program with nearly 1000 students. Michelle will be leading the schoolwide KLS Admissions and Enrollment Management Department, which includes retention and the scholarship and financial assistance programs. Michelle is looking forward to engaging with our current families and students and working closely with the marketing team to  build a wider awareness of KLS in the Bay Area. Formerly an elementary school teacher, Michelle holds a BA in Child and Adolescent Development from San Jose University.

Extended Day Teacher
Lower School
julian@khanlabschool.org

Spanish Specialist
Upper School
jason@khanlabschool.org

Jason Bush is an experienced educator in the fields of Spanish language teaching, Latin American Studies, and Theatre History. After receiving his BA in Theater from University of California, Los Angeles, and his MA in Theatre Studies from California State University, Northridge, Jason decided to explore Latin American cultures during his Ph.D studies in Theatre History and Performance Studies at The Ohio State University. At Ohio State, Jason conducted extensive ethnographic research on Peruvian indigenous performance on the global stage. In the process of living and working in Peru, Jason became proficient in written and spoken Spanish. While writing his dissertation Jason decided to try his hand at teaching Spanish and he absolutely fell in love with language teaching.

Jason has extensive classroom experience teaching Middle School and High School Spanish at Basis Independent School, Stratford School and university level Spanish at The Ohio State University and San Jose State University. In addition, Jason has developed a specialized expertise in individualized instruction in Spanish, tailoring a personalized educational experience that draws on students’ interests and preferred learning styles at AJ Tutoring, Fusion Academy, and Tilden Preparatory School. He is currently continuing his education by finishing his MA in Spanish at San Jose State University with a specialization in second language acquisition and applied linguistics. His favorite part of teaching language is helping provide students with the tools in order to express themselves in new ways, communicate to new groups of people, and explore cultures in different parts of the world.

Head of Operations and Technology
Administration
chi-ray@khanlabschool.org

Chi-Ray graduated from Stanford University with B.A. and M.S. degrees in Biomechanical Engineering. He spent a few years applying his studies as General Manager for a local company, prototyping and manufacturing coronary stents. Soon, he decided to pursue his interest in system thinking, and he became an operations generalist for small-to-mid-sized organizations. Chi-Ray has held a number of roles similar to what he does at KLS, including serving as Director of Operations, Technology, and Facilities at a large church in Boston; working as Program Director for the Digital Media Academy at Stanford; and most recently, working as Director of IT and Employee Services at One Kings Lane (the online home goods retailer). In his spare time, Chi-Ray has been known to lead scouts, root for the New England Patriots, play banjo, listen to country music, wish he had a pick-up truck, and dream of seeing the U.S. on an extended RV trip with his wife, Erica, and kids, Timothy and Megan. You'd never guess he was born in Boston and raised in L.A. Chi-Ray has been a member of the KLS team since its founding in 2014.

Executive Director
Administration
kim@khanlabschool.org

With more than two decades of experience in schools, research, and business environments, Kim is the KLS Executive Director. Most recently, she was the Chief of Academics at US Performance Academy — an online middle-high school for elite athletes. During her career, she has held key leadership roles at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, National Sports Academy, Emergent Academy and LRN. She has also been a consultant for a wide range of companies and organizations. Kim holds a B.S. in Physics from Marlboro College, an M.S. in Astrophysics from the University of Arizona, and an M.Ed from the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Humanities & Extended Day Specialist
Upper School
nickfera@khanlabschool.org

Marketing Manager
Administration
marcus@khanlabschool.org

Marcus is a product of the Bay Area, though he really loves all of California as he worked for over a decade in the sports and hospitality industries across Los Angeles and San Francisco before coming to KLS. While Marcus could spend days talking about the things he has seen while working in entertainment, he equally enjoys working with students who want to learn more about the latest digital technologies. When Marcus isn’t in front of a computer at KLS, you can find him in front of a computer somewhere else!

Director of College Counseling & Internships
Upper School Administration
julie@khanlabschool.org

Julie joins KLS from US Performance Academy (USPA), an online high school for elite student athletes globally where she served in various leadership roles, including Director of College Counseling, Chief of Academics, and Head of School. Prior to USPA, Julie was the Director of Athlete Career & Education at U.S. Ski & Snowboard, advising and managing the academic, college, funding, career, and transition needs and goals for more than 400 national team student athletes.

Julie earned a B.A. from Dartmouth College and M.A. from Middlebury College's Bread School of English. She formerly taught and coached at Hackley School, The Masters School, and Oakley School. She also founded Aim Advising (college counseling), Aptitude Academics (test prep, tutoring, college counseling), and Park Record Spelling Bee, served on Park City Education Foundation, and coached Park City Lacrosse, Utah Mamaci and Tenacity Project.

Math Specialist
Upper School
tooba@khanlabschool.org

With a lifelong passion for teaching and education, Tooba is excited to be a part of KLS. She received her Bachelor’s in Business and Information Technology (BBIT) followed by her Masters in Business and Economics from University of Reading (U.K). Her Masters dissertation was on “Competition in the Airline Industry: International Airline Alliances and Low Cost Carriers”, where she did an extensive research by using various mathematical and statistical modeling techniques and tools such as E-views and SPSS to prove her hypothesis. She was also part of “UK Women Entrepreneurship Project” which empowers and supports women entrepreneurs throughout the United Kingdom.

Prior to joining KLS, Tooba worked in UK’s leading private schools for 11+ years, thus bringing a wealth of UK’s educational practices to KLS. Tooba has worked as a lecturer for A-levels (High School) in Business and Economics. She was also involved in teaching Pre-calculus and Calculus courses in mathematics. Aside from work, Tooba enjoys cooking, baking, and spending time with her two kids.

Upper School Director
Upper School Administration
laura@khanlabschool.org

Serving most recently as the STEM Academy Dean at Saint Monica Preparatory, Laura Haney has held a number of school leadership positions in independent schools in addition to teaching high school Physics. At Saint Monica Preparatory, she trained teachers across the school in Project Based Learning approaches and developed STEM-oriented experiential learning opportunities. As a founding science department chair at Sequoyah School she taught a series of science classes including Physics, Astrobiology, Geology, Design Thinking, and Scientific Writing. At Sequoyah School she also facilitated a social innovation program, initiated the STEM Institute, and helped to develop credit areas for the Mastery Transcript Consortium. Laura holds a BA in Astrophysics from Barnard, an MA in Astronomy from UCLA, and PhD in Astronomy and Astrophysics from UCLA.

Extended Day Teacher
Lower School
antonio@khanlabschool.org

Extended Day Teacher
Lower School
salvador@khanlabschool.org

English & History Teacher
Upper School
alexandro@khanlabschool.org

Alexandro comes to KLS from Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles where he was a Visiting Professor of History in the Department of Chicano and Latina/o Studies.  He research is focussed on Ethnic Mexican, Urbanism, Culture and Politics in Silicon Valley between 1940-1980. Alexandro holds a BA in Latin American History from Santa Clara University, an MA and PhD from the University of New Mexico. Alexandro is a San Jose native and is looking forward to returning to the Bay area.

Outer Wellness and Athletic Coordinator
morgan@khanlabschool.org

Morgan is an experienced middle school teacher and coach who comes to KLS after seven years at Head-Royce School as a middle school teacher and coach. Morgan has coached a wide range of sports and activities including: lacrosse, basketball, volleyball, ultimate frisbee, and tennis. Morgan has also led many outdoor education excursions for students focussed on skiing, snowboarding, and rock climbing. Morgan holds a degree in elementary education from Indiana University, and an M.Ed. from Boston University in Curriculum and Instruction.

Associate Teacher
Lower School
katemccracken@khanlabschool.org

Learning Guide
Upper School
uyen@khanlabschool.org

Uyen is a recent graduate of the Harvard Graduate School of Education and has a deep interest in building supportive youth communities in Southeast Asia. Prior to attending HGSE, Uyen’s career included working at Vietnam National Television where she created a debate program that supported the growth of debate in Vietnam. She has also worked with Global Citizens Vietnam where she launched both a debate, Module UN and public speaking program for students and at the Banking Academy of Viet Nam. While at HGSE, she was active with Project TEACH, where she supported college and career awareness for middle school students.

Lower School Director
Lower School Administration
jessica@khanlabschool.org

Intern (Business)
Administration
rishipradeep@khanlabschool.org

Extended Day Teacher
Lower School
alexis@khanlabschool.org

Math Specialist
Upper School
lana@khanlabschool.org

Lana is a passionate and creative high school and middle school teacher with 8+ years of experience in developing curricula and teaching Math and Science courses, including Algebra I, Algebra II, Geometry, Trigonometry, and Calculus at advanced and honor levels. In addition to her teaching experience, she has 18 years of diversified experience as a Software Engineer, specializing in DevOps and programming for UNIX and PC systems.

English Specialist
Upper School
briannathompson@khanlabschool.org

Brianna comes to KLS from Kenyon College in Ohio where she was a Visiting Professor of English.  Her areas of expertise include gender studies, science fiction, and multi-ethnic American Literature.  Brianna received her PhD in English from Cornell University in 2021. Brianna is passionate about mentoring students outside the classroom. Her past experience as a Graduate Resident at Cornell’s West Campus allowed her to offer a year-long sewing program that taught novices how to operate a sewing machine, read patterns, and eventually make a garment of their choice. She is looking forward to participating in the non-academic community by offering students a sewing or textiles extracurricular.

Spanish and English Specialist 
Upper School
cristina@khanlabschool.org

Cristina received her BA in Spanish and International Relations and MA in Spanish from the University of California at Davis and is currently completing her PhD in Hispanic Literature and Languages from UCLA (expected 2024). A native speaker, Cristina has advanced knowledge of Spanish grammar and current theories of second language acquisition. She has taught at the college level for a number of years and is excited to make the transition to K-12 education. She is intrigued by the educational model at Khan Lab School and looks forward to experimenting with AI and other online tools to enhance the learning experience for students. In addition to teaching Advanced Topics in Spanish and Spanish 4 at KLS, Cristina will also teach an English elective on Hispanic or Latin American literature. 

Data Manager and Registrar
Administration
mallika@khanlabschool.org

Mallika Viswas will be starting her role as Data Manager & Registrar at Khan Lab School on Monday, June 26. With a Master's Degree in Computer Science and Engineering from the University at Buffalo, NY, Mallika has been teaching computer science to elementary and middle school students at Alpha: Jose Hernandez, a TK-8 charter school in San Jose.

Humanities Specialist
Lower School
kit@khanlabschool.org

Associate Teacher
Lower School
ulla@khanlabschool.org

Bay Area native Ulla has worked in the STEM field for many years as both a student and a teacher, bringing a driven, thoughtful, creative mindset to the classroom. She is especially proud of her studies and research at the UCI School of Education, and her passion and persistence in the UCI School of Physical Sciences while studying Mathematics. Her identity and experiences as a female mathematician motivate her to create spaces in which all students are valued in STEM.

Ulla is most excited by educational strategies that are holistic, balance efficacy with experimentation, integrate disciplines, and create the perfect mix of logic and magic. Her most recent professional endeavor in education prior to KLS was as an outdoor science educator, where her friendly teaching assistants were tarantulas, boa constrictors, toads, hissing cockroaches and more!

Now at KLS, Ulla looks forward to further developing as an educator and serving the next generation of thinkers and change-makers.