Our Board

Rosamaria Garcia

President

Rosa Garcia is the Complaint Resolution Officer at the University of California, Office of the President. As an expert in ADA, Title VI/VII, Title IX, and abusive conduct, she leads systemwide compliance initiatives that foster a culture of safety, inclusion, and non-discrimination. She also oversees conflicts-of-interest cases across the system. Her portfolio includes governance and policy development, training and strategic communications, and internal audits that support harassment and discrimination-free workplaces throughout UC.

Originally from the East Bay, Rosa has lived and worked in Santa Cruz since 2003. At UC Santa Cruz, she advanced through roles in the Disability Resource Center and Title IX Office, ultimately serving as the Senior Director of Equity & Equal Protection and the campus’s inaugural ADA Compliance Officer. Prior to her career in higher education, she worked in community mental health.

Rosa also serves on the Board of Directors for Ballet Folklórico Mexicano de Carlos Moreno, a professional nonprofit dance company based in Oakland, California. The organization is dedicated to empowering the community and educating the public by deepening understanding and appreciation of Mexican culture and folklore through music, dance, and traditional art forms.

As a proud UC Santa Cruz alum, Rosa holds a BA in American Studies. She also holds an ABA Paralegal Certificate from Cal State East Bay, and a Master of Science in Mental Health and Clinical Rehabilitation Counseling from San Francisco State University.

In her free time, Rosa enjoys hunting for sea glass along the coast with her daughter and discovering the best happy hour menus across Santa Cruz County with her partner.

Samantha Rosasco

Vice President

Sam is a botanical artist and she holds a BA in Business Management Economics from the University of California Santa Cruz.  For the last 5 years, she has served as President of the Pacific School Foundation, supporting Pacific Elementary School in Davenport, CA.  Prior, she served as President of the Westside Parent Education Nursery School in Santa Cruz for 3 years.  As board president, she has fine tuned her leadership style to create an open and inclusive environment and has worked on defining straightforward opportunities for volunteers to follow in order to create memorable “fun” community and fundraising events. She is a dedicated volunteer who wears many hats from event planning, fundraising, website management and social media.

When she’s not creating art or supporting the Pacific Elementary School, Sam enjoys reading books, playing piano, culinary exploration, singing and kickboxing as well as spending time with her husband and two children. 

Amilcar Menichini

Treasurer

Amilcar is an Associate Professor at the Naval Postgraduate School and holds a PhD. in Finance from the University of Arizona. He has been teaching finance and accounting for more than 20 years while his research focuses on different aspects of financial choices of both public and private organizations, as well as on attrition and retirement decisions of U.S. officers. He is also a Research Affiliate at the Center for Analytical Finance at the University of California, Santa Cruz.

Amilcar has been on the board of the Moore Creek Canyon HOA for the last four years and served for two years on the board of directors at Coastal Community Preschool.

During his free time, he enjoys hiking, running, and cycling with his wife and daughter.

Lars Madsen

Secretary

A native of Denmark, Lars Madsen (he/his) has lived in the U.S. since 2005. He currently serves as Chief of Staff and Executive Director of Development Operations at Medical Center Development at Stanford University. In this role he supports the Senior Associate Vice President and a team of development officers in raising money for the Stanford School of Medicine and the Stanford adult hospital. Prior to joining Stanford, he spent 12 years in the Office of the President at Harvard University with his last role there being Chief of Staff to President Drew Gilpin Faust. He holds a master’s degree in political science with a focus on international relations from Aarhus University in Denmark and a master’s degree in social and political thought from the University of Sussex in England. A father of three, you will often find him on the soccer or baseball fields cheering on his children or poolside for swim practice. In his free time, he enjoys reading, cooking, hiking, and biking.

Molly Fyfe

Vice President of Evaluation & Organizational Effectiveness

Molly Fyfe is an educational researcher and evaluator with a PhD in Education and over 15 years of experience designing and assessing initiatives that advance innovation, equity, and inclusion in education. She currently serves as a Senior Evaluation Analyst at UCSF, where she leverages data to drive educational program improvement and applies evaluation methodologies to promote anti-oppression.

Previously, Molly held roles at Imperial College London, Cambridge University, and King’s College London, where she developed faculty training programs and led research initiatives focused on expanding educational access and improving learning outcomes. She also served as Executive Director of the Sustainable Systems Research Foundation in Santa Cruz, growing programs that supported historically underserved communities.

A Santa Cruz native, Molly grew up in the area and later returned to raise her three children. She is deeply committed to fostering educational excellence and inclusion in her community and is honored to support PCS through board service.

Hong Zou

Board Member

With do-it-yourself (DIY) running in her blood and aspiration toward better education opportunities, Hong immigrated into the United States at age 16. In her first decade here in America, life revolved around school, work, volunteerism (then, to improve English and to assimilate), and time with family. She worked for a long list of technology companies in the Bay Area, and in 2021, switched to precision medicine. Hong enjoys collaborative problem-solving (starting from the statistics course at De Anza College in Cupertino, CA), interacting with diverse groups of people, learning from them, and working to achieve shared goals.  

Hong lives in Santa Cruz with her better half (he owns a community-oriented store in downtown) and 2 daughters. She is more than thrilled to have discovered PCS and wants to continue building its legacy in all positive and inspiring ways. Spare time is spent on cooking, reading, time with family (including aging parents, who still live in the Bay Area), exercising, and vacations like visits to Hawaii or Japan (latter is yet to evolve beyond a concept).

Colin Hannon

Board Member

Colin Hannon grew up in Los Osos, California and has lived in Santa Cruz for over 25 years.  A UCSC alum with a Master’s degree in piano and performance practice, he has worked extensively in the community as a staff accompanist for the UCSC music department, as music director at the United Methodist Church of Santa Cruz, and as music director and pianist for countless musical productions for local organizations including Shakespeare Santa Cruz, Jewel Theater, New Music Works, and Cabrillo Stage.  He has worked in classrooms as a music teacher and accompanist for grades K-12 at Carden School, Mission Hill Middle School, Santa Cruz and Soquel High, Kirby School, and many others, and also maintains a private teaching studio.  This work has been formative to his approach to education and to his commitment to ensuring that all students are given every opportunity to succeed.  In addition to his musical work, Colin is the office manager for a local landscaping firm where he has worked for over 25 years.  

Colin lives in Davenport with his wife and two children and has been deeply involved in their current school, Pacific Elementary. He also serves on the board of the Davenport North Coast Association, where he works to support the community and the natural environment of the North Coast and to communicate with the myriad federal, state, and local government agencies involved in planning for the future of the North Coast.

In his free time he enjoys spending time with his family, surfing, hiking, and doing projects around the house.

Colin is deeply committed to working with the faculty, staff, students, and board at PCS to support and expand their work and to enact the school’s mission and vision.

Jing Mahrus

Board Member

Jing has over 25 years of experience working in finance, primarily as a strategic Chief Financial Officer helping start-ups fundraise and scale. She specializes in partnering with first-time, female founders to navigate the challenges of venture financing and building the foundation for long-term success. Prior to transitioning to operating roles, she evaluated investments for a venture capital firm focused on early-stage biotech companies and advised public companies on private investment transactions as an investment banker. Jing earned an MBA from Harvard Business School and a BSE in Biomedical and Electrical Engineering from Duke University. 

In her free time, she enjoys kitesurfing, traveling, salsa dancing, and biking around Santa Cruz with her husband and two daughters.   

David McCormic

Board Member

David McCormic, is an Economic Development profession with over 15-years in public

service. His diverse background in urban planning and design, real estate, hospitality,

and small business development, has helped drive highly impactful initiatives and

projects including the Pacific Station Redevelopment in Downtown Santa Cruz, Master

Planning and restoration of the Santa Cruz Wharf, Santana Row-Valley Fair

expansions, and successful grant applications totaling over $150M, among other

achievements.

Now serving as Economic Development Manager for the City of Santa Clara, David

coordinates business support programs and development projects with everyone from

mom & pop businesses to some of the most successful Fortune 500 companies.

Previous experience as Asset Manager for the City of Santa Cruz and Landscape

Designer/Planner for the City of San Jose, provide deep foundations for community

engagement, collaboration, and project delivery.

A Santa Cruz resident since 2014, and married into deep Santa Cruz roots going back

generations, David lives near DeLaveaga with his wife and two children. David is

committed to advancing fairness, curiosity, and academic excellence, while supporting

the institutions, teachers, staff, and community on PCS’s journey toward long-term

sustainability.

Kate Turpin

Board Member

Kate has over 20 years of experience in commercial building design, engineering, and corporate real estate. Currently, she serves as the Director of Programs & Innovation for Global Real Estate at Google, where she leads a team responsible for defining the strategic roadmap for operational excellence and innovation across the design and construction of Google’s workplace globally. 

Before joining Google in 2015, Kate spent over a decade in Portland, Oregon, working as a green building design specialist and mechanical engineer, and also taught graduate architecture courses at the University of Oregon. Originally from New Hampshire, she is an alumna of Dartmouth College, where she received a B.A., B.E., and Master of Engineering Management. 

Kate lives in Santa Cruz with her husband, son, and their dog. Outside of work, she loves spending time with family and friends cooking, traveling, and staying active outdoors hiking, running, and skiing.

Philip Liu

Board Member

Philip is an Operations Manager at The Maynard Group, a telecommunications and technology provider, where he oversees systems and billing operations and leads process improvement across the organization’s technology platforms. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Engineering from San José State University and brings a practical, systems-oriented approach to operations, technology, and team leadership.

An Aptos resident for more than 10 years, Philip has been involved with local school and nonprofit communities, including the Home & School Club at Twin Lakes Christian School, the Diversity Center of Santa Cruz, and AIM Youth Mental Health. Through these organizations, Philip has supported community events and annual galas.

Philip is honored to support PCS through board service and to contribute to a school community that challenges students, supports their growth, and prepares them for college and beyond. Philip lives in Aptos with his wife, daughter, and two dogs. In free time, Philip enjoys archery, surfing, reading, games of all kinds, and most of all, spending time with family and friends, often with good food and good drinks.

Julie Vu

Board Member

Julie Vu works as a property manager for her own company.  She served on the board of directors at the Granite Creeks HOA for more than 6 years.  She was also a Fundraising Coordinator at the Scotts Valley High School.  She was a Senior Tax Specialist at KPMG LLP, in Baltimore, Maryland.

Julie holds a Master of Science degree in Physician Assistant from Touro University, Nevada.  She also holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting and MIS from San Jose State University, California.

During her free time, Julie loves spending time with her husband and their 4 children.