Board of Directors
The Board of Directors oversee the Backbone Support Organization as an independent non-profit. The Board holds fiduciary responsibility for the long-term health of the Partnership and its educational equity mission.
The Board’s key areas of responsibility include:
- Policy – Reviewing and establishing policies for the operation of the BSO as an organization
- Finance –Stewarding the BSO’s financial assets and approving the annual budget, which includes setting partnership fees if any
- Collaboration with the CEO — Supporting, retaining and advising the Chief Executive Officer.
Current Board Members
Chandra Alexandre
CEO, Community Action Marin
Community Leader/Early Childhood Education – Chandra Alexandre, the CEO of Community Action Marin, has over 20 years of experience supporting organizations to social justice outcomes. Her work has helped strengthen regional affordable housing and early childhood education initiatives, expand education reform strategies nationally, and resource grassroots-led movement building for global women’s rights. Chandra graduated from Columbia, has an MBA, and holds both Ph.D. and D.Min. degrees. She has taught fundraising and philanthropy at the University of San Francisco and is an official mentor for the United Nations Association of San Francisco. Chandra is also a founding board member of Marin Promise Partnership.
Rondell Gibson
Director of College Access, Bridge the Gap
Community Leader – Rondell Gibson is a Marin City native who received his bachelor’s degree in Business from Saint Mary’s College of California. Over the last 10 years he’s been at 10,000 Degrees, advancing from Intern to College Advisor, to Senior College Advisor, to his current role as the Manager of 10,000 Degrees Southern Marin region — overseeing Fellows, near-peer college mentors who work one-on-one with students and their families on college, financial aid, and career options.
Anna Lam Pilloton
(Retired) Director, School & Community Partnerships, College of Marin
Educator with Expertise in Governance & Leadership – Anna Lam Pilloton recently retired from her role as College of Marin’s Director of School and Community Partnerships, with previous experience as the Executive Director of Marin Teaching Network (formerly Education Task Force) and service on the Kentfield School District Board for thirteen years, during which time she was the recipient of the Golden Bell Trustee of the Year Award. Anna earned a degree in Economics while enrolled in the BA/MBA Program at the University of Chicago, completed the California School Boards Association Masters in Governance Certificate and was an Adjunct Trainer. From the launch of MPP, Anna has been deeply involved in the work, from serving on planning committees, to participating in the Enrollment Action, Future Ready, and Summer Bridge Program Teams, as well as the Strive Together Systems Indicator Pilot.
Larry Rosenberger
Retired CEO of Fair Issac
Board Treasurer & Chair of Finance Committee, Philanthropist – Larry Rosenberger is Fair Isaac’s Research Fellow. Previously, he was FICO’s CEO. Larry holds a degree from MIT and degrees from UC Berkeley. In the for-profit world, he currently serves on six boards of early-stage privately-held companies and actively advises five others. In the nonprofit world, he has previously served six boards and currently actively advises four. His philanthropic passion is helping unprivileged students to become successful. Larry and his wife, Diane, have two sons and four grandchildren, spanning ages 9 through 16.
Rachael Ruffalo
Senior Practice Associate, ED Trust West
Board President, Educational Expert – Rachel’s career in education spans more than twenty years of serving as a teacher, new school developer, school leader, consultant, researcher, and advocate. Through these various roles, Rachel has been committed to pursuing equity and social justice through education. As a first-generation college student, Rachel experienced the transformative power of education within her own family. Since April 2017, Rachel has served as a Senior Practice Associate with The Education Trust-West, whose mission is to achieve educational equity and justice for all students with a particular focus on students of color, students from low-income communities, and English learners. In this role, she leads engagements with school districts through a multi-year process that involves a mixed-methods research study to identify opportunity gaps and systemic inequities and a closely facilitated planning process to develop actions that address the root causes of the inequities. She also contributes to research and policy advocacy related to college and career readiness, English learners, STEM equity, and the equitable implementation of standards-based curricula through a set of assignment analysis tools. Rachel holds a B.A. in history and an M.A. in education (Policy, Organization, and Leadership Studies) from Stanford University and an M.Ed. in teaching and curriculum from Harvard University. Rachel lives in Mill Valley with her husband and three children, all of whom attend public schools.
Ebony Marshall
Senior Philanthropic Advisor, Marin Community Foundation
Ebony Marshall is a Senior Philanthropic Advisor at the Marin Community Foundation, where she has spent over 18 years working in various roles. In her current position, she advises high-net-worth individuals on philanthropic strategies, helping them give in ways that are impactful and aligned with an equity-focused lens. Ebony studied psychology at Dominican University in San Rafael, where she developed her passion for understanding human behavior and advocating for systemic change.
Ebony’s vision is to create lasting change by challenging systemic barriers and fostering equitable opportunities for all. Through her work in philanthropy and community leadership, she continues to champion initiatives that support underrepresented communities and drive impactful giving.
Shad Ahmed
Chief Operating Officer, Opportunity @ Work
Shad Ahmed is Opportunity@Work’s Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. He was previously Vice President of Growth & Business Operations at Medallia, where he designed, launched and led several teams as the software company tripled in size. Prior to Medallia, Shad was an Associate Partner at McKinsey&Company, where he specialized in strategy and organizational work and focused on public-private partnerships in education, labor market and economic development with clients across the private, social and public sectors. Originally from Texas, Shad currently lives in Marin with his wife and 2 young children. Pronouns: he, him, his
Anne Wilson
(Retired) Chief Executive Officer, United Way of the Bay Area
Nonprofit/Business/Strategy/Fundraising Expert – Anne Wilson is a strategic innovator who builds cross-sector partnerships to address community needs through an equity lens and activates donors, volunteers, and advocates. As CEO of United Way Bay Area (UWBA) from 2000–2020, Anne transformed UWBA into a leading poverty-fighting organization. In addition to leading a reset of UWBA’s business model & a digital transformation of fundraising, marketing & core business operations, Anne led an expansion of community impact partnerships while proactively responding to fundamental changes in Bay Area philanthropy. Throughout her tenure, Anne led strategic collaborations with corporate partners to meet their CSR goals and increase employee engagement, and launched several regional initiatives that are national models. Anne is a New Jersey native, and earned a BS from Syracuse University, and MSW from UC Berkeley. Anne also serves as a board member of Homebase/The Center for Common Concerns and as a federal commissioner of the SIPPRA Commission (Social Impact Partnerships to Pay for Results Act).
Omar Carrera
CEO, Canal Alliance
CEO of Canal Alliance since October 2016, Omar Carrera is a social entrepreneur, human rights advocate, and strategic visionary with more than 18 years of experience in business operations management in the corporate and nonprofit sectors. Omar was born and raised in Ecuador where he earned a CPA and Business Management degree and worked for Mitsubishi as a Senior Consultant before coming to the San Francisco Bay Area in 2002. Omar graduated from the Nonprofit Management Program at San Francisco State University and received multiple certifications from the Executive Education Program at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. Omar currently serves on the Boards of Directors for Marin Promise, the San Rafael Chamber of Commerce. He also serves on the Marin County Public Health COVID-19 Vaccine Distribution Community Advisory Board (CAB), the Marin Advisory Board of the Workforce Alliance of the North Bay board, and the EAH Housing California Advisory Council.
Matt Wilka
CEO, Wilka Consulting
Foundation/Philanthropy/Collective Impact Expert – Matt is an independent consultant and CEO of Wilka Consulting, where he works as an advisor to senior leadership teams at range of education organizations, including foundations, nonprofits, and community collaboratives. Prior to his independent work, Matt spent over a decade at the nonprofit consulting firm FSG, where, as a Managing Director, he led a wide range of education, collective impact, evaluation, and strategic planning engagements. Matt’s direct experience on collective impact includes helping to incubate and launch collaboratives focused on higher education success in the Rio Grande Valley, early childhood well-being in Washington State, and comprehensive youth development in Oakland, as well as support for the Harlem Children’s Zone. Before his time in consulting, Matt served as a Fulbright Fellow in Ecuador, managed education nonprofit programs in Boston, and worked as a writer helping schools document and share best practices. Matt holds a BA in English from Williams College, and in his spare time enjoys exploring the beautiful trails of Mill Valley with his wife and two children.
Holly Tate
Lawyer
Holly Tate Clark is a lawyer who, since having children, has been a stay at home parent, as well as an active member of her community. In addition to volunteering at her children’s school, Holly currently serves on the National Advisory Board of DukeEngage, a program at Duke University that funds the work of undergraduates at various domestic and international non-profits each summer. Holly’s past volunteer commitments include being President of Pixie Parents, Inc., a non-profit that operates a children’s cooperative park in Marin County. Holly also led a major capital campaign dedicated to renovating the park. Holly has also served on the Board of Visitors of Stanford Law School and acted as Vice Chair of the Stanford Law Fund. Prior to leaving her law practice, Holly worked at Latham & Watkins and as a judicial clerk to the Hon. James V. Selna in the Central District of California. Holly graduated from Stanford Law School in 2004 and Duke University in 2000.
