alumni board members

Anteaters in Education Alumni Chapter
Board Members

Thomas Arntson ’95
Member at Large
Thomas “Tom” Arntson is an elementary school teacher at Country Hills Elementary (CA Distinguished School ’23) and served as a member of the Teacher's Union Bargaining Team from 2014-2022. He earned his teaching credential from UCI in 1995. In 1998, he took a sabbatical to teach K-12 English in Madrid, Spain. Tom is a passionate teacher and enjoys trying new theories on instruction, assessment and student learning. From the beginning of his career, he has always said, “Make school engaging and fun, and kids will want to come!” Tom piloted and implemented Minecraft Education in the Brea Olinda Unified School District giving students the opportunity to demonstrate a variety of intelligence. He also collaborated on a virtual reality project that was shared with the United Nations called "Sustainable Global Goals." This project challenged students to solve 17 problems developing governments are struggling with. Tom is also a Kahoot! Ambassador with more than 40 standards-based content assessments in science, history and geography with more than 7 million players. He is married to an amazing wife and has two wonderful children. In his free time, he teaches robotics and ukelele, and he enjoys traveling to faraway countries to surf, eat and experience new cultures.

Alvaro Brito ’09
Treasurer
Alvaro Brito has 10 years of experience as a teacher, site coordinator, and specialist. He graduated from UCI with a B.A. in psychology with a minor in education. He earned a master’s degree in teaching from USC and a master’s degree in educational technology from Cal State Fullerton. He is currently enrolled in an educational doctorate degree program in educational technology at Boise State. Alvaro currently serves as a 21st-century learning specialist at Compton Unified School District. He oversees the district Innovation Labs, the FIRST LEGO Robotics Programs and STEAM events, serves as the General Manager for the growing middle school and high school esports program, and is a leader in supporting teachers in 21st-century teaching and learning. Alvaro was awarded the Compton Unified Teacher of the Year Award for the 2020-2021 school year for his remote teaching and innovation leadership. Alvaro is an agent of change and is committed to supporting the local communities he grew up in through equity and social justice.

Megumi Cramer ’16
Member at Large
Megumi graduated from UC Irvine in 2016 with a B.A. in Education Sciences and Sociology and obtained her Master’s in Education from Loyola Marymount University in 2019. Megumi began her teaching career as a Teach for America corps member in 2017, teaching Special Education in South Los Angeles. She later served as the Director of Student Support Services in Las Vegas and is currently the Director of Exceptional Education at Nevada Rise Academy.

Amber Gascoigne ’06, ’08
UCIAA Liasion
Dr. Amber Gascoigne currently serves as the Director of Expanded Learning for Palm Springs Unified School District. Prior to this position, she was an elementary school teacher for eight years and an elementary school principal for seven years. In her current role, she oversees all the enrichment and intervention programs across Palm Springs Unified. This includes running programs during school breaks to ensure students have safe and educational programs to attend. She strives to work with her local community to provide her students with new opportunities and extends experiences in the programs to locations beyond the Coachella Valley so her students can see what the world has to offer.  Amber received her B.A. in psychology and social behavior, multiple subjects teaching credential and master's degree in teaching all from UCI. She completed her administrative services credential at the University of Redlands and most recently earned her doctorate in organizational leadership from the University of La Verne.

Kim MacKeand ’04, ’05
President
Kim MacKeand graduated from UCI with an economics degree with minors in education and management. She received her social science credential from UCI and her master's degree in education and administrative credential from Chapman University. While attending UCI, she was an officer and volunteer with the Share Tutorial Project, an organization partnered with the Santa Ana Unified School District to tutor students in their after-school program. She worked as a tutor for the Santa Ana Unified School District during her senior year of college. Tutoring students during college inspired her to become a teacher.  She currently is a high school history teacher in Riverside County and has served as a basketball coach, club advisor, CAHSEE/STAR Testing coordinator, BTSA support provider/mentor, and WASC member. She is passionate about mentoring other teachers.

Yvonne Mansouri '04, '05
Mentorship Chair
Yvonne Mansouri graduated from UCI with a B.A. in psychology and social behavior from the School of Social Ecology in 2004. She received her Master of Arts in teaching and credential in 2005. Ms. Mansouri has over 20 years of experience working and volunteering in education, serving as an elementary school teacher, BTSA support provider, an instructor in the Gifted Students Academy, and, for the past ten years, as owner and tutor of Cambridge Learner’s Academy. She has returned to the field for teaching as a Certificated Substitute Teacher in Irvine Unified School District and Saddleback Valley Unified School District. She also actively serves in her children’s PTA program, holding positions as president, drama and theater coordinator, and math team director. She is a member of the California Science Teachers Association (CSTA), National Honor Society in Psychology (Psi Chi), and American Montessori International (AMI). She holds a certificate from UCI in Gifted and Talented Education and is a Tier 1 and 2 NGSS certified educator.

Alice Pak '08
Communications Chair
Dr. Alice Pak, a former social science teacher turned EdTech specialist, now serves as a Coordinator I in the Educational Technology & Innovation unit at the Los Angeles County Office of Education. With 15 years of experience in online learning, curriculum design, and professional training, she has a passion for integrating technology into education. Her Doctorate in Learning Technologies focuses on enhancing online engagement and exploring the effective use of EdTech tools. Dedicated to fostering digital literacy and creating dynamic learning experiences, Alice joined LACOE to provide professional development and support educators in leveraging technology effectively.

In addition to her role at LACOE, Dr. Pak is an adjunct professor at Pepperdine University, where she teaches Advanced Teaching Methods for pre service teacher candidates in the MAT program in education. She also serves on the board of OCASA Charter in Orange County, contributing to innovative educational initiatives in the region.

Kiruthika Paulvannan ’12, ’17
Member at Large
Kiruthika Paulvannan graduated UCI in 2012 with a B.S. in Biological Sciences and a B.A. in Japanese Language and Literature. After a brief stint as a preschool substitute teacher, 2 years of teaching English abroad through the JET program, and some time as a researcher, she returned to UCI to receive her single subject Science credential and M.A. in Teaching in 2017. She later completed a methods class at San Jose State to obtain a World Languages credential for Japanese in 2019. Ms. Paulvannan currently teaches 7th and 8th grade science in the Bay Area and manages the wild school garden with the assistance of brave students. She enjoys learning about and teaching sustainability and ethics, and doing science with her students.

Sabah Rashid ’04
Member at Large
Sabah Rashid is returning to the international circuit! She will be the Head of the Lower Primary and International Baccalaureate (IB) Primary Years Programme (PYP) Coordinator with the GEMS Education group at their World Academy in Abu Dhabi. Stateside, she developed the learning support program in the middle school at Gill St Bernard's in New Jersey, served as Head of Early Childhood and Lower School at the Léman Manhattan Preparatory School in New York, and coordinated IB PYP at the Saint Andrew's School in Boca Raton, Florida. She is proud to have established a bilingual Swiss boarding school in Dubai, UAE. Throughout her travels, she visits schools nationally and internationally as an author. She published Upside Down, a children's picture book written in rhyme about perseverance and doing hard things.

Dimple Ravuri ’20
Vice President
Dimple Ravuri has dedicated four years to teaching secondary science at her alma mater, Buchanan High School, in Clovis, CA. She has taught a range of courses, including Biology, Chemistry, Honors Chemistry, and most recently, AP Biology. Dimple has contributed significantly to her district as a member of the Curriculum Design Team for Chemistry. Additionally, she has served on the Climate Assessment team at her work site for the past four years. Her leadership extends beyond the classroom as the lead advisor for the Robotics and Science Olympiad programs. Dimple's focus has been on advocating for the needs of students and staff, striving to create a supportive and enriching educational environment.

Xochitl Soto-Ortiz, Ph.D. ’97
Member at Large 
Dr. Xochitl Soto-Ortiz is a high school principal with 25 years of experience in public education in urban districts of Southern California. She is also an adjunct professor at Pepperdine University Graduate School of Education and Psychology. Dr. Ortiz graduated from the UC Irvine School of Social Ecology in 1997 with a major in criminology and a minor in psychological science. Her career in education began as a biliterate Spanish/English BCLAD-certified elementary school teacher before serving as a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) school psychologist at the elementary and secondary levels. In addition, she has over eight years of experience as an educational leader and administrator at the elementary and secondary grade levels. Her research includes the study of effective leadership in alternative education settings. Dr. Ortiz is passionate about cultivating meaningful relationships with students, families and staff. Her well-rounded experience as a teacher, a BCBA school psychologist and a site administrator in K-12 settings has given her a robust set of skills, tools and training to serve the academic needs of diverse student populations in early and secondary education. Growing up as a low-income multilingual learner and being a first-generation college graduate distinguishes Dr. Ortiz's leadership approach. This first-hand knowledge of struggle broadens her understanding of the unique needs of her diverse students. It enables her to apply her professional acumen with compassionate empathy to achieve positive educational outcomes for her students and staff. 

Dee Statum ’26
Student Representative
Dee Statum is a transfer student in their second year (3rd year standing) at UCI. They currently serve as the Director of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Justice and Belonging for the Associated Students of the University of California, Irvine (ASUCI) and as a Campus Action Committee Chair for the University of California Student Association (UCSA). They are a UMOJA Peer Educator for the UCI Transfer Student Center and will serve as a Resident Advisor this academic year. They plan to either work in community organizing or education policy. They are very excited to contribute and learn more about how they can be an active alum in the future!

Alumni Board AntBassadors

Carolyn Brothers '78, '80
Board AntBassador
Carolyn Brothers is a facilitator/trainer for the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at UCI. She has taught in the San Jacinto and Garden Grove Unified School Districts and at Coastline College and Chapman University. She is one of the founders of the Resource Library for the Boys & Girls Club in Garden Grove. Ms. Brothers graduated from UCI in 1978 with a degree in psychology and later received two teaching credentials from UCI.

Mary Roosevelt ’75
Board AntBassador
Mary Roosevelt, the former program coordinator for the multiple subject credential program and director of external relations for the UCI Department of Education, received the UCI Medal in 1990. She also previously served as an ambassador and board member of the UCI Foundation. She is a trustee of the Ecolint American Foundation, president emeritus of the University of California Research Associates, and a friend and honorary fellow of Griffith University in Queensland, Australia. Mrs. Roosevelt was the principal of the Junior House at the United Nations International School in New York and also taught at the International School of Geneva in Switzerland, where she created the first draft of what is now the elementary curriculum for the International Baccalaureate.