Meet Our Team

Sara Hawkinson

Executive Director

Sara began her career at Avalon in 2008 as an Instructional Assistant. In 2011, after earning a Master’s degree and teaching credential in Special Education from San Francisco State University, she transitioned into a teaching role. Sara has also completed specialized training through the University of California Deaf-Blind Services Partnership Program and the Autism Spectrum Endorsement Program at SFSU. In 2015, she earned an Orthopedically Impaired Added Authorization. Sara was promoted to Director of Student Life in 2014, assumed the role of Head of School in 2019, and was appointed Executive Director in 2022. Sara is dedicated to cultivating Avalon’s vibrant and unique school culture—one that empowers both students and staff within a supportive, engaging environment.

Erika Delgadillo-Perez

Operations Manager

Erika has over 15 years experience in the field of administration. She has previously worked with children with autism spectrum disorder. She enjoys contributing to the special education community. Erika joined Avalon in 2018.

Aloisa Reyes

Administrative Assistant

Aloisa holds a bachelor's degree in Communication Studies and is currently working towards earning her certificate in Early Childhood Education. Aloisa has previously worked as an Office Staff member for the City of San Mateo and enrolled students for aquatics courses and assisted with preparing student report cards. In her free time, Aloisa enjoys cookingplaying board games, attending concerts, and going for a leisurely walk. Aloisa recently joined Avalon in 2025.

Samuele Palazzi

Samuele Palazzi, Equipment-Technology and Property Developer, Director of Media and Arts Department, Operations Support Manager

Samuele joined The Avalon Academy in 2011 after moving to California from Italy. His contribution to the Avalon community strives to keep the daily lives of students and personnel stress free, and the school running smoothly.

Lizzie Schoelen

Head of School

Lizzie holds a master’s degree and a California teaching credential in Special Education (Moderate to Severe Disabilities), along with an Orthopedically Impaired Added Authorization from San Francisco State University. She has completed specialized training through the University of California Deaf-Blind Services Partnership Program and the Autism Spectrum Endorsement Program at SFSU.

Before joining Avalon in 2008, Lizzie spent nine years working with children, teenagers, and adults with autism and intellectual disabilities. She has a special interest in multi-sensory teaching approaches and enjoys integrating music and events into her curriculum.

Karla Alcantar

Director of Transitional Services

Karla holds a master’s degree and California teaching credential in Special Education with an emphasis on Physical and Health Impairments from San Francisco State University. Prior to working at Avalon, Karla worked as an AAC/AT special day class teacher.

Boglarka Keresztes (Bogi)

Special Education Teacher

Bogi holds both a BA and an MA in Special Education from Hungary and Romania. Her graduate studies focused on supporting students with intellectual disabilities. In the U.S., she worked as a one-on-one caretaker and later as a special education teacher at SJUSD before joining Avalon in 2022. She supports students with a wide range of needs and holds a CA credential in Moderate to Severe Disabilities.

Joey Hamlin

Director of Speech Language Therapy and AAC Services

Joey is a licensed SLP with advanced training in AAC/AT, feeding disorders, and bilingual language development. She earned her Master’s from San Jose State and Bachelor’s from Smith College. She has presented locally and joined Avalon in 2011.

Kacee Lucero

Speech Language Pathologist

Kacee earned both degrees from San Jose State. She began at Avalon as an aide in 2018 and returned in 2021 as an SLP. A Project AACES Grant recipient, she specializes in AAC and complex communication needs.

Mariko (Mari) Terasaki

Speech Language Pathologist

Mari holds a master’s in Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences from SFSU and dual bachelor's degrees. She earned an AAC graduate certificate and joined Avalon in 2025. She has experience across schools, homes, and clinics.

Brenda Huey

Director of Movement Education

Brenda joined Avalon in 2013. She holds her Doctorate of Physical Therapy from the University of the Pacific. In her final year, she was a nominee for the APTA Mary McMillan Scholarship Award for her work in creating the “Perfect 10” an adapted gymnastics event for families and children with developmental disabilities in San Joaquin county with sponsorship by First 5 of California. Brenda is a certified MAES therapist- a therapy approach specialized for babies and children with neurological disorders. She is a level 4 trained TASES (neuromuscular electrical stimulation) therapist. Additionally, she is also a Certified Primitive Reflex Clinical Specialist.

Anna Moskovits

Senior Physical Therapist

Anna is a licensed PT with over 20 years of experience. She studied in Budapest and specializes in NDT, Deveny Method, and pediatric therapy. She joined Avalon in 2012.

Kasey Cura

Physical Therapist

Kasey earned her DPT from NYU and undergrad from SDSU. She worked at Avalon before grad school and returned as a PT. Her interests include pediatrics, neuro, and fitness.

Justin Shauf

Physical Therapist

Justin earned his DPT from Mount Saint Mary’s University and began at Avalon in 2019 as a PT aide. He specializes in pediatric, neuro, and home health care. He returned to Avalon in 2023.

Sharon Faulmino

Coordinator of OT Services

Sharon earned her Master’s from Samuel Merritt and a BS from SFSU. She rejoined Avalon as an OT in 2022 and has experience with a variety of conditions including burns and brain injuries.

Leslie Manrique

Occupational Therapist

Leslie holds a Doctorate in OT from Samuel Merritt and a Psychology BS from San Jose State. She returned to Avalon in Sept 2024 after completing her capstone project there. She is expecting her first child.

Terena Scott

TVI and O&M Specialist

Terena is a Certified O&M Specialist and TVI with 25+ years of experience. Her daughter, born with multiple disabilities, deeply shaped her career. Her memoir launches in 2026.

Alisa Stegmaier

Orientation and Mobility Specialist

Alisa holds an MA in Special Education from SFSU and a BA in International Studies from UCSD. Her work integrates sensory experiences, movement, and self-determination. She enjoys surfing and traveling.

Maureen Howard-Kiely

Director of Student Health

Maureen has 25+ years of pediatric nursing experience and a Master’s in Nursing. Her son, a former Avalon student, has complex medical needs. She joined Avalon professionally in 2019.

Julian Garingan

Student Health Supervisor

Julian joined Avalon in 2025. He is an RN graduate of Evergreen Valley College with experience in pediatric and adult care. He’s passionate about health equity, Pokémon, and fitness.

Andrea Godoy

Student Health Supervisor

Andrea has been a Licensed Vocational Nurse for the past 7 years. She has experience working as a nurse in the Special Education department at school sites in the Bay Area as well as in pediatric Home Health. Andrea received her higher education degrees at College of San Mateo and City College of San Francisco. She lives in the Peninsula with her two daughters and husband. Andrea joined the Avalon team in January 2024. She is honored to be caring and advocating for Avalon’s students and the Avalon community.

Elsie Cuellar Perez

Certified Nursing Assistant

Elsie joined the Avalon team in 2022 as an instructional assistant and expanded her role to include CNA responsibilities in 2025. She enjoys driving the school van and supporting students out in the community. Having previously worked as a family services specialist for families accessing subsidized childcare in San Francisco, Elsie is passionate about equity in education and health care. She is pursuing a degree in biology and plans to apply to nursing school. Her hobbies include film photography, baking, and attending local concerts.

William (“Bill”) H. Wolf, Jr., M.B.A.

Co-Chair

Bill Wolf is the President and Chief Executive Officer of Lobo Leasing a specialized aircraft financing company focused on leasing commercial helicopters to U.S. and international rotorcraft operators. Bill graduated in 1987 from Amherst College with a bachelor’s degree cum laude in Economics. Prior to business school Bill was a financial Analyst at Goldman Sachs & Co. After graduating from the Harvard Graduate School of Business in 1991 with a Master’s in Business Administration Bill was an investment banker and financial advisor. From 1991 to 2004 Bill was in positions of increasing responsibility at Goldman Sachs & Co. retiring in 2004 as a Managing Director of the Investment Banking Division and Head of the U.S. Retail Industry Practice. Subsequently he became a Managing Director and Global Sector Head for the Retail and Distribution Industries at HSBC and later joined Credit Suisse as Managing Director and Co-Head of the Americas Retail Group. Bill left investment banking in 2008 and entered private practice where he invested on behalf of a family office based in Austin, Texas in service energy retail aviation and financial private companies. In this connection Bill and members of his family have formed Wolf Partners and Lobo Leasing to invest in and arrange financing for private companies in the energy aviation and financial services among other sectors.

Jennifer Parker, M.S.

Co-chair

Jen Parker earned her Bachelor of Arts in English from Boston College and a Masters of Science from Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism. She started her career at Fidelity Investments in Boston. After moving west, she marketed her way through the dot com bubble, first at Zoom Marketing, a high tech consulting firm, and later as Director of Marketing at iMotors. In 2016 co-founded UCSF's Pediatric Epilepsy Center of Excellence (PECE) with Dr. Joseph Sullivan after realizing the need for a better whole patient approach while caring for her youngest with severe epilepsy. PECE now serves hundreds of kids in San Francisco and Oakland, providing counseling and therapy for families struggling with an epilepsy diagnosis. Jen is a writer and essayist, publishing on medium and substack, and served on the Board of Pied Piper Players, a community theater non-profit from 2018-2021. She is married and has four children, and likes to run whenever possible.

Kinga E. Czegeni, M.SP.ED., CABMP

Board Member

Kinga is a Co-Founder of Avalon. She holds a master’s degree in Special Education (with an emphasis in Physical and Health Impairments) as well as a California teaching credential. She was a Lecturer at San Francisco State University for over a decade, where she taught a graduate course on the Implications and Management of Physical Disabilities and Sensory Impairments. Kinga entered the field of special education at the International Peto Institute in Budapest, Hungary. She graduated with High Honors in 1996 with a degree in elementary education majoring in special education of motor-disabled children. Kinga was recruited to California in 1997 where she contributed to the establishment of two programs for children with cerebral palsy. Kinga is a certified practitioner in the Anat Baniel Method®. She is a graduate of the Mastery Program which encompasses children with special needs.

After 17 years of service, in March of 2022, Kinga stepped down as Avalon’s Executive Director. She continues to serve on the board of directors.

Currently Kinga dedicates her time to her private practice, Mov/Mi, providing therapeutic services for newly diagnosed babies and their families, children with special needs (Cerebral Palsy, movement disorders, ASD, ADHD), adults with chronic pain, and high performers.

Lynette Mullens, M.D., PH.D.

Board Member

Lynette Mullens is a Co-Founder of Avalon. Lynette qualified as an M.D. with Honours from the University of London, England, in 1987. She was awarded a Ph.D. from the same university in 1993 and subsequently joined the headquarters of GlaxoWellcome, a major multinational pharmaceutical company. Lynette specialized in clinical research and development of drugs for the treatment of neurologic and psychiatric disorders. She was the principal physician on the international team responsible for the development of the antiepileptic drug Lamictal in both the U.S. and Europe . This drug is commonly used for the treatment of seizures associated with conditions such as cerebral palsy in both children and adults. After moving to California in 1999, Lynette worked for a start-up company which collaborated with non-profit organizations to provide patients with online access to clinical trials. This experience inspired her to contemplate a new venture aimed at enhancing the lives of children who have cerebral palsy. Lynette has three children, the eldest of whom has cerebral palsy.

Bryan Vu, B.A.

Board Member

Bryan Vu earned his Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy, Politics & Economics from Pomona College in Claremont, California. After starting his career as a Business Analyst (Accenture), Technical Consultant (Trilogy Software), and Sales Engineer (Art Technology Group) in Los Angeles and Austin during the dot-com boom and bust, Bryan moved to the SF Bay Area. At Google for nine years, Bryan managed and grew several business and technical teams in Google’s AdSense, Gmail, DoubleClick and AdExchange businesses. Most recently, he served as VP of Product at Lightning Labs, a venture-backed digital currency payments startup based in San Francisco. Bryan has two children, the eldest of whom has a rare genetic condition (Chromosome 18q deletion)., B.A.

Melanie Huntley, PH.D.

Board Member

Melanie Huntley was awarded a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology & Mathematics in 2001 and a Ph.D. in Computational Biology from McMaster University in Canada in 2006. Since moving to the Bay Area in 2010, her career as a scientist & data scientist, now in the Personalized Healthcare organization at Genentech, has been inspired by her daughter, who suffers from a severe and treatment resistant form of epilepsy called Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome (LGS). Melanie is a staunch advocate for the special needs community, and also serves as a board member and past president of the LGS Foundation. During her free time, she most enjoys activities that light up her daughter’s face with joy, like Avalon celebrations, and therapeutic horse riding.

Dan Heller

Board Member

Dan graduated from Carnegie Mellon with a Bachelor's degree in Computer Science. He worked as a Software Engineer at Indeed, Google, and IBM over 17 years, and for the last 8 years has been leading Enterprise IT teams at Indeed, currently as a Sr Director of Engineering. Originally from New Jersey, Dan lived in Austin, TX for 15 years before moving to California and putting down roots in the SF East Bay. Dan is married with three children, and his oldest son has attended The Avalon Academy since 2022. In addition to family adventures with the kids, Dan is active in his local community and enjoys outdoor work around the home.

Kelly Steitz

Board Member

Kelly Steitz is the Chief Marketing Officer at One Marketplace, where she guides brand and marketing strategy for the nation's largest interior solutions provider. In 2009, she co-founded AbleCloset, a nonprofit lending library of adaptive equipment, inspired by her eldest daughter, Kylee, who has cerebral palsy. Kylee has been part of the Avalon community since the age of six, and after a four-year move to support her younger daughter through high school, the family returned specifically for the care and connection Avalon provides. Kelly enjoys spending time with her two daughters and celebrating the milestones, big and small, that light up Kylee's smile.