About the Team

Rebecca Tomasini

Rebecca Tomasini, Founder and CEO

Rebecca leads Alvo’s work to help schools bring technology and instructional innovation together with effective, traditional practices. Rebecca’s vision for Alvo is shaped deeply by her years working as a classroom teacher with at risk high school English Learners at Bell Gardens High Schools in Bell Gardens, California. A fierce advocate for English Learners and their families, Rebecca was awarded the California Association of Bilingual Educators’ Teacher of the Year Award in 2002 for advancing student achievement among her students.

In 2007 she left the classroom to work on scalable classroom supports.  After designing and running the nation’s first statewide student achievement data management program for the California Charter Schools Association, Rebecca joined the senior management team at KC Distance Learning, later K12, Inc., where she was the Senior Director of Instruction and Evaluation for online learning implementations across the country.

Prior to focusing her work on education reform, Rebecca spent several years in private sector equity research, financial marketing, and mergers and acquisitions with companies including Goldman Sachs, Deutsche Bank, Cushman & Wakefield. She has been an adjunct professor and advisory board member at Claremont Graduate University, School of Education, Portland State University and Lewis & Clark College.

Rebecca has lived in Greece and England and loves to explore places near and far.  She lives in Oakland, CA with her adopted dog, Seymour, where you will find her gardening, at the beach, or walking in the beautiful Redwood forests.

She earned a BA in English at Smith College, an MA of Renaissance Studies at the University of London, and an MA of Education and Community Development at Claremont Graduate University’s School of Education. Contact Rebecca at .

Chase Davenport

Chase Davenport, Managing Director of Instructional Innovation and Evaluation

At Alvo, Chase works closely with school and district leadership teams to help them dream of, design, and implement blended learning programs. Chase, a nationally recognized leader on issues of accountability and quality measures, leads Alvo’s educational leadership supports and blended design accountability measures.

Previously, Chase was a senior editor and content manager for eScore, an online provider for basic academic skills development and an Instructional Designer at Digital Think, an online adult training company. Chase has developed a wide range of curricula for various age groups and audiences including special education, technology, core academic subjects, and industry-specific training.

Chase started his education career as a classroom teacher and has taught at the middle and high school levels. After ten years in the classroom, he participated in the design team for the development of an elementary charter school in Oakland, CA. After a few years in the private sector he returned to the charter world to run a school in Oakland and then joined the California Charter Schools Association where he served as Director of School Quality, Vice President of School Development and Support and, most recently, Vice President of Accountability and Performance Management. He also serves as a Commissioner for the Western Association of Schools and Colleges.

Currently, Chase resides in Berkeley, CA.

Chase earned his BA in History from Pitzer College in Claremont, CA, and his Master’s in Curriculum and Teacher Education from Stanford University. Contact Chase at

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David Richards, Founder & CEO, Growth Public Schools, Adjunct Consultant to The Alvo Institute

David brings over 15 years of experience teaching and administering in suburban and urban schools in the Bay Area and in Latin America.  The majority of his time has been with Summit Public Schools, an innovative charter network in the Bay Area, where he was a teacher, principal, executive director and most recently the chief of schools.  During his time at Summit, his responsibilities have included program design, hiring, evaluation, student recruitment, budget development and management, curriculum and instruction, discipline, fundraising, and leadership development

As a teacher at Summit Prep, David served in multiple leadership roles and helped build the school to national prominence.  He played an integral role in the growth of Summit Public Schools, as the founding administrator for Summit’s third and fourth school in East San Jose.  During his time as executive director of Summit San Jose, David brought a vision to reimagine the American high school and helped create a blended school model.  He led the organization to ultimately overhaul the school model into next generation schools that leverage the power of technology and focus on deeper learning to prepare students for success in the 21st Century.  Before Summit, David taught history and government in Oakland, and abroad in Mexico and Costa Rica.  He also worked as a curriculum writer and a special education consultant.  Prior to his career as a teacher and administrator, Mr. Richards worked in various fields in the business and non-profit sector.  He worked in public relations in London and San Francisco, and in media and public policy in Washington, D.C.  David currently lives in San Jose, CA with his wife and kids.

Mr. Richards holds both a BA in History from UC Berkeley as well as an MA in Education from Stanford University.

Andrea Strosberg

Andrea Strosberg, Director of Virtual Support

Andrea supports teachers who take part in Alvo’s blended learning programs by creating and delivering a variety of Alvo’s professional development materials.  Through webinars and one-on-one support, Andrea works with teachers to develop their lesson plans, blended classroom designs, procedures, and student evaluation practices. Andrea’s teaching experience is in elementary and middle school as well as in Judaic, dual language, and curriculum programs.

Andrea currently lives and teaches in Buffalo, New York. Andrea has a diverse background of classroom teaching experiences including an array of elementary grades in independent and public schools in New York City and St. Louis, Missouri.  Andrea loves introducing her students to the rich world of books, critical thinking, creative projects, and even music—she enjoys playing and teaching classical violin.

She earned a BA from Washington University in St. Louis, where she studied Elementary Education and Philosophy-Neuroscience-Psychology. Contact Andrea at .

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Jillian Peters, Virtual PD Support & Communications

Adjunct Consultant

Jillian brings her deep experience as a classroom teacher and school leader together with her training in organizational operations to her Alvo work.  Jillian supports the Alvo leadership team in partnering with districts and schools who are ready to personalize and blend their teaching and learning practices. She also helps Alvo document and share lessons learned in the field through video and written case studies.  If you join one of Alvo’s many professional development opportunities, you will meet Jillian online in Alvo’s Online Innovation and Support Portal where she supports teachers and school leaders with personalized and practical supports that help educators move into blended learning methods.

Prior to joining Alvo, Jillian served as a founder and Assistant Principal at KIPP Courage, a school that serves as a national model for charter-traditional district partnerships and a pace-setter for personalized learning through blended methods. She began her education career as a Teach For America corps member, teaching middle school humanities and science in the Houston Independent School District.

She enjoys traveling, cooking and eating good food, and hiking.

Jillian earned her BA in Political Science from the University of Florida. She earned her MBA from Rice University and completed a fellowship with the Rice Education Entrepreneurship Program (REEP). Contact Jillian at .