Staff
Anne Ehresman—Executive Director
anne@projectcornerstone.org — 408-351-6424
Anne joined Project Cornerstone in January, 2008, bringing 20 years of non-profit leadership that includes fighting childhood hunger, preventing child abuse and developing housing and programs to help low-income families achieve self-sufficiency. Anne was previously Senior Vice President of InnVision the Way Home, overseeing programs serving 15,000 homeless and low-income families and individuals throughout Santa Clara and San Mateo counties. Anne is a member of the YUSA Family Strengthening Expert Panel and in 2011 received an award from the Santa Clara County Human Relations Commission. Anne holds a Master’s in Social Welfare from University of California at Berkeley and Bachelor’s degree from Brown University. Anne is an avid reader, loves spending time with her family and is an active volunteer in her children’s schools.
Linda Silvius—School Partnerships Director
linda@projectcornerstone.org — 408-351-6482
With over four decades of experience in the education and non-profit sectors, Linda leads Project Cornerstone’s School Partnerships program. In her prior role as educational consultant, she helped guide the original process to develop and establish Project Cornerstone. Linda and her team assist, support and guide more than 200 schools in asset-building strategies and programs by working with students, parents, teachers, school staff, principals and district administrators. Her career has led her from teaching high school to entrepreneurial ventures to developing programs for Goodwill Industries of Atlanta and back to California and Project Cornerstone.
Brenda Serna—Los Dichos Program Coordinator
brenda@projectcornerstone.org — 408-351-6462
Brenda manages the Los Dichos de la Casa program and our ever-growing work in supporting the Spanish-speaking community. She also leads Take It Personally parent groups and leads workshops and conducts presentations in Spanish and English. She holds a bachelor's degree in Behavioral Science and Psychology from San Jose Sate University. She is passionate about serving the Silicon Valley Communities and being a positive role model for youth. Brenda has prior experience in the non-profit sector and working with the Latino population, as an after school program coordinator for the Cesar Chavez Foundation.
Elizabeth Franco - Director of Development and Communications
elizabeth@projectcornerstone.org — 408-351-6425
For the last several years, Elizabeth has worked to establish Project Cornerstone at her children's school, working with the ABC program, Expect Respect and the middle school book clubs program. She has a passion for building strong communities and worked for over a decade with at-risk children and families as both an educator and a social worker. She has worked in elementary schools in East Los Angeles and San Jose, where she first began partnering with Project Cornerstone. Elizabeth has a Master's degree in Social Work from San Jose State University and a Bachelor's degree in history from Loyola Marymount University. In her position with Project Cornerstone she works to secure continued funding for our programs and to maintain communications with our community.
Lori Maitski—ABC Program Coordinator
lori@projectcornerstone.org — 408-351-6457
Lori Maitski first became involved with Project Cornerstone as a parent facilitator for Taking Asset Building Personally (now known as Take It Personally) study groups in 2002, and joined our staff in 2004. She works with adult volunteers in the Asset Building Champions (ABC), Los Dichos and Lunch Time Fun programs and trains parent facilitators for Take It Personally study groups. Lori’s prior experience includes teaching a bilingual kindergarten/first grade classroom and more than ten years of active volunteerism in her children’s schools. Lori enjoys helping other parents learn more about the asset approach to parenting, keeping track of her two adult children and spending time with her husband.
Soma McCandless—School Support Specialist (Midpeninsula)
soma@projectcornerstone.org – 408-351-6430
After volunteering with Project Cornerstone for almost 5 years, Soma McCandless joined the staff in 2011. As a volunteer, she started and led the Asset Building Champions (ABC) program at her children's school, supported the Expect Respect program, helped other local schools launch ABC programs, and started an initiative to incorporate Responsible Digital Citizenship curriculum into the existing ABC framework. Soma is passionate about enhancing the lives of children. She has held several leadership positions and won awards for her community service efforts in her neighborhood, at her local school, and at the school district level. She will be focusing on working with schools and communities in the northern end of Santa Clara County and continuing her work with promoting Responsible Digital Citizenship. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Prior to her career in community service, Soma worked as a software analyst, consultant, and project manager at Accenture, ThyssenKrupp, and IBM.
Kelly Noftz—Youth Partnerships Coordinator
kelly@projectcornerstone.org — 408-351-6498
Kelly first became involved with Project Cornerstone as a member of a Taking Asset Building Personally (TABP) study group in 2003. In 2006, Kelly joined the School Partnerships team at as a facilitator for Expect Respect. In these workshops, Kelly helps students understand how to identify and address bullying, and work together to create a supportive environment on their campus.
Michelle Onishi—Administrative Assistant
michelle@projectcornerstone.org — 408-351-6482
Michelle joined Project Cornerstone after serving as the ABC lead volunteer at her children's elementary school for five years. With a degree in business administration and twelve years of experience in database management and customer support, her skills help keep Project Cornerstone's countywide programs running smoothly. In her free time, Michelle tutors elementary school students in a math enrichment program and enjoys spending time with her husband and two teenage sons.
