Accountable to our scholars and to the community.

Sheila Burgess

President

A resident of Berkeley with two young children, Sheila brings a deep background in executive search and leadership development, with expertise in inclusive hiring and talent strategies. Her experience building effective relationships and teams will help guide BCS as it continues to grow.

Brittney Gwynn

Vice President

A resident of Berkeley with a passion for expanding access to education and opportunity, Brittney is a seasoned leader and builder. She has led product launches and growth strategies at both startups and global companies. Brittney brings creativity, strategic thinking, and a focus on sustainable growth to her role on the board.

Jamil Bashir

Treasurer

Jamil Bashir has spent his career working at the intersection of business and health, holding leadership roles across various organizations. He is currently a Senior Finance Manager at Genentech, working with their Corporate Business Development team to drive sustainable external innovation. Prior to his current role, Jamil worked across several areas of Genentech and Roche, including a stint in Saudi Arabia as the Country CFO. Prior to joining Genentech, Jamil worked in Benefits Consulting for two of the largest consulting firms. He earned a Bachelor in Business Administration, Summa Cum Laude, from the Fox School of Business at Temple University. He also holds Master of Business Administration and Master of Public Health degrees from the University of California, Berkeley. He resides in Walnut Creek with his wife and four young children.

Olivia Lucas

Co-Secretary

Born and raised in the Bay Area, Olivia brings her passion for racial equity and economic mobility to the BCS Board. She holds a Master of Public Affairs from Princeton University and a bachelor’s degree from Mount Holyoke College, and has built her career in local government and policy—combining a keen analytical mind with a commitment to advancing opportunities for young people in her community.

Ilse Daniela Rueda Wallace

Co-Secretary

Ilse Daniela Rueda Wallace is an alum of the organization, as she was awarded the Berkeley Community Scholars High Hopes Scholarship in 2011. She is a proud indigenous, first-generation college graduate receiving her B.A. in Child and Adolescent Development from San Francisco State University. Ilse is also a former Education Specialist, serving middle and high school students and their families in the Berkeley and Oakland communities. As the recent Chair of the school’s Special Education Department, Ilse had the opportunity to coach other educators and participated in multiple district-wide forums regarding mental health and academic programs. In collaboration with a few other educators, Ilse’s grassroots fundraising efforts during the recent pandemic financially supported over 200 immigrant families. Ilse now works for a biotechnological pharmaceutical company assisting the Research & Development Operations senior leadership. Her personal connection to cancer fuels her work with the operational activities of oncology clinical trials. Ilse’s passion for program development, scholar advocacy, and social justice allows her to be an essential community leader who can bridge her many experiences and network across industries.

Lauren Barbato

Lauren is a Berkeley resident and a People Analytics Lead who uses data to build more effective organizations. For over a decade, she has led teams in designing and evaluating company-wide efforts to improve management, leadership, promotions, performance management, and pay. The BCS mission resonates deeply with her, and she will bring her expertise in developing data-driven frameworks and interventions to help BCS remove systemic barriers for its students.

Lila Beckford, CPA

Lila is a CPA and CFO with about 30 years of broad and deep experience with public and private companies, ranging from start-ups to multinational ventures in various industries. She is a leader in promoting strong corporate financial and operational risk management and in optimizing opportunities within a framework of good governance and business ethics. Lila joined the board in 2022 and serves on the Financial and Racial Equity Committees.

As an immigrant from a financially challenged family, Lila understands that education is a “way up.” Determination and a little help from the community make a big difference in a student’s future.

Lila’s own path through higher education started at Diablo Valley College. She transferred to and earned a BS in Business Administration from University of California, Berkeley. She later earned an MBA from California State University, Hayward. In addition to her work with BCS, Lila serves on the board of the Concord Shiva Murugan Temple and on the Finance Committee of Breast Cancer Prevention Partners, another non-profit.

Peter Brock

Peter Brock has been a licensed architect and woodworker for over 40 years, 30 of them in Berkeley. He has been a volunteer with the San Francisco Zen Center for 20 years and a mentor with Berkeley Community Scholars for 13. He is committed to helping young people navigate the passage to a fulfilling role in society and to helping society achieve the richness that only true diversity, equity and inclusion can provide. Peter holds a bachelor degree from Princeton University and a Masters in Architecture from the University of California, Berkeley. He has 3 grown children and lives with his wife in Fairfax.

Deb Cooksey

Deborah A. Cooksey is a VP and the General Counsel at WestEd, a large research & development agency that works with federal and state governments, educational institutions, and other communities to promote excellence, achieve equity, and improve learning for children, youth, and adults. Prior to joining WestEd in 2019, she worked as in-house counsel for large urban school districts in the Bay Area. She specialized in labor negotiations, complex public employee dismissals, and Board governance/ advice. Deb has also served as an adjunct professor at UC Berkeley in both the Master of Education Program and in the School Psychologist Doctoral Program. She is a graduate of the Georgetown School of Foreign Service (where she was a Community Scholar) and the Georgetown Law Center. Deb also serves on the Board of the Urban League of the Bay Area.

Gwyneth Galbraith

Gwyneth Galbraith is a strategic development consultant with more than 25 years of experience creating successful strategies to develop, fund, and implement high-impact programs focused on financial inclusion, economic development, and education. Her consulting practice offers expert research, analysis, strategy development, and thought partnership to non-profit organizations and leaders looking for new ideas and a fresh perspective. Previously, Gwyneth served as Chief Development Officer at Opportunity Fund, a leading Community Development Financial Institution providing responsible financial products to underserved entrepreneurs and communities. During her 15+ year tenure, she helped build Opportunity Fund into the nation’s largest nonprofit lender to small businesses. She has also served as Development Director at UC Berkeley and the University of Chicago. Gwyneth holds a BA from the University of Pennsylvania and an MBA from UC Berkeley.

Evan Ho

Evan is an alumni of Berkeley Community Scholars, joining the program as a scholar in 2013. He is a first-generation college graduate, and a true Berkeley local; he attended elementary, middle, and high school all in Berkeley, and proceeded to earn his bachelor’s degree from UC Berkeley. He majored in Molecular and Environmental Biology, with a minor in teaching and simultaneously earning his K-12 teaching credential. He proceeded to teach 8th grade science at Willard in Berkeley for several years, before earning his master’s from San Francisco State University. He is now currently a PhD student at UC Santa Cruz, conducting research in population genetics and disease. He is passionate about both research and teaching, and is enthusiastic about rejoining BCS as both a first time mentor and new board member.

Ursula Yearwood

Ursula Yearwood joins Berkeley Community Scholars with over 15 years of experience in educational settings in underserved communities. She has served as an Art Educator, Lead Teacher, and Dean of Students with the Knowledge is Power Program and Aspire Public Schools. Her career in education grew from a desire to understand diverse learning styles and a conviction that all students can learn. After graduating from the University of California, Berkeley with a B.A. in Sociology, she obtained an Ed.M from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. With two elementary age children, Ursula has volunteered in Berkeley and West Contra Costa public schools as a member of School Governance Councils, English Learner Advisory Committees, and as a school volunteer. She has also become an expert in navigating the rights of and accommodations available to students with special needs. She continues to insist on raising a bilingual family and loves nothing more than watching children get lost in their own creativity.

Marcus Stevenson

Working at the intersection of Humans and Artificial Intelligence, Marcus Stevenson serves as the Sr. Manager of AI Augmentation and Role Redesign at Salesforce. He’s leading cross-functional initiatives to help redesign key business units across the company and setting the precedent for how an AI-augmented workforce will drive growth and a competitive edge. This former Year Up Bay Area Alumni is passionate about driving impact in the local community and lifting while climbing.

Dr. Lori Watson

An educator and highly skilled consultant, coach, trainer, and public speaker, Dr. Lori Watson has devoted her career to transforming schools and organizations through anti-racism and inclusion. She currently resides in the Bay Area and supports numerous school districts and organizations. Her leadership and insight will help strengthen BCS’s ongoing work for educational equity.