Board of Directors*
*School Health Clinics is actively seeking patients or patient family members who are interested in joining our Board of Directors. Learn more about the role of board members here or email us directly at info@schoolhealthclinic.org.
Susan Aldrich
Susan is a credentialed school nurse for San Jose Unified School District, and currently serves as a Program Coordinator for the Health and Family Support Programs Department. She was born and raised in Michigan, and has lived in California for 20 years. Susan has been a member of the School Health Board of Directors since 2011.
Debra Cohen
Dr. Debra Cohen practiced for 30 years as a pediatric endocrinologist with Kaiser Permanente. Since that time, she has volunteered for a number of organizations, all health-care related with missions to help the under-served. She has served on the board of School Health Clinics for 2 years and enjoys participating in the Quality Improvement committee.
Anna Costa, Board Chair
Anna joined the Board of Directors in January 2017 and became Board Chair in January 2020. Anna is currently a Finance Project Manager at Google where she has worked since 2013. She also spent five years in public accounting with PricewaterhouseCoopers. She has a Masters in Public Policy and Administration from American University and a bachelor's in Business Administration from the University of Portland, where she double majored in Finance and Accounting and minored in Political Science.
Hemanth Gangaram, Clinic Committee Chair
Hemanth is a data analytics strategist & technology leader. He is currently managing various transformative Enterprise Analytics initiatives at Intuitive Surgical. He has helped many large enterprises & startups with digital transformation in leadership roles. More recently with First Tech Credit Union, a financial services organization, and previously at United Airlines, in driving and implementing a change through analytics strategy, actionable data insights and building digital capabilities. While he is not busy enabling organizations achieve their analytical maturity, he is passionate about helping shape kids & youth future through sports, STEM (Robotics) & other entrepreneurial initiatives. He is an active volunteer & board member with multiple non-profit organizations such as AYSO, CULytics, South Asian Heart Center & Taproot Foundation. Hemanth holds an MBA from San Francisco State University and a bachelor's in Mechanical Engineering from Bangalore University in India.
Hemanth is a data analytics strategist & technology leader. He is currently managing various transformative Enterprise Analytics initiatives at Intuitive Surgical. He has helped many large enterprises & startups with digital transformation in leadership roles. More recently with First Tech Credit Union, a financial services organization, and previously at United Airlines, in driving and implementing a change through analytics strategy, actionable data insights and building digital capabilities. While he is not busy enabling organizations achieve their analytical maturity, he is passionate about helping shape kids & youth future through sports, STEM (Robotics) & other entrepreneurial initiatives. He is an active volunteer & board member with multiple non-profit organizations such as AYSO, CULytics, South Asian Heart Center & Taproot Foundation. Hemanth holds an MBA from San Francisco State University and a bachelor's in Mechanical Engineering from Bangalore University in India.
Elissa S. Lee
Elissa (she/her/hers) joined the Board of Directors in 2020. She writes on health and healthcare for the Center for Health Journalism and the Southern California News Group, and consults on health programming for nonprofits such as Lady Gaga's Born This Way Foundation. Previously, she worked at Too Small to Fail, coordinating a national campaign to promote the importance of early brain and language development in children ages 0-5. Elissa recently graduated with her doctoral degree in occupational therapy at USC, studying chronic care management for medically underserved populations. For her work, she was named a Student Innovator by the Gehr Family Center for Health Systems Science and Innovation. She also holds an M.A. from USC and a B.A. from UC Berkeley, where she majored in psychology and has minors in disability studies and dance and performance studies.
Elissa (she/her/hers) joined the Board of Directors in 2020. She writes on health and healthcare for the Center for Health Journalism and the Southern California News Group, and consults on health programming for nonprofits such as Lady Gaga's Born This Way Foundation. Previously, she worked at Too Small to Fail, coordinating a national campaign to promote the importance of early brain and language development in children ages 0-5. Elissa recently graduated with her doctoral degree in occupational therapy at USC, studying chronic care management for medically underserved populations. For her work, she was named a Student Innovator by the Gehr Family Center for Health Systems Science and Innovation. She also holds an M.A. from USC and a B.A. from UC Berkeley, where she majored in psychology and has minors in disability studies and dance and performance studies.
Jocelyn Melendez, Secretary/Treasurer
Jocelyn currently works as a Behavioral Health Technician at Opya, Inc. where she provides therapy to children who are diagnosed with ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder). She holds a bachelor’s degree in Social and Behavioral Sciences and a minor in Social Work from California State University, Monterey Bay. She joined School Health Clinics’ board in 2020 and enjoys serving on the Behavioral Health Committee.
Lexi Moore, Vice Chair
Lexi is a biomedical engineer with Stryker Sports Medicine, where she has worked since 2019. She focuses on product sustainment activities for mechanical, electro-mechanical, and software product, implementing post-launch design changes to the field. Prior to joining Stryker, Lexi was in a rotational program for AtriCure, a cardiac medical device company. She is passionate about accessible healthcare in its entirety. Lexi has a bachelor's degree in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Cincinnati.
Reena Patel, Audit Committee Chair
Reena is an Assurance Senior Manager at Burr Pilger Mayer, Inc, and has more than sixteen years of extensive experience in public accounting and consulting services for a variety of private and publicly traded companies in high-tech (software and SAAS), manufacturing, construction, and agriculture industries, significant experience in performing audits of multinational companies, and technical expertise in revenue recognition, business combinations and equity transactions.
Jessica Vo
Jessica is a student at Boston University, completing a B.S. in Business Administration with a concentration in Management Information System and Business Analytics. Her career aspiration is to work in the health-tech industry, where she will use data to solve healthcare problems. Jessica has been a patient at the San José High Neighborhood Health Clinic for 14 years, allowing her to gain first-hand experience with the services of the School Health Clinics. With her background, she hopes to further the School Health Clinics’ mission by sharing her insightful perspectives as a patient board member.
Jessica is a student at Boston University, completing a B.S. in Business Administration with a concentration in Management Information System and Business Analytics. Her career aspiration is to work in the health-tech industry, where she will use data to solve healthcare problems. Jessica has been a patient at the San José High Neighborhood Health Clinic for 14 years, allowing her to gain first-hand experience with the services of the School Health Clinics. With her background, she hopes to further the School Health Clinics’ mission by sharing her insightful perspectives as a patient board member.
VanAnh (Vivi) Vo
Through a public health and technology lens, Vivi aims to understand how innovations can be used to make health systems and healthcare access more efficient and effective for vulnerable populations. Her array of experiences includes exploring health technology through a policy lens at the National Academy of Medicine, conducting health technology research from a global perspective at Aix-Marseille Universite, analyzing uptake of clinical decision support tools at Columbia University, and connecting social care with health care at Unite Us. Additionally, Vivi is passionate about global health and has experience working in France, Niger, and Vietnam. She is excited to see how healthcare technology can support and bridge healthcare gaps to produce healthier communities. She holds an MPH in Epidemiology and a certificate in Health Policy and Practice from Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health and a BA in Public Health: Health, Behavior, and Society from the University of Rochester.
Through a public health and technology lens, Vivi aims to understand how innovations can be used to make health systems and healthcare access more efficient and effective for vulnerable populations. Her array of experiences includes exploring health technology through a policy lens at the National Academy of Medicine, conducting health technology research from a global perspective at Aix-Marseille Universite, analyzing uptake of clinical decision support tools at Columbia University, and connecting social care with health care at Unite Us. Additionally, Vivi is passionate about global health and has experience working in France, Niger, and Vietnam. She is excited to see how healthcare technology can support and bridge healthcare gaps to produce healthier communities. She holds an MPH in Epidemiology and a certificate in Health Policy and Practice from Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health and a BA in Public Health: Health, Behavior, and Society from the University of Rochester.
