ARISE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Deborah Meister is an educator, coach, and consultant who has worked to increase student achievement along multiple dimensions for black and brown students in public schools and education non-profits for over ten years.

Most recently, Deborah was an Academic Director at Lighthouse Community Public Schools, where she had been an instructional coach. Deborah helped lead the implementation of the EL Education model, strategic planning, curriculum implementation, and professional learning as a partner to school leaders K-12. Prior to that she was a science teacher at Marina High and Willow Glen High, and a coach at East Side Union High School District and Breakthrough Silicon Valley.

In addition to working in schools, Deborah develops and trains new mentors and coaches, and coaches leaders from across industries to grow personally and develop strong teams in inclusive environments. She believes not only in the imperative to ensure that all students learn in loving and rigorous schools, but that teachers are supported to thrive professionally, engage their curiosity, and refine their craft.

Deborah is a first-generation college graduate who knows the multi-generational impact of educational access as a language learner. She earned her bachelor’s degree in biological science from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, did a brief stint as a doctoral student at the University of Illinois where she discovered her love for teaching, and completed her master’s in education from National University. She is also certified in Solutions-Focused Coaching through Erickson International. She grew up in Costa Rica, and now resides in Concord with her husband, daughter, and tuxedo cat.

Maria Arechiga is a product of Bay Area charter schools and a native of Oakland, CA, Maria is passionate about ensuring that all students have access to a high quality education and opportunities beyond that. She has worked and volunteered as a tutor and mentor with a variety of mentorship programs. Maria is currently the Operations Manager for Making Waves Academy, where she oversees school operations functions for the middle school division. Prior to that, she led operations for Alpha Public Schools as the Senior Manager of Regional Operations. As a founding staff member of the flagship school, she supported the growth from one school to a network of four schools. During her time there, she focused on building capacity of the operations team, system creation and implementation, school operations support and reporting and compliance and served as Board Secretary and Treasurer.

Maria earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Human Biology with a focus in education and public health from Stanford University.

Melissa Iglesias is a UC Berkeley Graduate and ARISE student alumna. She was born and raised in East Oakland and has found a passion for working within her community since returning to ARISE as an Academic Mentor. She is proud and excited to be a part of the ARISE team and work towards holding exceptional standards for our students. Melissa is also a fan of coffee, new foods, and the outdoors.

DeVan is originally from Indianapolis, but has deep roots in the Bay Area and spent summers here as a kid. He moved from Indiana to serve as an AmeriCorps Fellow with Catholic Charities East Bay in Oakland and Richmond in 2016 where he supported several community programs and established his foundation in restorative practices, youth mental first aid and student support services, and community resourcing. He made impactful connections in the community during his time and has loved making the Bay his home the past 7 years. 

DeVan has six years of experience working in local government, non-profit, and higher education spaces to address challenges around sustainable community development, public health, and holistic student support. He currently serves as a consultant for state governments where he provides strategic budget and project management support for agency programs, complex strategic procurement sourcing, and other health and human service projects. He has also provided consulting services in other areas, including early childhood and elementary education, and end-to-end grant support. Previously, he has worked abroad with local partners to implement sustainable economic and public health programs, served in local government collaborating with local agencies and organizations on strategic resourcing requests to support healthcare infrastructure during the pandemic.

In his spare time, he enjoys being a dad and spending time with family, traveling, exploring outdoors, and playing basketball and soccer. 

DeVan holds a Master of Public Affairs (M.P.A.) from the Paul H. O’Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs at Indiana University and a B.A. in Political Science from Wabash College.

Romeo Garcia was born in Philippines and grew up in East Oakland. He attended Oakland Unified School District from K - 9th grades. In high school, he participated in the A Better Chance Program, a scholarship program for high potential students from low-income communities. He moved to Altadena, California and attended John Muir High School in the neighboring city of Pasadena. While in high school he was a participant in the Occidental College Upward Bound Program and went on to attend Occidental College where he majored in Theater Arts and Rhetoric. After graduation, Romeo moved back to Oakland and decided that he wanted to be a teacher. He enrolled in graduate studies at Mills College, where he earned his California Teaching Credential and Masters in Education. Romeo has completed most of his coursework for a Doctoral Degree in Education, to be followed by his dissertation. Romeo has taught at the elementary, secondary and college levels in Oakland.

After 15 years as an administrator at Mills College, Romeo joined with Laura Flaxman and Emma Paulino in 2005 to bring together a design team of community members to develop what is now ARISE High School. Romeo served as the Co-Principal of ARISE with Laura Flaxman. He is proud of his role in creating and leading the implementation of the foundational elements that ARISE continues build upon.

In 2011, Romeo left ARISE and created Transformational Consultancy where he worked as an educational consultant in the Bay Area. Two of his long term consultancies were as the Executive Director of the Peralta Community Colleges Foundation and then Dean of Student Services and Special Programs at Merritt College.

In 2015, Romeo achieved his long term dream of moving to Hawai’i when he was selected to be the Po’o Kumu (Director) of the Laupāhoehoe Community Public Charter School. Romeo is currently the Po’o Kumu of Connections Public Charter School in Hilo, Hawai’i. Romeo has spent his career as an educator, living the ōlelo no’eau (Hawaiian proverb) - A’ohe pau ka ike I ka halau ho’okahi. (All knowledge does not exist in one school).