A Note from Board Chair Zac Zeitlin
When the bell rings to open the 2024–25 school year, with all classes back together again at the Bryant Street campus, we will welcome a new year of possibility and promise. I want to extend a warm welcome to Julia Russell Eells, Castilleja’s Interim Head of School. As a Board, we are excited about our partnership with Julia, learning from her vast experience and continuing to advance Castilleja amidst both a Head transition and construction.
Meanwhile, the Board is energized and focused on completing Open Their World—The Campaign for Castilleja. Together, we will build a new campus that mirrors our unparalleled commitment to Women Learning, Women Leading. We need your help to accelerate this momentum!
I am grateful to Campaign Co-chairs Cindy Goldberg P’17 and Stephanie Chen P’26 for leading the campaign and am looking forward to working closely with them on this extraordinary effort. This is the first edition of our semiannual campaign newsletter, designed to inform and inspire. As you read about our progress, you will learn more about the impact of your investments.
Of course, Castilleja’s students and faculty are at the center of the campaign and the campus modernization project. Together, we will make new spaces that match the brilliance of our community and advance the school’s mission to educate more women leaders.
The generosity of our campaign donors—trustees, parents, alums, and friends of the school—will enable us to reach these ambitious goals. As a school in the heart of Silicon Valley, our community is filled with trailblazers and innovators who know what it means to lead. Every gift matters, and I want to personally thank you for your foundational support as leadership donors. You are helping Castilleja open a new world of growth and opportunity for generations of Castilleja students!
Zac Zeitlin P’24 Chair, Board of Trustees
$97,143,598 $125,000,000 77.7%
By the Numbers pledged to date. campaign goal. progress toward goal. campaign donors. We increased the goal from $100 million to reflect the increased cost of the capital project.
214
The success of Open Their World depends not only on many generous donors, but also on the strength of our campaign leadership. Thank you for demonstrating your belief in Castilleja’s mission, and in women leaders everywhere, through your service to the school.
Capital Campaign Steering Committee
Stephanie Chen P’26, Co-chair
Cindy Goldberg P’17, Co-chair
Jamaica Kreps P’28 ‘30
Sarah Sands P’16 ‘19
Mary Speiser P’20 ‘22
Zac Zeitlin P’24, Board Chair
Julia Russell Eells, Interim Head of School
Sue KimHA, Director of Advancement
Caroline New ’01, Director of the Capital Campaign and Major Gifts
Voices from around the Circle
“My career in education began at The Ethel Walker School and I went on to spend 27 years in three different girls’ schools. Over the decades, I have followed Castilleja with deep respect and admiration, as Castilleja has long been considered to be a beacon among all-girls schools nationally. I am honored to be leading this storied institution during such a pivotal time in its history, and at a crucial moment for women in the wider world today.
During my nine-year tenure as Head of School at University High in San Francisco, I remember vividly my visits to Castilleja with my team to learn more about the incredible work that was happening in the Bourn Lab and the ACE Center. Programs like these are what has kept Castilleja at the forefront of the field, and the modernization of its learning spaces to reflect the unparalleled education will make the school and the student experience even stronger. When I read Castilleja’s Master Plan, it brought back many memories of when I was working with the City of San Francisco to expand University High’s facilities in the Presidio and on California Street in Pacific Heights. As you can imagine, that was no small feat! And we will do the same here in Palo Alto.
I am committed to working with the Board and Advancement team to finish the campaign. The time is now! We must be bold. It is loyal and generous supporters like you who have put Castilleja in such a strong and unique position to truly take on the task of building an entirely new campus. What we do for Castilleja this year has a profound effect on what Head of School-Elect Betty Noel-Pierre can focus on as she leads the school into the future, ensuring that our girls become confident thinkers and compassionate leaders, empowered to change the world.”
—JULIA RUSSELL EELLS, INTERIM HEAD OF SCHOOL
“As a faculty member, I see firsthand the power of a Castilleja education every day. I can only imagine what the campus modernization project will do for our academic program and co-curriculars. We will have the potential to not only keep up with our peers, but to exponentially catalyze intellectual curiosity and innovation among our students. This capital campaign is about building on an already strong foundation and making a promise to future generations of women leaders and their capacity to change the world. What an exciting time to be here!”
—JON ROCKMANHA, FACULTY MEMBER, SCIENCE, AND CLASS OF 2025 DEAN
—DIVYA GANESAN ’21
“Living in Silicon Valley, in a mostly liberal, very techbased bubble, we are in a place that is slightly less diverse, and so putting an emphasis on perspectives other than your own that we wouldn’t usually see and hear, is how you decide what your opinion is. Part of high school is figuring out, ‘Who am I?’ and ‘What do I think and why?’ The only way to do that is to be around more people who think differently from you. The new campus will bring in more students with more perspectives and really allow students to discover who they are.”
Leading the Campus Modernization Project Forward
Trustees Allison Koo ’98 and Ed Chan P’22 ’25 have been hard at work these last several months to ensure Castilleja’s long-awaited construction project will be shovel-ready. Allison and Ed are bringing their professional backgrounds, as experienced developers on large-scale commercial real estate projects, to help the school through the final phases of the planning and permitting process leading up to the groundbreaking. Allison also brings specific Palo Alto experience, having been responsible for numerous commercial redevelopment projects totaling approximately 1.5 million square feet in Palo Alto’s Stanford Research Park.
Allison, Chair of the Buildings and Grounds Committee, speaks to the service mindset behind her volunteerism: “I saw the opportunity to align the expertise I’ve gained over the course of my career with Castilleja’s highest priority. Currently, I am Senior Vice President of development and construction at Menlo Equities. Giving my time to this project is my way of thanking the school for the education I received and hopefully providing the same opportunities for future generations of women leaders. After the school has successfully overcome years of challenges during the project approval, we are excited to lead the next stage of the project to actually get the new campus built and completed.”
Ed, parent of a recent graduate and a current senior, shared, “I know my daughters have experienced the transformative impact of a Castilleja education, and at its core, Castilleja’s mission is as strong as ever. The impact of the 5Cs is tangible. Even still, our facilities are falling behind. The expectations for technology, for sustainability, and for flexibility to allow for interdisciplinary teaching and innovation in the 21st century, especially in Silicon Valley, are very high. The school’s commitment to excellence must be reflected in the classrooms, and the project is vital to ensure Castilleja is still leading the way in the future.”
Allison added, “The school will be able to continue to attract the best students and excellent faculty, who otherwise may have chosen to go elsewhere if Castilleja’s facilities don’t match the ambition of our innovative academic program. We can build an even more powerful network of alums who are ready to make meaningful contributions everywhere they go. With the new campus, we can pave the way for the next generation of Castilleja students as we embrace the rapid pace of change in today’s world.”
During this school year, classes will continue uninterrupted in the existing buildings as construction begins on the underground parking garage below Spieker Field. This phase is expected to last approximately one year. Then, over the course of the following two years, classes will be held on Casti Village, the temporary campus to be built on the field above the garage. Elevated modular classroom buildings will comprise an “academic village” while the main campus is being remodeled. The Joan Z. Lonergan Center, Elizabeth Hughes Chapel Theater, and Gunn Family Administration Building will remain untouched by construction and may be repurposed for other uses during the construction. It is important to note that the disruption to athletics will be minimal, and softball, swimming, and water polo will continue while the new campus is under construction.
“We recognize the Board of Trustees is ultimately responsible for seeing this through,” says Zac Zeitlin P’24 and chair of the board. “I am thankful for Allison and Ed’s leadership, and many who served before them, for bringing us to this point in our history.”
Allison Koo ’98 Trustee
Ed Chan P’22 ’25 Trustee
Inspiring Impact
CELEBRATING THE GENEROSITY OF RAHELEH MANSOOR AND PEDRAM
KEYANI P’29 ’31 WITH THE KEYANI FAMILY LIBRARY AND THE KAZ MANSOOR COMMUNITY HUB
“‘Bike lanes and libraries’—Rah said to me on one of our first dates—’are two things that make this country so amazing.’ When she said that,” Pedram shared with a smile, “I knew she was the one for me.”
Rah explained, “Libraries are free in America. They were a critical part of this country’s evolution as a democracy, allowing us to enjoy the freedoms we have today. I was a really bookish kid, and for me, as the daughter of recent immigrants who were grappling with how to orient themselves in a new country, books were a refuge for me. Anyone can open a book and educate themselves. Libraries, where the free exchange of ideas is encouraged, are a symbol of democracy and have been since ancient times. My parents never said no to the library.”
“It’s a gift to have such a high-caliber educational institution in our backyard.”
As parents of three daughters, Rah and Pedram P’29 ‘31 made a leadership investment in Open Their World—The Campaign for Castilleja. In recognition of their generosity, the Keyani Family Library and Kaz Mansoor Community Hub will bear the names of the family and of Rah’s father. Both Rah and Pedram acknowledge that a school like Castilleja, that has existed to educate girls for over a century and both leans into tradition and continues to evolve as schools should, is deserving of their support. “It’s a gift to have such a high-caliber educational institution in our backyard. Castilleja is attuned to girls’ leadership, and produces big thinkers who are emboldened to ask big questions and find the answers.”
Pedram emphasized, “We both came from humble beginnings. It is very meaningful to come here as an immigrant and make a significant gift to put our family name on the library, knowing it will outlive us. Future Castilleja students will visit the library to explore new concepts, congregate, and to learn new things.”
Rah is also honoring her late father in the Kaz Mansoor Community Hub. He came to this country from Iran as a teenager with no English, no family, and very little money. He attended college and graduate school, fell in love, and started a family in the Bay Area. He bootstrapped his life and built community and connection through his personal life, sports, and work. He was a gentle-hearted, warm man who took a deep interest in those around him and in bringing people together. He owned and ran a small business in San Mateo for decades and took great pride in getting to know people in his community and serving their needs. The Keyani family hopes the community hub will be a place where students come together, connect, share ideas, and build a stronger community.
Rah and Pedram’s philanthropy, particularly in the last ten years, has focused on women and gender equality. As parents of girls, each can cite experiences from their own professional careers as a lawyer and computer scientist that have motivated them to want to break down barriers that limit career advancement for women. “For me in the legal field,” Rah shared, “I have seen micro-aggressions on a day-to-day level that add up to big barriers on an institutional level that hold women back. Castilleja girls graduate with a strong sense of self and their own worth—and if and when they encounter discrimination or institutional barriers, I hope they know that is NOT a reflection of their worth. Empowered and courageous, a Castilleja graduate enters the world ready to advocate for herself and for a better world.”
“I work in engineering,” Pedram continued, “Which is not known to be a very female-friendly environment. Women don’t have enough role models. There aren’t enough women in leadership positions, who can speak up and have a strong presence, and in so doing, motivate others to follow in their footsteps. You can count on one hand the number of C-suite technology executives here in Silicon Valley who are women. These statistics need to change, not only here in this sector, but everywhere, in order to attain the balance of gender equality.”
“The school’s vision to expand the campus to serve even more girls, thus making a Castilleja education even more accessible, will be a huge win not only for our local community, but for the world. Our campaign gift is about gratitude, family, women in leadership, and all the girls who will come to Castilleja in the future.”
“Our campaign gift is about gratitude, family, women in leadership, and all the girls who will come to Castilleja in the future.”
Pedram Keyani and Raheleh Mansoor
Donors to Open Their World—The Campaign for Castilleja
We recognize and thank all members of our community who are championing the campus transformation with their capital campaign giving.
$20 million and above
Mary Speiser and Mike Speiser P’20 ‘22
$10,000,000–$19,999,999
Carol and John Giannandrea P’21
$5,000,000–$9,999,999
Cindy and Evan Goldberg P’17
John A. Sobrato Sr.
$2,500,000–$4,999,999
Heidi Hopper and Jeffrey Dean P’13 ‘17
Rah Mansoor and Pedram Keyani P’29 ‘31
Anjali and Sundar Pichai P’21
$1,000,000–$2,499,999
Anonymous (5)
Sybilla and Alexandre Balkanski P’18
Pree Basaviah and Venky Ganesan P’21 ‘23
Simone and Tench Coxe P’20
The Estate of Madeline Ehrman ‘60
Theresia Gouw P’21
Jaynie and Bill Kind P’09
Jamaica and Jay Kreps P’28 ‘30
Kate Li and Jianming Yu P’20
Becky Long and Ken Hirsch P’17 ‘19
The Magic Beans
Linda and Jim McGeever P’21
The Estate of Adrienne Hiscox Mitchell ‘44
Penny Pritzker ‘77 and Bryan Traubert
Sarah and Greg Sands P’16 ‘19
The Estate of Helen and Robert Sturges P’75
$500,000–$999,999
Toni Cupal and Mike Volpi P’18
Nancy Kedzierski and Gordon Chaffee P’26
Jennifer and David Ko
Yan Liu and JieFu Zhang P’19
Christine O’Sullivan and James Bean P’21
Paula and Michael Rantz P’13
Nipa and Beerud Sheth P’22
Andrea Navarro Sobrato ‘08 and John Sobrato
$250,000–$499,999
Sher Amos-Grosser and Adam Grosser P’18
The Estate of Sreyashi Jhumki Basu ‘94
Ashley and John Chambers
Patti and Edward Chan P’22 ‘25
Tina Chen and Anthony Lin P’27 ‘29
Lori and Brian Goler P’21 ‘25
Noriko Honda and Norman Chen P’21
Michele and Steve Kirsch P’12 ‘14 ‘20
Yidrienne Lai and Chris Chang P’26 ‘28 ‘31
Gab and Thomas Layton P’18 ‘23
The Estate of Diane Cory McNiel ‘56
Viola Mong Meehan ‘82
Leyla and David Scott P’20
Polly Tam and Hsien-Chung Woo P’18
Jessica and Chris Varelas P’21
Petra Wright and Steve Dowling P’24
Amanda and Zac Zeitlin P’24
$100,000–$249,999
Alison and Edward Abbo P’19
Iké and Ore Adeyemi
Reena and Raj Agrawal P’28
Kathryn Bojack and Ravi Mhatre P’17
Stephanie and Sherwin Chen P’26
Nandini and Mathews Cherian P’23
Carolyn Choi and Jeffrey Wong P’24
B.J. Lockhart Cowie ‘54 and William Cowie Jr.
Hala Kurdi Cozadd ‘92 and Bruce Cozadd
Sara and Brian Elkin P’23
Sean and Anna Glodek P’28 ’30
Christine and Shane Goudey P’29
Shari and Andrew Guggenhime P’20 ‘22
Brooke Heckert and Michael Linse P’22 ‘25
Elizabeth and Patrick Heron P’21
Seyonne Kang and Scott Johnston P’27
Teresa and Brian Kelleher P’23
Aileen Lee and Jason Stinson P’24
Margaret Osborn Munzig ’97 and Peter Munzig
Jennifer Newstead and Alex Mishkin P’26
Suzanne and Eric O’Brien P’21
Alyssa Rieder and Eric Byunn P’20 ’23
Angela Song and Ammar Maraqa P’26
Cathy and Tod Spieker P’97 ’99
Diana Sunshine and William Onderdonk P’19 ’23
Mahjabeen and Tarim Wasim P’29
Grace and David Yuan P’26
Nazhin Zarghamee and Kourosh Gharachorloo P’23
$50,000–$99,999
Anonymous
Claire and Tim Burks P’23
Cindy Chen and Bob Kocher P’25 ‘26
Nam Cho and Nate Gallon P’26
Sheridan and David Foster P’19
Maggie Pringle Grauer ‘71
Nanci KauffmanHA and Scott Kauffman
Gerry Marshall
Susan Packard Orr ’64
Barb and Gregory Rosston P’12
Steve Rosston P’16
Melanie Vinson P’23
$25,000–$49,999
Saima Hasan ’04 and Sharjeel Hasan
Cary Golub Lurie ’64
Shweta and Amish Mehta P’29
Usha and Diaz Nesamoney P’19
Laurie and Duco Pasmooij P’20 ’22 ’24
Amy Rao and Harry Plant
Tenley Stephenson and John Pimentel P’21 ’29
Varsha and Pradeep Tagare P’22
Kathleen and Scott Tandy P’15
Mariko and Phillip Yang P’17 ’22
$10,000–$24,999
Anonymous
Shelli Ching and Rowland Cheng P’22
Mahooya Dinda and Michel Del Buono P’25
Elizabeth Douglas and Evan Hurowitz P’27
Shirley Ely P’71
Odette Harris and Edward Sharp P’22 ’24
Esther Kletter P’91
Anne Biaggini Krattebol ’64
Lisa and David Merenbach P’09 ’11 ’14
Robert “Buff” Miller & MSNQS Family
Parinaz Mohamadi and Mostafa Ronaghi P’29
Denise and Mike Pope P’14 ’17
Melissa Riofrio ’85
Nancy Tuck P’17
Eugenie Van Wynen and Chris Markesky
$5,000–$9,999
Brittany Brown Chavez ’06
Cheryl Hertzog Coleman ’64
Janet Mauel Cronk ’64
Lindsay Austin Louie ’98 and Ting Louie
Bradley Quarton and Seri Nakazawa
Mia and Jose Rocha P’22 ‘26
Anne and Richard Schmidt
Pratima Sethi ’94 and Amaury Bellemans P’27 ’29
Tom Stephenson
Jennifer Taylor-Mendoza and James Carranza P’21
Eric Temple
Katrina Wollenberg
$1,500–$4,999
Megan Jones Bell ’00
Diane Brooks Dixon ’69 and Patrick Dixon
Jeffie Welsh Feakins ’64
Pat Hunter Gregory ’64
Denise Kaufman ’64
Zander Lurie and Kristin Vogelsong
Carla Roth ’65
Michaele Roth Thunen ’64
Elizabeth Yin ’00
Gail Wilson Zetter ’64
Up to $1,499
Anonymous
Bonnie Eggink Allen ’64
Eliza Becker
Audre Brokes ’81
Marilyn Katz Caine ’80
Anna and Tony Carrasco
Wendy Carrel ’65
Veronica Chiu ’81
Kelly Conway ’90
Janet Cox ’64
Ellen Curtis ’64
Maria Cristina Lerche de Balestra ’64
Amanda Dillon DeLuca ’10
Lorraine Duval and David Cardinal P’11
Janey Manuel Edwards ’64
Riley Guggenhime ’20
Cherri Linderman Gurney ’64
Libby Swindells Hulsey ’80
Talia Kertsman ’18
Allison Koo ’98
Molly Ledwith ’16
Jennifer Lee ’95
Barbara MacCornack Leutwiler ’64
Samantha Levison ’10
Amber Lombard ’10
Jason Lurie
Pamela Schaap MacKean ’64
Fiona Maloney-McCrystle ’13
Jeannine MarstonHA and Ted Marston P’89 ’94
Charise Hale McHugh ’70
Alanna McNaughton ’14
Anne Kelly Mellenthin ’80
Stephanie Merenbach ’11
Tania Montoya ’06
Ellen Stewart Moore ’80
Fay Jones Nestlerode ’64
Emily Colvin O’Malley ’10
Seana McNamara Oliver ’06
Laura Golub Overett ’68
Claire Patterson ’12
Shanti Perkins ’90
Pamela Johnson Pollack ’91
Molleigh Preefer ’10
Sarah Morris Pullen ’64
Eleanor Rakonitz P’87
Elizabeth Sellman Redman ’63
Sandra Pearson Shlapak ’64
Lauren Sibley ’20
Martha Huff Smiland ’64
Leslie Cardozo Stafford ’93
An MacKenzie Standing ’64
Sarah Rakonitz Stein ’87
Rachel Sussman ’93
Sarah Sussman ’90
Lee Taubeneck
April and George Triantis P’19 ’21
Eileen Tse ’90
Giuliana Danon Vural ’75
Suzanne and Robert Washburn P’77 ’80
Elizabeth Gage Weber ’64
Christina Hulden Westmoreland ’64
Helene Chandler Williams ’64
Susan Duncan Williams ’65
Kathy Mauel Wright ’68
Did you know?
• Built in 1912, Lockey House, where Julia Russell Eells is residing during her one-year tenure at 1263 Emerson Street, was slated for demolition in an early iteration of the project’s design, but feedback from community members convinced Castilleja to preserve it instead.
• Phase 1: The new parking garage will be accessed from Embarcadero Road and at 25,655 square feet, it will have space for 52 cars, substantially increasing the number of parking spots on campus, alleviating traffic on the neighborhood streets, and providing a new location for drop off and pick up.
Phase 2: By building a new, state-ofthe-art, three-story academic building that includes an underground level, to reflect our innovative program, we will reconfigure 84,000 square feet of academic space, demolishing seven existing buildings and replacing them with new facilities that better align with how students learn both in and out of the classroom.
• The new Center for Leadership and Impact will house both the Library and the Awareness, Compassion & Engagement (ACE) Center, creating an intentional proximity to empower girls to gain leadership experience, serve the community, embrace activism, and cultivate both emotional intelligence and academic curiosity side by side.
• An abundance of natural light, drought-resistant native plants, spaces that connect the indoors and outdoors, lighting controls and interactive monitoring stations to reduce electricity, and bioswales to capture stormwater for irrigation are hallmarks of the green design, putting Castilleja on the leading edge of sustainable campuses at any school across the country.
Coming Soon
Groundbreaking Ceremony
When you support Open Their World—The Campaign for Castilleja at any level, you are making an investment that affirms your belief in the power of women learning, women leading.
For more information or to make a gift, please contact Caroline New, Director of the Capital Campaign and Major Gifts, at cnew@castilleja.org or visit castilleja.org/giving.
Meet Caroline New
Caroline New ’01 joined Castilleja in July as the Director of the Capital Campaign and Major Gifts, to lead Open Their World—The Campaign for Castilleja. She comes to us from the Philadelphia Museum of Art, where she worked from 2009 to 2024. During that time, she was integral to the successful completion of the museum’s comprehensive campaign that raised $608 million and supported the construction of a 90,000-sq. ft. expansion designed by architect Frank Gehry. Most recently, she served as the PMA’s Director of Donor Engagement and Communications. A Woodside-native, Caroline attended Castilleja for middle school, before graduating from Cate School and moving east to earn her BA at the University of Pennsylvania. She also received her MA from the Courtauld Institute of Art in London. She brings her fundraising experience and connection with the school back to the Circle, to work alongside the leadership team and Board of Trustees, and with faculty and staff, to achieve the ambitious goals of Open Their World to modernize the campus. She and her husband, Michael, have two children, Amelia and Jack, and live in Woodside.
