About SEAL

Sobrato Early Academic Language (SEAL) is a powerful research-based, evidence based approach to engaging, rigorous, joyful learning.

Our model is designed to build the capacity of preschools and elementary schools and is inclusive of all students – creating an environment where children engage together in rigorous, joyful, content and language-rich learning. Our mission is to prepare all English Learners and Dual Language Learners in California to learn, thrive and lead. SEAL provides professional development, curriculum support, and technical assistance to school systems. 

Our Story

Our story began with the Sobrato family and their strong belief that all children should have access to opportunities for growth and success in school. In 2008, the Sobrato Philanthropies partnered with Dr. Laurie Olsen to design and pilot a new, comprehensive approach to learning in preschool and early elementary grades. The result was the creation of the Sobrato Early Academic Language (SEAL) model.

After external evaluation results proved SEAL’s outsized impact, the model was expanded and replicated, first in the Bay Area and then throughout the state of California. In 2019, SEAL became an independent organization with the aim of scaling our impact and engaging new partners that connect educators, families, researchers, advocates, and policy leaders to elevate English Learners and Dual Language Learners and promote multilingualism for all students.

Our Journey

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Our Executive Team

Anya Hurwitz, Ed.D.
Executive Director

Benjamin Buis
Head Finance and Operations Officer

Patricia E. Chavez
Head of External Relations

Patty Delaney

Patty Delaney
Senior Director of Program and Partnerships

Martha Martinez

Martha Martinez, Ph.D.
Senior Director of Research and Evaluation

Armando Zumaya
Head of Development

Our Team

Judith Alcalá
Associate Director

Jennifer Ancheta-Garcia

Jennifer Ancheta-Garcia
Program Manager

Ashley Anderson
Senior Operations Administrative Assistant

Karen Ascencio
Program Manager

Francesca Aspromonte
Grants Manager

Myrna Ceballos
Program Specialist

Jennifer Clinkscales
Senior Program Specialist

Adriana Diaz
Senior Program Coordinator

Grace P

Grace Diaz
Senior Human Resource Manager

Julia Fajardo
Program Support Assistant

Ulises Gonzalez Reyes
Associate Director

Charice G

Charice Guerra
Associate Director

Laura Hernandez

Laura Hernandez
Associate Director

Alison Soo Ping Lee
Accounting Manager

Erin Magill Peleti
Senior Program Specialist

Samantha Martin
Communications Manager

Jen McNeil
Associate Director

Joanna Meadvin

Joanna Meadvin, Ph.D.
Program Manager

Katie Mlakar

Katie Mlakar
Program Manager

Paula Motas
Production Manager

Molly Moyer
Program Specialist

Jacqui Frankle
Program Support Assistant

Patricia Montes Pate

Patricia Montes Pate
Program Manager

Sara Rizik-Baer
Program Manager

Michelle Rosecrans

Michelle Rosecrans
Program Manager

Ana Sanchez

Ana Marisol Sanchez
Program Manager

Jaylene Shelby

Jaylene Shelby
Senior Program Coordinator

Heather Skibbins

Heather Skibbins
Associate Director

Cindy Tinajero
Program Specialist

Eileen Truong
Business Manager

Cory Wechsler

Cory Wechsler
Program Manager

Camille R. Whitney, Ph.D.
Research and Evaluation Manager

Ashleigh Williams

Ashleigh Williams
Program Coordinator

Our Board of Directors

John Matthew Sobrato

John Matthew Sobrato
Chair

Anya Hurwitz, Ed.D.
President

Kenji Treanor

Kenji Treanor
Governance Chair and Secretary

Sarah Valencia 
Finance Chair and Treasurer

José Manzo

José Manzo
Audit Chair

Feliza I. Ortiz-Licon, Ed.D.
Trustee

Lisa S

Lisa Sobrato Sonsini 
Trustee

Ana Tilton

Ana Tilton, Ed.D.
Trustee

Ruby Takanishi

Our founding SEAL board member, Dr. Ruby Takanishi, early education leader and research pioneer, passed away peacefully in August of 2020. Ruby played a critical role in SEAL’s pilot, replication, and growth into a nonprofit organization. During the preliminary years leading to SEAL’s development, Dr. Takanishi was one of the leading experts tapped by the Sobrato Family Foundation. It was Dr. Takanishi’s early education policy research that helped set the stage for the SEAL model. Her legacy within the field and the extended SEAL community inspires our collective responsibility to carry it forward.

Financials

SEAL is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization and prepares its financial statements in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (U.S. GAAP). We want you to know how your investment is used, so you have confidence that your generous gifts make a meaningful impact on the classrooms, schools, and districts that we help transform through our effective model.

FY 2019-2020

Audited Financials | 2019 Form 990

FY 2020-2021

Audited Financials | 2020 Form 990

To assure that philanthropy merits the respect and trust of the general public, and that donors and prospective donors can have full confidence in the not-for-profit organizations and causes they are asked to support, we declare these donors’ bill of rights.

Careers

At SEAL, we are committed to building a diverse and inclusive organization in which we give voice to, and meet the needs of, the communities, teachers, and students we serve. We believe in lifelong learning and continuous improvement, and we are ever-evolving the processes through which we select and support team members and foster a culture of universal belonging and empowerment. SEAL encourages applications from individuals of diverse backgrounds and lived experiences, especially those from immigrant and English Learner communities, people of color and members of other historically marginalized groups.

Join our team!

SEAL is committed to the principles and practices of equal employment opportunity for all employees and applicants for employment.