Staff

Ron Ottinger - Executive Director
As the Executive Director of the Noyce Foundation, Ron Ottinger oversees all program areas and operations of the Foundation. For fourteen years, Ron was the National Associate Director of the non-profit AVID Center, which disseminates AVID (Advancement Via Individual Determination), the nationally acclaimed college preparation program for low-income students. He co-launched the non-profit AVID Center and provided key leadership in helping the program grow from its base in San Diego to 40 states and 15 countries, reaching nearly 200,000 students in close to 3,000 middle and high schools. Ron served on the San Diego City Schools’ Board of Education from 1992 to 2004 and was the district’s longest serving board president. In 1993, he authored the “Classrooms First Policy,” which reallocated local funds to reduce class size from over 30 to 25 students in grades 1 and 2. This became the model for the state’s class size reduction program for grades K-3 adopted in 1996. He also led the school board's hiring of Superintendent Alan Bersin, a former United States Attorney from San Diego and one of the first non-educator superintendents, in 1998 to focus on teaching and learning in the classroom - a focus which resulted in San Diego rivaling Boston for the highest student achievement improvement in a large urban school district. During his tenure with the school district, Ron’s school board leadership resulted in a pioneering student achievement accountability system, voter passage of a $1.5 billion bond measure to build new schools and repair all aging school buildings, and a citywide “6-6” after-school program in conjunction with the City of San Diego. Ron joined the Noyce Foundation in Palo Alto, California in 2006. Telephone: 650.856.2600

Sandi Maida-Callahan - Executive Assistant
Sandi Maida-Callahan is the Executive Assistant supporting Ann Bowers, the founding Trustee of the Noyce Foundation, and Ron Ottinger, the Executive Director. Sandi came to us after owning and operating her own business for 18 years. She joined the Noyce Foundation staff in 2004, and she works in the Palo Alto, California office. Telephone: 650.856.2600 x324

Sara Spiegel - Director of Administration
Sara Spiegel is the Director of Administration at the Palo Alto, California office of the Foundation. She manages human resources and the office in general. In addition, she supports the programs of the Foundation. Sara was previously a Program Associate at the Bay Area School Reform Collaborative. She joined the Noyce Foundation staff in 2001. Telephone: 650.856.2600 x315