There are a total of eleven carefully selected board members who represent most areas of Monterey County. They bring their diverse knowledge, leadership, expertise, and compassion to the Literacy Campaign for Monterey County.

Board Member Biographies

Jayanti Addleman
Jayanti Addleman is the County Librarian at County of Monterey. She has Masters degrees in English and Library Science. She serves on the Monterey County Equal Opportunity Advisory Commission, the Board of Trustees for York School, the Foundation for Monterey County Free Libraries, and the Children’s Council of Monterey. She is also an active volunteer for AFS Intercultural Programs. Jayanti is passionate about the need for literacy services and considers herself a champion of the underdog.  She and her husband, Steve, live in Monterey County. They have two children.

Kim Bui-Burton
A resident of the Monterey Peninsula since the early 60s, Kim Bui-Burton is a lifelong reader and learner, with a background in public libraries, municipal administration and civic engagement. The first Vietnamese-American Library Director in the country, Kim is now the Community Services and Library Director for the City of Monterey. She oversees California’s oldest public library, City museums, the Monterey Conference Center, Harbor and Marina, Parking, Recreation and the Monterey Sports Center. Kim’s volunteer activities include work with the Women’s Fund for Monterey County, the California Library Association, the California Preservation Program, the San Jose State University School of Library and Information Science International Advisory Council and Friends of the Monterey Public Library. Kim lives in Pacific Grove with her husband, Steven Silveria, overflowing book shelves and many “empty nest” artifacts from their four grown children.

Katy Castagna
Katy was raised and spent her early career in the Los Angeles area. She moved to Monterey with her husband in 1998. They have a son and daughter in middle school. Katy has a bachelor’s degree from Brown University and an MBA from The Anderson School of Management at UCLA. She has over 24 years of experience working in public and nonprofit organizations focused on health and human services. She has been with United Way Monterey County for six years where she has developed programs (2-1-1, The Volunteer Center, EarnIt! KeepIt! SaveIt! Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Program) and directed community impact activities, including grant making and evaluation. Community involvements include leadership positions in Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, Team Mom for various sports teams, and the American Cetacean Society, a national whale and dolphin conservation group.

Linda Coyne, Secretary
A resident of Salinas, teacher and school administrator in Monterey County since 1977, Linda Coyne received degrees from CSU Hayward and Chapman University. She has studied abroad in Mexico and Spain. Linda is a retired teacher of English and ESL and a retired school administrator of alternative education programs, including continuation and alternative high schools, adult schools and Regional Occupational Programs. She has served as a consultant to teachers and administrators in providing services to English Learners, and she has trained hundreds of educators since 1986 on how to provide high quality instruction to English Learners and their families to achieve higher levels of education and employment. Linda has also taught at the community college and university levels. Her civic activities include: Co-Chair of the Monterey County Business and Education Research Institute; Past Member of the Monterey County Workforce Investment Board and Youth Council; Monterey, San Benito and Santa Cruz Counties Board Liaison for ACSA (American Association of School Administrators) State Board; Member, CalPro, a California Adult Education Professional Advisory Board; Member, Community Foundation for Monterey County Literacy Campaign Advisory Committee; Secretary for CATESOL (California Association of Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages). Linda resides in Salinas with her husband, Bill Deeb, and their son, Robbie.

Alfred Diaz-Infante
Alfred Diaz-Infante, is the President and Chief Executive Officer of Community Housing Improvement Systems and Planning Association, Inc., (CHISPA) and CHISPA Housing Management, Inc. (CHMI). He currently serves as a Board Member of the Hartnell College Foundation, Community Foundation for Monterey County, Common Ground Monterey County, and Housing Resource Center of Monterey County. Mr. Diaz-Infante holds an MBA degree from the University of California, Berkeley and BS degree in Finance from California State University, Sacramento.

Julie Drezner
Julie Drezner is a philanthropy professional with over 30 years of experience in the nonprofit sector.  In 2009, Julie joined the Community Foundation for Monterey County as Vice President of Community Engagement.  In that role, she oversees the Foundation’s Grants and Program Department, which includes all competitive and donor advised grants, management assistance programs and community initiatives.  Prior to joining the Foundation, Julie led a national planning and consulting firm specializing in strategy development for foundations, nonprofit organizations and multi-sector initiatives.  Formerly, she served as program director of The California Wellness Foundation, a program officer of The James Irvine Foundation, and previously worked for the Washington, DC-based Center for Community Change. She also directed an inner-city neighborhood organization in San Diego. Julie holds a master’s of social work degree from San Diego State University and a bachelor’s in social sciences from University of California Santa Barbara.Julie is bicultural and owns a home in Mexico with her husband Rob.

Fernando Elizondo
Fernando received his bachelor’s degree from California State University at Arcata, master’s degree from Baylor University, and doctorate from University of Southern California. His career spans classroom teacher, principal, central office administrator and 15 years as superintendent of school. Dr. Elizondo retired after 38 years in education with the last eight years as superintendent of schools of the Salinas Union High School District. Upon retirement, he established Elizondo Educational Strategies, Inc., a consulting firm working with both school districts and private entities/corporations throughout California and the U.S. Fernando served two terms on the Ventura Community College Board of Trustees and was a member of the United Way Monterey County Board and Kiwanis.  Presently, he is a member of the downtown Salinas Rotary Club. Fernando and Susan have resided in Salinas since 1997. Susan is a Certified Hand Therapist whose practice Trinity Hand Therapy is located in Salinas. Both Susan and Fernando enjoy scuba diving and traveling. Susan is an avid equestrian and Fernando attempts golf. Their son Gabriel and wife Maria Elena reside in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Gabriel is a bureau network correspondent covering Central and South America and Maria is a news bureau video producer.  Both Maria and Gabriel received their master’s degrees from University of Denver on International Studies and Economics.

Len Foster, Board President
Len is a third generation Californian who spend the bulk of his professional career in Public Health, serving in a variety of capacities in Orange County before spending the last ten years in the position of Director of Health Services for Monterey County, from which he retired in March 2010.  During his career he served on the board of national organizations, as well as several local boards including the March of Dimes, United Way of Monterey County, First 5 Monterey County, and Central California Alliance for Health.  He earned both bachelor’s and master’s degrees.  Len and his wife, Nancy, have four adult children, three grandchildren, and live in Salinas.

Carol Kolb, Treasurer    
Carol, a CPA, is currently on the boards of Legal Services for Seniors, Freedom Fields USA and the United Way of Monterey County. She has been a member of the Junior League of Monterey County for 20 years, where she has served as a board member, treasurer and president. A graduate of UC Berkeley and the Golden Gate University Masters in Taxation program, Carol lives with her family in Pebble Beach, CA.

 
Laurel Lee-Alexander, Vice Chair
Laurel has over 15 years of nonprofit experience, including working for the Community Foundation for Monterey County and the United Way, and previously held marketing positions with the Walt Disney Company and the Colgate-Palmolive Company.  She has studied and worked in the U.K., Norway and Hong Kong. Her education includes a bachelor’s degree from UCLA and an MBA from the Thunderbird School of Global Management. Since 2003, she has been the Director of Grant Programs for the Monterey Peninsula Foundation (host of the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am golf tournament) and directs the foundation’s grantmaking/charity programs. Her nonprofit board experience includes Girls Inc. of the Central Coast, the Monterey Sports Center Foundation, Soroptimist International of Carmel Bay, Junior League of Monterey County, and the Association of Junior Leagues International; she also serves on the Catholic Charities of Monterey Governance Committee. Laurel lives in Seaside with her husband Dennis Alexander, an avid volunteer and member of the Seaside City Council. Their daughter Denise recently joined the Peace Corps and is serving in Guinea, West Africa.

Claudia Melendez
Claudia has worked as a journalist in Monterey County since 2004. As a graduate student at the University of Southern California, Claudia conceived a project to help immigrant families to become more involved with their children’s education.  Upon her return to Monterey County, she launched the Community Information Center which provides free computer classes for Spanish-speaking adults and information about California’s educational system. In addition to her work as an education reporter for The Monterey County Herald, Claudia is a frequent guest speaker at local schools and is a strong advocate for education.