BEGAN AT CAIS 2022

Ms. Foster joined CAIS in 2022 after working as a librarian at The San Francisco School, San Francisco University High School, and Commodore Sloat Elementary. She also had a long career in nonprofit administration with local organizations such as First 5 San Francisco and the Brava Theater Center. She holds a Master in Industrial Administration from Purdue University and a Master of Library and Information Science from San José State University. In her free time, she enjoys paddleboarding, yoga, camping, and relaxing with a good book.

Began at CAIS in 2010

Fu Laoshi has been at CAIS since 2010 and has been a lead teacher in the Preschool for the past eight years. Fu Laoshi finds working with young children challenging and satisfying. She enjoys watching their abilities develop and grow. In particular she enjoys seeing children with no Chinese background first become comfortable with Chinese and then really start using it to communicate. As an English language learner herself, Fu Laoshi knows that learning a second language is challenging. She is always so proud of how well our students learn at CAIS. Fu Laoshi likes to add music and movement into her classes and she believes this is a fun and easy way to learn a second language, especially for young children. It is her hope that all children will be happy in her class and learn Chinese.

Began at CAIS in 2016

Now in her fourth year at our 888 Campus, Ms. Gerson is an especially valuable member of the Middle School faculty. After completing her master’s degree in education through the Bay Area Teacher Training Institute (BATTI) program, Ms. Gerson moved up to teach sixth grade math and science. Her content and pedagogical knowledge dovetail perfectly with her ability to engage with the students and her classroom management style, which is ideally suited for students transitioning to the new environment of middle school.

Began at CAIS in 2021

Jillian Gornick is thrilled to be joining the CAIS community and growing as an educator. She spontaneously moved to San Francisco in June 2021 for a summer job and decided she just had to stay! She received her Bachelor’s of Science from Grand Valley State University back in her home state of Michigan in 2019. She is passionate about environmental conservation efforts, human and animal welfare, and exploring plant-based eating. She enjoys traveling, hiking, befriending animals (she’s a huge fan of dogs), listening to podcasts and music, and connecting with nature.

Began at CAIS in 2022

Jenny has a B.A. in Art History from San Francisco State University and most recently was the Membership Coordinator for the Asian American Women Artists Association. Jenny brings a positive personality and a strong administrative skill set to the position.

Originally from the Bay Area, Ms. House lived here until she was 10. She moved away and lived in London and Tokyo until high school where she got to be closer with both her families! She attended UCLA with a Bachelor’s in Political Science as she has a passion to learn and teach History and Politics. She’s taught English for elementary school in Japan and taught preschoolers in San Francisco and have loved teaching younger age groups! She is so excited to join CAIS – she has a strong passion for education because it transforms lives and to be a part of that is really special. She’s looking forward to growing as an educator this year at CAIS. In her free time, she loves to crochet, climb, and swim! She loves being outdoors and exploring beautiful places and seeing amazing wildlife!

Began at CAIS in 2012

Hsu Laoshi has taught Chinese in K–8 immersion programs for 11 years in the US. and has been with CAIS since 2012. A member of the CAIS Curriculum Committee, she has made presentations at ACTFL, CLTA, NCLC, and STARTALK conferences for the past nine years, and also gave a one-week workshop on immersion school teaching at National Taiwan Normal University. She has served as a master teacher at the Virginia STARTALK Chinese Teacher Academy at the University of Virginia for four summers.

Began at CAIS in 2021

Hu Laoshi was born and raised in Mainland China. She graduated from San Francisco State University with both a B.A. and an M.A. degree in Chinese: Concentration in Chinese Literature &​ Linguistics. She has been an early childhood educator for over 5 years. Working with children has always been a passion and she loves seeing smiles on the children’s faces when they learn something new. Things she enjoys outside of work are spending time with family, traveling, clay molding, and trying different cultural cuisines.

Began at CAIS in 2014