Anna Cencioso, Founder and Head of School

After earning her teaching credential, Anna was awarded a tenured position in the Palo Alto School District. She taught at a magnet school that mainstreamed students with learning challenges from all over Santa Clara County. This experience fueled her passion to teach students who might otherwise be left behind by traditional methods.

Anna left this position to homeschool her young children. However, her son had difficulty learning to read. Five years passed while she waited for traditional reading instruction to work. At the age of ten, he still struggled with simple text, and she took him to be evaluated by a reading specialist. The reading specialist told Anna that her son fit the profile of a classic dyslexic student, and that he needed frequent, structured (Orton-Gilligham) tutoring. Anna accompanied him to the tutoring sessions, and watched him finally make tangible reading progress. Observing those sessions inspired Anna to change the focus of her teaching. She wanted to help dyslexic students who struggled to read. She began with one student, developed relationships with experts in the field, and gradually attracted more students. Now an expert, Anna loves the work she does and considers it a privilege to teach, guide and support her students and develop her teaching staff into expert teachers.

• Bachelor of Arts in Independent Studies (Language, Literature, History): UC Santa Cruz
• California Teaching Credential, two-year graduate program: UC Santa Cruz
• CLAD* Certification: Stanford University
• Certified Dyslexia Consultant
• 15 years of Barton Orton-Gillingham remediation experience

*Cross-cultural Language Acquisition and Academic Development Program

Emily Lowe, Associate Head of School

Emily has been teaching at Touchstone Learning since 2017. Prior to that, she taught for 15 years as a public middle school teacher and in a K-8 online learning/homeschool program. She finds the Touchstone program to be the perfect balance of individualized instruction and regular classroom environment. Emily especially enjoys working with upper elementary and middle school students, and appreciates the independence, skepticism, and humor they bring to the classroom.  

• Bachelor of Arts, Anthropology, UCLA
• Master of Education, Secondary Education, SFSU
• California Clear Teaching Credential, Middle School Emphasis, SFSU
• Certified Dyslexia Advocate and Certified Orton-Gillingham Practitioner from the Dyslexia Training Institute
• Trained in Making Math Real
• Trained in Marilyn Zecher’s Multisensory Math
• Proud Member of Association of Educational Therapists

Eva Weppner, Teacher

After completing a Master’s Degree in Business and Multicultural Studies in Germany, Eva moved to the US and worked in marketing for seven years before becoming a stay-at-home mom to three children. While assisting in her children’s classrooms in different capacities, Eva discovered her passion for teaching, and decided to go back to college to become an elementary school teacher.

During this time, Eva also worked as a substitute teacher and quickly realized how many students struggled with reading. In order to find ways to help them, she started reading about dyslexia, talking to parents with dyslexic children, and then began volunteering at Touchstone Learning. Eva is now a credentialed K-8 teacher and feels very fortunate to be teaching at Touchstone and helping to create a supportive environment for students with reading challenges. She especially appreciates the low student-to-teacher ratio that allows individualized instruction to meet the needs of all students.

• Master of Business and Multicultural Studies, University of Passau, Germany
• California Teaching Credential, Western Governors University
• Trained in Marilyn Zecher’s Multisensory Math
• Certified Orton-Gillingham Practitioner from Dyslexia Training Institute
• Trained in Stern Math (multisensory, manipulative based approach)

Paige Minichiello, Teacher 

Paige has wanted to be a teacher her whole life, and it shows. She taught K-5 in diverse classrooms in Vallejo, and at Bullis Charter School in Los Altos. During this time, she witnessed a large number of students struggling with learning differences. Subsequently, she developed a private tutoring practice serving children with learning differences. Her fiancé is dyslexic, so she is thrilled to work at a school that allows her to understand more about a learning difference that affects her family. She believes Touchstone Learning is a very special school, and she feels honored to work with the educators and students.

• BA in Religious Studies with minor in Education and Biology, UC Davis
• Masters in General Education, UC Davis
• California Multiple Subject Teaching Credential, UC Davis

Nehal Gomaa, Assistant Teacher and Administrator

With a background in engineering, Nehal has a passion for both math and teaching. She majored in engineering and worked as a teacher’s assistant at American University of Cairo. She enjoyed teaching so much that she continued after graduation, and then pivoted to the private sector and worked for 10 years as a construction engineer before dedicating her time to raising kids. She returned to teaching as a math tutor and has also joined Touchstone as an assistant teacher and administrator.

• BS Engineering, American University of Cairo
• Certified Orton Gillingham Practitioner from Dyslexia Training Institute