Our Team at Mathnasium of Rockridge

Andre Bertrand

Andre is co-owner of Mathnasium of Rockridge and also owner and Center Director at Mathnasium of Albany-Berkeley. Prior to opening his centers, Andre was a Senior VP at iHeartRadio in New York City. With an Electrical Engineering degree from McGill University, he has worked for more than 25 years as an engineer in telecommunications and multimedia. Over the years, he has done extensive coaching, teaching, and trouble-shooting. Originally from Canada, Andre has lived in Germany, Panama, New York, and Texas. Since moving to the Bay area a few years ago with his wife, a Cal Professor, and their two school-age children, Andre has become an active parent in the community. Realizing the need for more individualized attention and targeted learning in math, Andre decided to bring Mathnasium to the Albany-Berkeley area. He is committed to sharing his enthusiasm for math and to bringing the Mathnasium Method to the children in the community.

Christopher Wood

Chris is co-owner of Mathnasium of Rockridge and also Owner and Center Director at Mathnasium of Alameda. Prior to opening his Mathnasium center, Chris was the Assistant Controller, Director for IACP Publishing (Ask.com, Dictionary.com, About.com) in Oakland. With a Bachelors of Science in Finance from San Diego State University, he has worked for more than 14 years as an accountant for various private and public companies including four years as an auditor with KPMG in San Francisco. During this time, he has done extensive coaching, teaching, and problem solving. Married and father of two boys, Chris also enjoys swimming and plays water polo for a team in the East Bay.

Tyler Ho

Tyler is currently majoring in mechanical engineering as an undergraduate student at Cal Poly SLO. He graduated from Oakland Technical High School where he completed up to all the available calculus courses and went on to complete all calculus courses at Cal Poly as well. In addition to calculus, he has taken college courses involving linear algebra and differential equations. While math may not be his favorite subject, he has always greatly appreciated the role of mathematics as a way of representing the complicated reality of the world. He has always enjoyed helping others, especially with math, from his siblings, to his fellow classmates, and others in general. Aside from academics, he also enjoys playing video games, folding origami, and playing piano in his free time.

Ellen Shaler

Ellen is originally from Detroit. Upon earning her teaching credential at the University of Michigan, she taught preschool in Ann Arbor for two years, then moved to California. She spent the next 32 years teaching upper elementary, the last 25 of which were in OUSD. For 10 years, she team-taught 4th and 5th grades, as the Math and Science half of the teaching partnership. Ellen worked hard to impart her passion for patterns, logic, and mental math, by helping her students develop number sense, build their confidence, and promote a love of numbers. After retiring in 2017, Ellen started volunteering at Summit Hospital, making home-cooked meals for neighbors, and working at Mathnasium. She loves to cook, travel, take walks, organize gatherings, and read. She still quotes her favorite high school Math teacher: "Math is good and good for ya. We love Math!"

Olive Mark-Ho

Olive is currently a student at Oakland Technical High School, and one of her favorite classes at school is her math class. She helps her sister and neighbors with their homework and has always enjoyed working with kids. When she's not at school, Olive loves playing soccer, reading, baking, camping, and watching TV.

Emily Haun

Emily is a freshman Mechanical Engineering student at UC Berkeley from Palo Alto, CA with an addiction for all things aerospace and problem solving related. K-12 education and helping others navigate dreaded and seemingly difficult STEM related topics and simplifying them for comprehension has always been a passion of hers. She practices this through multiple STEM outreach initiatives and tutoring at the Mathnasium from her junior year in high school to now.

Ruby Kiechel

Ruby is currently a sophomore at Oakland School for the Arts, where she studies fashion design. One of her favorite classes at school is her pre-calc math class. She loves working with kids and helping them develop a passion for math. Ruby also does math outside school, such as the Stanford math circle program. Some of her hobbies include sewing, drawing, and baking.

Kaylie Svenson

Kaylie currently attends Oakland Technical High School, where she has excitedly taken all the math classes she can. She has worked with kids at summer camps and by babysitting in the past. In her free time, Kaylie loves dance and musical theater, which she hopes to pursue as a major in college alongside a major in Mathematics.

Lawrence Lu

Lawrence is currently studying Computer Science as an undergraduate freshman at UC Berkeley. He graduated from Oakland Technical High School where he completed multiple calculus classes and is completing more in college. Lawrence has plenty of experience with teaching as he served as a teacher's assistant at Berkeley City College for Computer Science, and was even a math tutor for elementary students at MLK Jr Elementary School in Oakland. When he isn't teaching, he also enjoys playing basketball, reading, and building Legos.

Kalyani Spieckerman

Kalyani Spieckerman is currently a junior at Piedmont High School, where she is taking AP Calculus BC. She works with kids through teaching lessons at elementary schools about tolerance and kindness and mentoring a group of 10 kids every week. She loves music, football, baking, taking photos, and spending time with friends.