Leadership, Administration & Staff - BASIS Independent Silicon Valley

Service-oriented and eager to help, our leadership, administration, and staff are champions of the school community. While their key focus is supporting the teachers in the classroom, they work hard to ensure every student and family has a positive experience. Whether they are the front-and-center, visible faces of our school or the unsung, behind-the-scenes heroes, leadership, administration, and staff are invaluable in upholding our culture and values.

Looking to get to know our unmatched, expert teaching faculty? Explore our teaching philosophy and meet the educators that bring it to life every day.

Our upper management works to foster an unparalleled learning environment, keep the campus running smoothly, set the tone of our culture, and ensure that students and teachers alike receive the support and encouragement they need to excel.

Ms. Angkham

Associate Head of School, Upper School Campus

Ms. Angkham

Associate Head of School, Upper School Campus

Ms. Angkham received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Cultural Anthropology with an emphasis in Comparative Religious Studies, and Sex and Gender Studies from San José State University. While pursuing her academics, she also helped build schools in Mexico, provided Katrina Relief to residents of New Orleans, advocated for students as an elected member of the student body, and presented at various academic conferences throughout the country.

She found her love of teaching and was a classroom teacher for grade 1 and grades 5-8. After a decade in the classroom, she joined BISV’s Student Affairs department as the Dean of Students for grades 8 and 9. Ms. Angkham then had the opportunity to work with our seniors as a member of the College Counseling department.

Outside of school hours, Ms. Angkham can often be found advocating for underrepresented groups, cosplaying and crafting, playing tabletop games, performing karaoke, growing succulents, and finding adventures. Her most memorable ones include a solo trip to New Zealand in April 2018 in which she explored the country for 10 days: camping in a van, hiking the hillsides, and spelunking in glow worm caves. She looks forward to the new adventures coming her way!

Ms. Kolb

Head of School, Upper School Campus

Ms. Kolb

Head of School, Upper School Campus

Ms. Kolb holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from Columbia College. After college, she spent four and a half years as an officer in the United States Navy. In 2008, she moved to San Jose and has been working in private school administration in the Bay Area ever since. She joined the BASIS Independent Silicon Valley family in 2016 as the Head of Operations.

Ms. Kolb is a Midwesterner through and through, and feels a special connection to celebrating traditions. Having opportunities to help create traditions is even more rewarding for her. With the academics firmly in place upon her arrival to the school, she enjoyed helping to build the BISV community in its early years. While supporting some of the fun traditions that were already in place, Ms. Kolb has also had the pleasure of working with students to bring new and exciting events to the school. Celebrating the Bobcat community is one of her greatest joys on campus.

As the Head of School, a priority for Ms. Kolb is to ensure that our Bobcats understand the importance of balance. “I love working with students and parents that genuinely love to learn and want to continually better themselves. I also want students to spend their time doing activities that they genuinely enjoy, and to spend time doing things for others. A school community places value on so much more than academics: but also in valuing good citizenship, and learning personal responsibility” says Ms. Kolb. She believes in challenging students in achievable increments and praising success as it is achieved, stating, “My goal as an educator has always been to help students enjoy learning and to look forward to coming to school every day.”

When not on campus, Ms. Kolb enjoys her time with her family. You will often find her at the hockey rink, cheering on her son during practice, or going on walks with her special needs daughter, whose favorite thing on earth is fresh air and to feel the wind on her face. Ms. Kolb is also an avid professional hockey fan, and enjoys going to Sharks games when she can.

Ms. Titus

Head of School, Lower School Campus

Ms. Titus

Head of School, Lower School Campus

Ms. Titus earned her Bachelor of Arts in History and Political Thought from Concordia University Irvine. She originally joined BASIS Independent Silicon Valley during its founding year in 2014 as a Learning Expert Teacher before becoming a Subject Expert Teacher. After several years in the classroom, she eventually joined the Student Affairs Team as Dean of Students for Grades 5 – 7. She then joined another private school in the Monterey Bay Area as Vice Principal for two years. We are excited to have Ms. Titus back and we know she will bring her experiences and expertise from the classroom and as a member of admin to the leadership role of Head of School.

She chose BASIS Independent because she was inspired by the level of rigor it presents for students and its innovative model for education. “BASIS Independent Schools creates an environment that is inspiring for students, encouraging them to be curious, try new things and always put forth their best effort. I wanted to be part of a school that believed students were capable and pushed them to their fullest potential! From the two-teacher model at the primary level to the spiraled curriculum in middle school, I loved that BASIS was doing things differently than other schools and was getting incredible results.” Her goal is to develop a school with a strong sense of community where students are well-known, well-cared for, and pushed to their fullest potential. “I want BASIS Independent Silicon Valley Lower School to be a place where students explore, learn, try new things, and develop the skills that they need to succeed throughout their educational careers.”

When she’s not on campus, Ms. Titus loves to be outside. If she’s not hiking or paddleboarding, you can find her sitting outside with a historical fiction novel.

Fun Fact: Ms. Titus is a major history buff! She knows and loves learning fun facts about U.S. Presidents.

Mr. Wood

Associate Head of Operations, Lower School Campus

Mr. Wood

Associate Head of Operations, Lower School Campus

Mr. Wood holds a Bachelor of Arts in General Business with an emphasis in finance. While studying finance, he led many team projects and actively found new ways to solve problems, create effective presentations, and coordinated many successful activities. It was during these years that he spent many hours working for after school programs. After graduating from San Jose State University he taught for six years, and in true Mr. Wood fashion, he kept it exciting by teaching grades ranging from grade one to grade 12!

In his role as Associate Head of Operations he uses all of his skills running a classroom, and his ability to problem solve most any situation, and applies them to the real world. He is able to support teachers, administrators and students; helping all of them create lasting memories. Of his role in Operations he said, “I strive to ensure students have all the resources and procedures they need to take home memories that will hopefully stick for a lifetime. ”

When not on campus, you can find Mr. Wood enjoying the outdoors. Whether he is hiking, camping, or exploring trails in his Jeep, you can bet that his husky mix, Mishka, is right there with him. Additionally, he is an active host of weekly husky meet ups at dog parks across the South Bay.