Alumni Changemakers Share Experiences

One hundred and twenty guests, including Crystal alumni, current and alumni parents, current and former faculty, students, and friends enjoyed an evening of enlightenment and engagement as they heard about positive social change in education, criminal justice, and banking.

The speakers packed powerful messages in their short presentations. Video of the speakers can be found here, Part 1 and Part 2 and a photo gallery here. (Please note that our camera ran out of battery before Kat Taylor finished her talk with a song--we promise to get her to sing again when she comes back!) 

Charles Wilson '93 is a Superior Court Judge for Santa Clara County, serving as the Supervising Judge for the Palo Alto Courthouse. He was also surprised at the Forum by being named our "Alumnus of the Year" for 2018, for his service to the greater community and to Crystal. Charles made several points that it is in the public interest for us all to better understand the inner-workings of courtrooms, to see how decisions are made and how lives are impacted. He wants everyone to serve on jury duty!

Chris Bischof '88, Co-founder and Principal of Eastside College Preparatory School in East Palo Alto, spoke of the over 20-year journey of his ground-breaking school, from a park bench to the fully-equipped campus of today. One hundred percent of Eastside graduates, who are the first in their families to attend college, gain admittance to a four-year institution of higher learning. Eastside not only has a large residential program for many of its students, but it also has programs to help their alumni navigate college and career pathways beyond school.

Kat Taylor '76 spoke of her social entrepreneur businesses, TomKat Ranch and Beneficial Bank. Her talk on banking tied historical and systemic injustices to the way populations have been denied access to capital. She remains optimistic that we can make good choices about "where our money sleeps." Kat emphasized that Beneficial Bank "serves its customers, colleagues, the communities in which it serves, the planet, and public interest"--in addition to its equity shareholders.

Thank you to Charles, Chris, Kat, event Chair Teresa Schaffer Medearis, and the entire Alumni Board for a terrific evening!