Namrata Bhalla brings over a decade of experience in the field of education to her role as the Head of School at Washington Park. Before assuming her current role, Namrata served in both teaching and leadership roles at Stratford.
Namrata believes in each child’s ability to succeed, but knows that children learn in a variety of ways. Stratford’s curriculum provides an excellent framework of learning opportunities to all students that allows educators to help students tap into their unique potential to learn, perform, and accomplish their educational goals. She knows that the teachers in students’ lives play a vital role in development by creating a nurturing and enriching environment to help each child shine.
More than anything, Namrata appreciates Stratford’s focus on the overall development of each student and the family partnerships that are core to a Stratford School education.
Mrs. Sujata Makaram is a seasoned educator with over 20 years of teaching experience. She has been a dedicated member of the Stratford family for 19 years, during which she has taken on several leadership roles. These include serving as the Middle School Curriculum Lead for the Math Department, Instructional Mentor for Grade 5 teachers, and teaching fifth-grade Math, Science, and History at Stratford’s De Anza Park campus.
Mrs. Makaram is deeply committed to her students’ academic success. She believes that fostering a child’s physical, emotional, and social well-being is essential to creating a nurturing and effective learning environment. She continues to find inspiration in the meaningful impact she has made in the lives of her students throughout her career.
Sandeepa’s journey at Stratford began as a teacher at Washington Park. Since then, she has gained extensive experience teaching, mentoring, and leading in our preschool, pre-kindergarten, and kindergarten classrooms. She has also contributed significantly as a member of the Preschool Curriculum Design Team for our Online Academy, designed the Online Summer Program during the COVID-19 period, and served as a Resource Teacher and Campus Mentor for Preschool. Additionally, Sandeepa worked as the Assistant Director at our Sunnyvale De Anza Park campus for two years.
Throughout her career, Sandeepa has always focused on delivering meaningful learning experiences. She is deeply dedicated to fostering a supportive environment where every child feels valued, heard, and empowered. Her goal is to build strong connections with both students and their families while creating a vibrant and inclusive community within our Early Childhood Education program.
Elsie Gui
Director of Admissions
With over 15 years of experience in the education field, Elsie has held leadership roles in school admissions, customer service, marketing, and enrollment management. She has worked in environments prioritizing high-quality education, strategic growth, and strong family engagement.
As Director of Admissions, Elsie is dedicated to helping families navigate the admissions process with clarity and confidence. She collaborates with families to ensure they receive the information and support they need to make informed decisions about their children’s educational journey. Elsie is excited to contribute to Stratford’s mission of fostering a supportive and dynamic learning environment for all students.
Maripaz Corona Villagomez
Extended Day Supervisor
Maripaz has been a dedicated member of the Stratford community for seven years. As the Extended Day Supervisor, she leads her team of Extended Day teachers in implementing a positive guidance approach, ensuring that every student develops essential skills for success. She strongly values Social-Emotional Learning as a crucial component of student growth.
Maripaz believes that self-awareness, sound decision-making, and a willingness to grow are key strengths children develop through learning from mistakes. She emphasizes these concepts in her interactions with students, fostering a supportive environment for their development. Committed to a growth mindset, Maripaz strives to guide both her students and team in embracing continuous learning and self-improvement.
Cuiting Li
Office Administrator
Cuiting has been an office administrator at Stratford School Washington Park for four school years. Before Stratford School, Cuiting was an Executive Assistant/Marketing with a real estate company selling Manufactured Mobile Homes. Before that she worked with children with Autism and provided 1:1 ABA therapy at home and in school settings.
Cuiting has a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology from San Jose State University. With her diverse experience in different industries, Cuiting is here to help every child and family with their needs.
Nancy Sandoval Lopez
Office Administrator
Nancy has been part of the Stratford community for four years, supporting students from Kindergarten through fifth grade. She has led Extended Day teaching, coordinated professional development focused on Social-Emotional Learning, and overseen campus events for the past year. Nancy enjoys building meaningful connections with students and fostering a positive learning environment. She is licensed in Esthetics and is currently pursuing a career in elementary education, bringing both creativity and dedication to her work with children.
In addition to her teaching experience, Nancy’s organizational skills, attention to detail, and event coordination background have been a great asset to the office administration team, helping ensure smooth communication and well-managed school operations.
While working in the front office, she strives to create a safe and caring environment where students can express their emotions. Her goal is to help each child have the resources so that they can shine as the brightest version of themselves.
Our School Leaders
Namrata Vineet Bhalla
Head of School
“I believe in each child’s unique potential.”
Namrata Bhalla brings over a decade of experience in the field of education to her role as the Head of School at Washington Park. Before assuming her current role, Namrata served in both teaching and leadership roles at Stratford.
Namrata believes in each child’s ability to succeed, but knows that children learn in a variety of ways. Stratford’s curriculum provides an excellent framework of learning opportunities to all students that allows educators to help students tap into their unique potential to learn, perform, and accomplish their educational goals. She knows that the teachers in students’ lives play a vital role in development by creating a nurturing and enriching environment to help each child shine.
More than anything, Namrata appreciates Stratford’s focus on the overall development of each student and the family partnerships that are core to a Stratford School education.
EmailSujata Makaram
Director of Lower School Education
Mrs. Sujata Makaram is a seasoned educator with over 20 years of teaching experience. She has been a dedicated member of the Stratford family for 19 years, during which she has taken on several leadership roles. These include serving as the Middle School Curriculum Lead for the Math Department, Instructional Mentor for Grade 5 teachers, and teaching fifth-grade Math, Science, and History at Stratford’s De Anza Park campus.
Mrs. Makaram is deeply committed to her students’ academic success. She believes that fostering a child’s physical, emotional, and social well-being is essential to creating a nurturing and effective learning environment. She continues to find inspiration in the meaningful impact she has made in the lives of her students throughout her career.
Sandeepa Karwa
Director of Early Childhood Education
Sandeepa’s journey at Stratford began as a teacher at Washington Park. Since then, she has gained extensive experience teaching, mentoring, and leading in our preschool, pre-kindergarten, and kindergarten classrooms. She has also contributed significantly as a member of the Preschool Curriculum Design Team for our Online Academy, designed the Online Summer Program during the COVID-19 period, and served as a Resource Teacher and Campus Mentor for Preschool. Additionally, Sandeepa worked as the Assistant Director at our Sunnyvale De Anza Park campus for two years.
Throughout her career, Sandeepa has always focused on delivering meaningful learning experiences. She is deeply dedicated to fostering a supportive environment where every child feels valued, heard, and empowered. Her goal is to build strong connections with both students and their families while creating a vibrant and inclusive community within our Early Childhood Education program.
Elsie Gui
Director of Admissions
With over 15 years of experience in the education field, Elsie has held leadership roles in school admissions, customer service, marketing, and enrollment management. She has worked in environments prioritizing high-quality education, strategic growth, and strong family engagement.
As Director of Admissions, Elsie is dedicated to helping families navigate the admissions process with clarity and confidence. She collaborates with families to ensure they receive the information and support they need to make informed decisions about their children’s educational journey. Elsie is excited to contribute to Stratford’s mission of fostering a supportive and dynamic learning environment for all students.
Maripaz Corona Villagomez
Extended Day Supervisor
Maripaz has been a dedicated member of the Stratford community for seven years. As the Extended Day Supervisor, she leads her team of Extended Day teachers in implementing a positive guidance approach, ensuring that every student develops essential skills for success. She strongly values Social-Emotional Learning as a crucial component of student growth.
Maripaz believes that self-awareness, sound decision-making, and a willingness to grow are key strengths children develop through learning from mistakes. She emphasizes these concepts in her interactions with students, fostering a supportive environment for their development. Committed to a growth mindset, Maripaz strives to guide both her students and team in embracing continuous learning and self-improvement.
Cuiting Li
Office Administrator
Cuiting has been an office administrator at Stratford School Washington Park for four school years. Before Stratford School, Cuiting was an Executive Assistant/Marketing with a real estate company selling Manufactured Mobile Homes. Before that she worked with children with Autism and provided 1:1 ABA therapy at home and in school settings.
Cuiting has a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology from San Jose State University. With her diverse experience in different industries, Cuiting is here to help every child and family with their needs.
Nancy Sandoval Lopez
Office Administrator
Nancy has been part of the Stratford community for four years, supporting students from Kindergarten through fifth grade. She has led Extended Day teaching, coordinated professional development focused on Social-Emotional Learning, and overseen campus events for the past year. Nancy enjoys building meaningful connections with students and fostering a positive learning environment. She is licensed in Esthetics and is currently pursuing a career in elementary education, bringing both creativity and dedication to her work with children.
In addition to her teaching experience, Nancy’s organizational skills, attention to detail, and event coordination background have been a great asset to the office administration team, helping ensure smooth communication and well-managed school operations.
While working in the front office, she strives to create a safe and caring environment where students can express their emotions. Her goal is to help each child have the resources so that they can shine as the brightest version of themselves.
Our Faculty
Mehvish Abbas
Lunch Teacher
Batul Attar
Lunch Teacher
Jinal Bharat Bajaria
Kindergarten Teacher
Arrianna Cardenas
Extended Day Teacher
Cristina Castro
PS/PK Floater
Prabhjot Chaudry
Kindergarten Teacher
Amy Chou
Mandarin After School Teacher
Alex Chui
Elementary Music Teacher
Leslie Chui
1st Grade Teacher
Manuela Cortez
Second Grade Teacher
Ruchika Dathwal
Lunch and Extended Day Teacher
Chaitali Datta
Pre-Kindergarten Teacher
Chantal De La Rosa Luna
PS/PK Spanish Teacher
Grace Du
ECE Mandarin After School Teacher
Athiya Gafoor
Librarian
Nathalie Hernandez
Extended Day Teacher
Vaishnavi Jayakumar
Preschool Teacher
Supriya Joshi
Pre-Kindergarten Teacher
Neeti Khatana
PS/PK Science Teacher
Asha Kiran
1st Grade Teacher
Candice Liu
Mandarin After School Teacher
Richa Maheshwari
Pre-K Teacher
Atziry Martinez Gomez
Extended Day Teacher
Kristine Molina
Pre-Kindergarten Teacher
Sridurga Muggalla
Extended Day Teacher
Cindy Murdick
2nd Grade Teacher
Cristina Nowell
PS/PK Music Teacher
Fathima Nuzha
Lunch and Extended Day Teacher
Anila Palla
4th Grade Teacher
Surya Pervin
Kindergarten Teacher
Sonia Prasad
Computer Science Teacher
Deb Raha
Lunch and Extended Day Teacher
Preeti Rajendran
1st Grade Teacher
Sunita Raman
4th Grade Teacher
Angie Rizo
Lunch and Extended Day Teacher
Bianca Rizo
Lunch and Extended Day Teacher
Mari Rocha
Preschool Teacher
Diana Ruiz
Elementary Spanish Teacher
Arundhati Saptarshi
Preschool Teacher
Swarnali Sarkar
Pre-Kindergarten Teacher
Betty Sequeira
Lunch and Extended Day Teacher
Kavita Shahane
Lunch Teacher
Sumeeti Singh
5th Grade Teacher
Sharanya Subramanian
Preschool Teacher
Sreela Suresh
Kindergarten Teacher
Eleanora Templeton
Pre-Kindergarten Teacher
Matthew Tondag
Elementary PE Teacher
Lavanya Upadhayayula
Preschool Teacher
Surekha Vagicharla
Preschool Teacher
Alexis Varr
2nd Grade Teacher
Ayse Zamboglu
5th Grade Teacher
Jingwen Zhang
Mandarin Specialty
Connie Zhao
ECE Mandarin After School Teacher