Faculty & Staff Directory

Began at CAIS 2022

BEGAN AT CAIS 2022

Ms. Foster joined CAIS in 2022 after working as a librarian at The San Francisco School, San Francisco University High School, and Commodore Sloat Elementary. She also had a long career in nonprofit administration with local organizations such as First 5 San Francisco and the Brava Theater Center. She holds a Master in Industrial Administration from Purdue University and a Master of Library and Information Science from San José State University. In her free time, she enjoys paddleboarding, yoga, camping, and relaxing with a good book.

Began at CAIS in 2010

Fu Laoshi has been at CAIS since 2010 and has been a lead teacher in the Preschool for the past eight years. Fu Laoshi finds working with young children challenging and satisfying. She enjoys watching their abilities develop and grow. In particular she enjoys seeing children with no Chinese background first become comfortable with Chinese and then really start using it to communicate. As an English language learner herself, Fu Laoshi knows that learning a second language is challenging. She is always so proud of how well our students learn at CAIS. Fu Laoshi likes to add music and movement into her classes and she believes this is a fun and easy way to learn a second language, especially for young children. It is her hope that all children will be happy in her class and learn Chinese.

Began at CAIS 2024

Gao Laoshi was born and brought up in Zhongshan, Guangdong Province, China, the hometown of the great man Sun Yat-sen. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Arts Management from the Xinghai Conservatory of Music in Guangzhou. She shares that she is good at singing and playing guzheng, and music has always been an indispensable part of my life. Her journey in education began as a substitute teacher at Kai Ming Head Start in San Francisco. During this time, she completed 18 Early Childhood Education (ECE) credits at City College of San Francisco, earning my Child Development Associate Teacher Permit. She loves playing, learning, and growing with children. She believes that “three people always have their teacher,” and learn from each other in cooperative work with others. In her free time, she loves listening to jazz music, hiking, and watching movies—these hobbies help her find balance and joy after a busy day. 

Began at CAIS 2024

Mrs. Gutierrez shares, “My husband, Phil, and I live in Marin with our extremely mellow black Lab, Randy. I am the mother of a daughter who is a Keeper at a St. Louis raptor sanctuary, and a son who is in film school in Chicago. In my free time, I like to bake cookies (always chocolate), read books from the public library’s ‘New & Popular’ shelf (usually mysteries), and stroll through our neighborhood with the dog.”

Began at CAIS 2024

K-4th Grade Counselor Ginger Harper holds an M.Ed. in International School Counseling from Lehigh University and comes to us from Shanghai American School – Puxi, where she was an Early Childhood Counselor.

Ms. Harper is thrilled to return to the US after 14 amazing years abroad, where she and her husband had the pleasure of living in vibrant cities like Seoul, Bangalore, Shanghai, Abu Dhabi, and Beijing. China holds a special place in their hearts as it’s where their son was born and where their daughter fondly calls “home”. Her partner, Joshua Brinn, will be joining the middle school as a math and science teacher, while their son begins 3rd grade and their daughter embarks on her Kindergarten journey.

Began at CAIS in 2022

Jenny has a B.A. in Art History from San Francisco State University and most recently was the Membership Coordinator for the Asian American Women Artists Association. Jenny brings a positive personality and a strong administrative skill set to the position.

Began at CAIS in 2012

Hsu Laoshi has taught Chinese in K–8 immersion programs for 11 years in the US. and has been with CAIS since 2012. A member of the CAIS Curriculum Committee, she has made presentations at ACTFL, CLTA, NCLC, and STARTALK conferences for the past nine years, and also gave a one-week workshop on immersion school teaching at National Taiwan Normal University. She has served as a master teacher at the Virginia STARTALK Chinese Teacher Academy at the University of Virginia for four summers.

Began at CAIS in 2021

Hu Laoshi was born and raised in Mainland China. She graduated from San Francisco State University with both a B.A. and an M.A. degree in Chinese: Concentration in Chinese Literature &​ Linguistics. She has been an early childhood educator for over 5 years. Working with children has always been a passion and she loves seeing smiles on the children’s faces when they learn something new. Things she enjoys outside of work are spending time with family, traveling, clay molding, and trying different cultural cuisines.

Began at CAIS in 2014