Our Story
Founded in 1999 on the campus of Stanford University, Digital Media Academy (DMA) helps K-12 schools and educators leaders around the world implement comprehensive and sustainable STEAM programs.
Our team of Stanford educators, researchers, and industry experts is here to equip and guide you toward meaningful change and prepare the next generation of global leaders.
We understand the challenges schools face in creating a robust STEAM curriculum. That’s why we offer a comprehensive and sustainable solution to help with teacher training, integrating STEAM into existing curricula, and keeping everything up-to-date.
Our program has a proven track record of delivering results for 500,000+ students in 1,100+ schools across 125+ countries. With over 100 courses in six areas, we offer a complete and easy-to-implement solution to bring your STEAM vision to life.
Meet your team!
Andre Nudelman
Chairperson
Chairperson @ DMA | Entrepreneur in residence at the Stanford Graduate School of Education
Andre Nudelman
Andre Nudelman was appointed as Entrepreneur in Residence at Stanford University Graduate School of Education in September 2021. He has an extensive range of activities, including Private Equity with focus on Education, Entrepreneurship, Real Estate Investments, Agriculture, Art Collection, Non-profit organizations, and volunteer activities.
Among his past ventures, Maple Bear Schools Latin America, the largest franchised K-12 bilingual school chain in Latin America, sold in 2016. Presently, through Addquire Private Equity, he controls Digital Media Academy (digitalmediaacademy.org), a company that offers Tech Courses in person and online to students from 3-18 years old globally; International Comprehensive (icomprhensive.com), a school quality improvement system; International Canadian Academy (icanadianacademy.com), a K-12 bilingual school franchising chain; Interactive Health International (cyberpatient.ca), a simulation online system for medical education; and Teacherwit.com, a global platform for teachers to share experiences and improve their practises.
His philanthropic and volunteer activities include: former Chairman of the Canadian Council for The Americas BC for ten years; former Cabinet Campaign member for Emily Carr University of Art+Design; former Advisory board member at McRae Institute for International Relations at Capilano University; Chairman of The Einstein legacy Project in BC at Hebrew University of Jerusalem; Ambassador of Vancouver Biennale; among others.
Jamie Turner
Chief Operating Officer
Global Operations Expert | EdTech Consultant | Growth Catalyst
Jamie Turner
Jamie currently holds the position of Chief Operating Officer at Digital Media Academy. He was appointed to this role in February 2022, after serving as the Director of Education since December 2019.
Before joining Digital Media Academy, Jamie spent four years teaching at the East London Arts and Music Academy in London, UK. This world-class 16-19 Academy provides young people with a comprehensive education in the music, games design, and film and television sectors, preparing them for successful careers. Jamie’s role at the academy involved delivering high-quality education and ensuring students had the necessary skills for their future endeavors.
With a background as a Music Educator, Jamie has accumulated more than a decade of experience in the education sector. He has held various curriculum development and design positions, including his work on curriculum design for the renowned Royal Opera House in London. Throughout his career, Jamie has consistently demonstrated a passion for creating authentic learning experiences and innovative educational designs.
In addition to his professional accomplishments, Jamie has also made significant contributions to philanthropy and education access efforts. For over a decade, he has served as the President of Helping Point Canada Society, a not-for-profit education charity. The organization focuses on poverty alleviation and improving educational opportunities in central-eastern India, reflecting Jamie’s commitment to making a positive impact in the world.
As the Chief Operating Officer at Digital Media Academy, Jamie continues to drive educational excellence and innovation, ensuring the company’s STEAM curriculum empowers students worldwide to thrive in the digital age.
Glenn Fajardo
Chief Learning Officer
Lecturer at Stanford d.school | Former Director of Co-Design Practice @ TechSoup
Glenn Fajardo
Glenn Fajardo connects to create, exploring how we can be creative together when we are far apart and in different cultural contexts. He has been part of the Stanford d.school teaching community since 2014 and was the Stanford d.school’s Distributed Learning Teaching Fellow in 2020.
For 14 years, Glenn has been a practitioner of virtual collaboration, working with people and organizations across six continents engaged in social impact work. Glenn is the co-author (with Kursat Ozenc) of Rituals for Virtual Meetings: Creative Ways to Engage People and Strengthen Relationships.
Glenn was formerly the Director of the Co-Design Practice of the TechSoup Global Network at TechSoup, a nonprofit social enterprise founded on the belief that technology can be a powerful enabler for greater social change. Formally trained in nuclear engineering sciences and public policy, Glenn also plays electric bass and likes to cook in other people’s kitchens.
Sarah Abji-Endicott
School Program Director
Educator | Entrepreneur | EdTech Coach | Web Developer | Marketing Professional
Sarah Mae Abji-Endicott
Sarah is a highly experienced educator and coach who has dedicated her career to making a global impact on students’ lives. With over 20 years of experience in the education sector, including five as a high school teacher with the Vancouver School Board, Sarah is well-versed in the challenges that students face and is committed to helping them navigate the 21st century. She holds a BA in Political Science and a BEd in Curriculum and Instruction. As a board-certified teacher and Human Potential Coach, Sarah brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the education field.
Sarah is also a self-taught full-stack WordPress developer and has extensive experience in website development, branding, email marketing, and social media engagement.
Her passion is to bridge the gap between what the school system fails to teach and the 21st-century skills needed to live a life with more passion and less burnout.
Chris Bennett
Learning and Engagement Specialist
Associate Professor Learning, Design, and Technology at Stanford | Game Designer
Chris Bennett
Chris Bennett is an award-winning Game Designer and Stanford invited lecturer who has combined creative ideas with digital engagement to reach millions of players with his credited games. Chris teaches, studies, and practices ways to apply his science of Game Design Thinking to improve lives in the real world.
Chris has over 20 years of experience in the entertainment software industry, including three very successful franchises; The Sims, Diner Dash, and Tiger Woods PGA Tour.
Chris has talked about games and game design for major media outlets, including NBC TV, NPR, Forbes.com, and the San Francisco Chronicle. He is called on by organizations such as Stanford University, University of California Berkeley, and USAID for his game design expertise.
Mehul Gadhavi
Senior Accountant
Bookkeeping | Business Administration | Audits
Mehul Gadhavi
Mehul joined Digital Media Academy in August 2019 as an Accountant. He has been supporting a team with a wide range of accounting experience to ensure smooth functionality of financial operations.
Mehul has a Bachelor of Commerce degree in Accounting & Auditing.
Michelle Carrega
Program Director
Michelle Carrega
Michelle works to discover solutions through human-centered design. Her areas of expertise are social innovation, educational outreach, program design, and organizational development. She has over fifteen years of experience in leading global teams and consulting.
Michelle previously managed and drove the strategic evolution of LinkedIn’s Global Emerging Talent Programs and Pathways organization for almost nine years, overseeing programs such as LinkedIn’s Intern Program, Year Up, HBCU & HSI, and launching the Apprentice Center of Excellence (ACE).
In Michelle’s free time, you’ll find her with her family hiking, biking, or drinking on Argentine maté.
Lacey Giles
Member Experience Manager & Curriculum Development Coordinator
Educator | Researcher | Science Literacy Specialist | Global Citizen
Lacey Giles
Lacey is a dedicated educator with a diverse background and comprehensive understanding of education institutions beyond the classroom. Previously, she worked as a chemistry, biology, and physics teacher before transitioning into a curriculum director role, leveraging her expertise to shape impactful learning experiences.
Lacey’s academic journey reflects her passion for interdisciplinary studies, as she holds a B.A. in the History of Science and an M.A. in Classics. This interdisciplinary background has nurtured her creative thinking and fuels her dedication to improving the role of education in society.
In her current role at the Digital Media Academy, Lacey aims to create a vibrant and inclusive community of STEAM schools worldwide. Through collaboration, forward-thinking strategies, and a pursuit of excellence, she is committed to developing digital learning experiences that best serve students and address the exciting changes faced by educational professionals.
Samuel Troya
Membership Community & Curriculum Development Specialist
Education Optimization Specialist | Business Analyst | University of British Columbia Alumni
Samuel Troya
Samuel is a dedicated contract worker at Digital Media Academy, bringing valuable experience and a genuine passion for education optimization. With a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology from the University of British Columbia, Samuel has developed a strong understanding of learning processes and is committed to enhancing students’ educational journeys.
With previous experience at the Vancouver Latin American Cultural Centre, Samuel actively supported the organization’s Executive Director, cultivating a deep appreciation for Latin American arts and culture. This experience highlighted the vital role of education in promoting cultural awareness and fostering appreciation.
With his prior experience as a Business Analyst at Digital Media Academy, Samuel possesses a comprehensive understanding of the organization’s operations and educational philosophy. In his current role, Samuel actively contributes to various projects, providing fresh perspectives and valuable insights that contribute to the company’s success.
Ian Bott
Data Analyst and Researcher
Education Data Scientist at Stanford | Harvard Alumni
Ian Bott
Ian is a graduate student in Education Data Science at Stanford University. His research is focused on leveraging data to understand the impact of education technologies. Previously, he worked as a math teacher and founding Dean of Academic Progress within charter school networks in Houston, Texas.
Our Advisors
Esther Wojcicki
Advisor
The Godmother of Silicon Valley. A leading American educator, journalist, and mother | Leader in Blending Learning
Esther Wojcicki
Wojcicki is a leading American educator, journalist and mother. Leader in Blending Learning and the integration of technology into education, she is the founder of the Media Arts program at Palo Alto High School, where she built a journalism program from a small group of 20 students in 1984 to one of the largest in the nation including 600 students, five additional journalism teachers, and nine award-winning journalism publications. Wojcicki serves as Vice Chair of Creative Commons and has previously worked as a professional journalist for multiple publications and blogs regularly for The Huffington Post.
Esther has been intimately involved with Google and GoogleEdu since its inception, where she was one of the leaders in setting up the Google Teacher Academy and remains a guiding force.
With two Honorary Doctorate Degrees – Palo Alto University (2013) and Rhode Island School of Design (2016). She was California Teacher of the Year in 2002 by the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing; a recipient of the Gold Key by Columbia Scholastic Press Association in recognition of her outstanding devotion to the cause of the school press; a board member of Alliance for Excellent Education in Washington, DC, and on the Board of Newseum in DC; and a has been a consultant for the U.S Department of Education, Hewlett Foundation, Carnegie Foundation for Advancement of Teaching, Google, Silicon Valley Education Foundation and Time Magazine Education.
Prashant Loyalka
Advisor
Associate Professor of Education and Senior Fellow at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies at Stanford University
Prashant Loyalka
Prashant Loyalka is an Associate Professor at the Graduate School of Education and a Senior Fellow at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies at Stanford University. His research focuses on examining/addressing inequalities in the education of children and youth and on understanding/improving the quality of education received by children and youth in multiple countries including China, India, Russia, and the United States. He also conducts large-scale evaluations of educational programs and policies that seek to improve student outcomes.
Kenton Low
Advisor
Dean, BCIT School of Business and Media | Former President Universal Studios On-Line and VP Disney
Kenton Low
Kenton is an educator and senior executive with a record of leadership in companies ranging from entrepreneurial ventures to two of the FORTUNE 50 most admired companies in the world. His previous roles include Corporate Chief Marketing Officer for Universal Studios, Chief Marketing Officer for Ritchie Bros., and President of New Media BC (now DigiBC).
He was also Vice President at Disney’s Internet Group, Disney Interactive, and Walt Disney Imagineering where he led international development and coordinated the activities of a multi-disciplinary team that resulted in approval to build Hong Kong Disneyland. As an educator, Kenton has taught strategic planning, marketing, and customer experience courses at corporate training programs and various North American universities, and served as an Adjunct Professor at UBC’s Sauder School of Business.
In addition to his impressive portfolio, Kenton has served several communities as an active board member for numerous organizations including United Way of the Lower Mainland, Junior Achievement BC, the H.R. MacMillan Space Centre, and the Los Angeles Food Bank.
He holds a Bachelor of Commerce from UBC and an MBA from the UCLA Anderson School of Management.
Yuval Shahar
Advisor
Head, Medical Informatics Research Center at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev | Stanford Researcher
Yuval Shahar
Yuval Shahar is a professor and previous chair of BGU’s Information Systems Engineering department.
He holds a B.Sc. and an M.D. degree from the Hebrew University, an M.Sc. in computer science from Yale University, and a Ph.D. in Medical Information Sciences from Stanford University. After a decade at Stanford as a researcher and full-time faculty member in Computer Science and Medicine, he has joined BGU in 2000 to found and head its Medical Informatics Research Center.
Over the past 25 years, Prof. Shahar’s research has focused on temporal reasoning, temporal data mining, therapy planning, decision analysis, information visualization, knowledge acquisition, knowledge representation, and knowledge-based systems, applying his work mostly in biomedical domains, as well in domains such as homeland security and information security.
Among multiple awards, Prof. Shahar was granted in 1995 a NIH 5-year FIRST career award and an NSF award to explore the theoretical and practical implications of the temporal-reasoning methodology he had developed; in 2005 an IBM Faculty Award, and in 2008 an HP Worldwide Innovation Program award. He was elected in 2005 as an International Fellow of the American College of Medical Informatics (ACMI).
Vinicius David
Advisor
CEO @ VDX People | Super entrepreneur focused on growing people and reinventing business
Vinicius David
Vinicius is a high-tech executive based in Silicon Valley with over 17 years of multinational experience working for Fortune 100 companies.
His experience includes the general management of mid to large-size businesses and multibillion-dollar P&L operations.
He has held leadership positions in product management, operations, and technology services.
He is currently the senior director of HP’s Device-as-a-Service (DaaS) business — a platform that brings industry 4.0 to life — a unique solution combining hardware, software, machine learning (ML), and artificial intelligence (AI) services.
It allows customers to increase IT efficiency, security, and employee productivity and accelerate their digital transformation.
He has also led several turnarounds while driving innovation and disrupting established business models through technology.
As a startup investor, board member & advisor he coaches founders and CEOs on their journey to scale businesses and teams.
He is an instructor and lecturer at UC Berkeley in the areas of leadership, innovation, and product management, where he created the 𝑷𝒆𝒙𝒑TI framework of exponential growth. It enables the development and attraction of Exponential People (P) able to Transform (T) markets, culture, and mindset — leading organizations to sustainable Innovation (I) for the long haul.
Applied to large companies it has resulted in product reinvention and returns to massive growth, whereas inside small ones it has been the foundation of solid scale.
As a passionate person for education, he seats on the Board of Junior Achievement NorCal and supports Karimu, an NGO building schools in the rural areas of Tanzania, Africa. He is also a mentor of several young executives from companies like Salesforce, Booking.com, and LinkedIn and a sponsor of several initiatives to accelerate career development, diversity, and inclusion.
Vinicius has a B.S. degree in industrial engineering, an MBA in business management and a specialization in AI applied for business from the Stanford GSB.
Bob Regan
Advisor
Senior Director of Education at Gates Ventures | Former Pearson and Adobe Product Developer
Bob Regan
Bob Regan is the Senior Director of Education at Gates Ventures. Based in Seattle, Bob divides his time between building products, advising other education efforts, and thinking about the future of education. His efforts include leading the Big History Project and the World History Project. Each combines a set of free, online materials for teaching history with a vibrant community of teachers using these courses used in more than 3,500 schools across the US and Australia.
Bob began his career in the classroom as a teacher of math, French, and technology in Chicago and New York City schools. Bob earned a Master’s in Elementary Education from Columbia University Teachers College where he focused his research on performance assessment. From his first days in the classroom, he expressed a deep passion for improving teaching and learning through the use of technology in schools. Bob went on to study education policy and technology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison before focusing on software development full-time in 2000.
At Macromedia, he oversaw product development for the Education and Government markets. He was instrumental in leading Macromedia’s Accessibility efforts, pioneering techniques in accessible rich media, and helping shape accessibility standards for people with disabilities around the globe. He was also heavily involved in building and shaping e-learning standards and advancing the concept of the Rich Internet Application. In 2005, Bob joined Adobe with the acquisition of Macromedia where he became the Director of Worldwide Primary and Secondary Education in 2007.
As Director of Worldwide Primary and Secondary Education at Adobe Systems, Bob led the marketing, product development, and business strategy for schools. This included a period of time when Adobe developed a massive partnership with the state of New South Wales, Australia around a ubiquitous deployment of creative tools for students and teachers. With Bob’s leadership, Adobe saw sustained growth in the education business through an exceedingly challenging economic climate.
Bob went on to join Pearson Education in 2011 as Director of Product Development. While at Pearson, Bob led the development of a new, tablet-based product focused on Common Core standards and founded a product innovation studio focused on teacher publishing and project-based learning.
Bob lives in San Francisco, CA with his amazing wife and two incredible daughters who inspire him each and every day.
Bruno Gomes
Advisor
Instructor, Faculty of Commerce and Business Administration at Douglas College
Bruno Gomes
A passionate entrepreneur, educator, product development, and technology leader with over 20 years of experience planning, developing, and commercializing new products, designing strategic roadmaps, and managing high-performance teams in the educational industry.
Skilled in Leadership, Product Development & Management, Project Management, Technology Transfer, Startup Life-Cycle, Startup Fundraising, Sales & Marketing Strategy, Entrepreneurship Education, Partnerships, Ideation, Business Modelling, Social Media Engagement, Presentations & Facilitation.
Katherine Tong
Advisor
EdTech Business Strategist and Entrepreneur | Harvard Alumni | Private Equity Advisor
Katherine Tong
Katherine Tong is a business consultant/strategist specialized in education sector with extensive experience in education technology and cross-curricular curriculum design and implementation in public and private schools.
Katherine has extensive management and operation experience in planning, product development, and project management. Sector experience includes early stage to multinational public companies in technology, education, resource, and visual arts industries in North America.
With a passion in international travel, culinary arts, and arts, Katherine served as board member and volunteer at various community and non-profit organizations.
Katherine completed an undergraduate computer science degree program from Cornell University and earned a master’s degree in business and management system from Harvard University.
