National Board of Advisors

Theo Armour

Theo Armour is an architect educated at the Architectural Association School of Architecture in London. He practiced architecture in London and Hong Kong before becoming a computer-aided design consultant at CAD-Asia. He was a founder of PC Plus, an IBM PC dealership specializing in Computer Aided Design, the Hong Kong Macintosh User Group and the Asian Venture Capital Journal. In the 1990’s he was Program Manager at Autodesk for AutoCAD Releases 13, 14 and the beginning of Release 2000. Subsequently he has implemented web sites for a number of artists, start-ups and various worthy organizations and has been an angel to a number of start-ups. Theo was awarded the English Channel Swimming Association’s Van Audernaerde Prize for Best Disabled Swim in 1980. In 2006 he was awarded First Place for fastest swim in the annual “Escape from Alcatraz” competition. From June 2001 to June 2008 he was a member of the Board of the Peggy Guggenheim Collection in Venice and was designer and webmaster of their web site from 2001 to 2004. Theo has helped a number of artists and designers with their web sites.

Jim Caldwell

Jim Caldwell is Executive Director of Workforce Incubator, a nonprofit dedicated to preparing students for rewarding careers in the global economy. Founded in 2007, Workforce Incubator develops initiatives through a coalition of leaders in industry and education which brings industry into the classroom and creates real-world workforce opportunities for students. Its’ pilot project is expected to enable some 3,000 students in the Pleasanton / Dublin / Livermore area to experience high-impact career-relevant learning during its first full year. Jim chairs the Tri-Valley Business Council’s education initiative, which is a coalition of 30+ leaders in industry and education committed to developing a world-class talent pool for 21st Century careers in the Tri-Valley. Jim is a retired executive with more than 40 years in the high tech industry. He lives in Livermore with his wife, Diana.

Dianne Calvi

Dianne Calvi is the President and CEO of Village Enterprise Fund, a nonprofit organization that provides seed capital, business trailing, and ongoing mentoring to entrepreneurs in rural East Africa. Village Enterprise Fund has been a pioneer in the microenterprise field for over 20 years. During her five years as President of the early literacy nonprofit, Bring Me A Book Foundation, Dianne Calvi led the expansion of Bring Me A Book’s presence from 80 library sites primarily in the San Francisco area to over 1800 sites throughout the United States and in 7 countries around the world. In addition to serving as President of Bring Me A Book, Dianne served as Chairman of the Read Aloud Collaborative of Silicon Valley, a member of the United Way’s Partnership for School Readiness, and Advisory Board Member for the Professional Women’s Symposium. Before serving as President of Bring Me A Book, she was Vice President of Marketing and Development for YouthNoise, a nonprofit venture of Save the Children. She also served on the Board of Shelter Network for six years as the Chair of the Development Committee and for two years as the Secretary of the Board. Previously, she worked in sales, marketing, and consulting positions for Microsoft, Xerox, and Montedison Corporations (Milan, IT). Dianne received a BA from Stanford University and a MBA from Bocconi University (Milan, IT) on a Rotary International Scholarship.

Samson Lim

Samson Lim is the Founder & CEO of Scholarship Junkies, an online scholarship resource designed to provide an insider’s guide to the scholarship process from the perspective of former scholarship recipients. Since 2006, Scholarship Junkies has worked with dozens of students who went on to receive numerous local and national scholarships, including the Horatio Alger National Scholarship and Gates Millennium Scholarship. Sam graduated with a degree in International Studies from the University of Washington in Seattle, completely free of debt as a result of the nearly 20 scholarships he received after applying for over 75 scholarships in high school. As an undergraduate student, Sam helped lead the non-profit University of Washington Dream Project, worked as Scholarship Coach for the UW Women’s Center’s Making Connections Program and as a Summer Institute Team Leader for the UW State GEAR UP Program, and received several on-campus and national awards. Today, Sam is a 2010-2011 U.S. Student Fulbright Scholar based in Berlin, Germany, and also represents Scholarship Junkies on the Advisory Group of the Washington Scholarship Coalition.

Chris Mohammed

Chris Mohammed, President of the Rotary Club of Livermore Valley, Director at the Las Positas College Foundation, and Director for the Rotarian Foundation of Livermore, retired in 2009 from a successful 33 year career in real estate finance to pursue her passion for philanthropy. Chris has held Officer, Director and Chair positions for the California Assn. of Realtors, Santa Clara County Assn of Realtors, Bay East Assn of Realtors, Women’s Council of Realtors, Arroyo Vista Homeowners Assn., and the Lake Canyon Mutual Water Company. Chris assisted with fundraising and event planning for many of these organizations. Chris has received numerous awards, including most recently the “Friend of the College” Award 2010 for Las Positas College and the 2007 Bill Webster Rotarian of the Year Award from the Rotary Club of Livermore Valley. She is a proud lifetime Girl Scout.

Cynthia To

Cynthia is currently a senior at Sonoma State University majoring in biology with career aspirations in ecology and conservation. In her four years at Livermore High School, she was deeply involved in leadership, music and sports. She held positions such as class treasurer and publicity commissioner, and helped incoming freshmen transition to high school as a Link Crew leader. She graduated from Livermore High School in 2007 with an academic cord, and received an award for service and distinguished service in school. During Cynthia’s first year at Sonoma State, she was her freshman village council president. Cynthia furthers her interest in leadership as a member of her sorority at Sonoma State, and continues to help future college students as a BetterGrads mentor.