Staff Directory
Leadership
Brenda Sadeghi grew up in Tulare, California but now considers herself a Los Angeles native. She received her bachelor’s degree from California State University, Northridge (CSUN), where she double majored in political science and Chicano Studies and went on to get her teaching credential from Fresno Pacific University. She also holds a master's in educational leadership from CSUN. Prior to joining VCMS, Brenda taught at Extera Public School in Boyle Heights. She especially treasures what she calls the “oh moments” in the classroom. “I love teaching when the vast majority of the class has little experience with the concept because when they start to understand the concept, they often say, ‘Oh, I get it!’ Then I feel our experience has come full circle,” she explains. In her spare time, the Lake Balboa resident enjoys trying new things such as parasailing and kayaking. She also seeks out local destinations where she can experience different cultures and traditions.
Cinthya Gonzalez has always known that her passion was to be in education, and create equitable opportunities for marginalized school communities. As a first generation immigrant from Mexico and English language learner, Cinthya witnessed first-hand the disparities that exist in education, when content is not made accessible to diverse student populations. Long before she became an educator, Cinthya worked as a preschool teacher assistant and dance coach for an elementary school in the city of Pacoima. It was there when she realized that her calling was to become an educator and soon after she was hired as an intern-kindergarten teacher for LAUSD. She later moved to Vaughn Next Century Learning Center, where she taught 6th-8th grade, but spent the majority of her time as an 8th grade English teacher. Cinthya received her Liberal Arts bachelor's degree and multiple subject teaching credential from Cal State Northridge, as well as her single subject English teaching credential. Recently, Cinthya received her masters degree in school leadership, along with her administrative credential from Loyola Marymount University, GO LIONS! Cinthya is a wife and a mother of four children, in which most of her free time is dedicated as a travel baseball parent watching her oldest son play his heart out on the baseball field across the country. Cinthya is very excited to start a new journey at VCMS as assistant principal and is looking forward to working closely with students, staff, and families.
Office Staff

Cecilia Chimal grew up in the San Fernando Valley and attended Mission College in Santa Clara. She worked as an administrative assistant and pre-school teaching assistant before joining VCMS. According to Ms. Chimal: “It’s never a dull day at VCMS! I get to work with nice, fun, smart people every day.” The mother of four—two boys and two girls—is a devoted girl scout troop leader and, in her words, “full-time soccer mom.”
Teaching Staff
James Bresden is a graduate of California State University, Northridge, earning a degree in Political Science and a Secondary Education Credential in English. In his free time, Mr. Bresden frequents revival movie houses and valiantly attempts new recipes with varying degrees of success. Mr. Bresden began teaching in 2008 and has taught both middle school and high school, joining VCMS in 2019. He has resided in the Valley for the past 20+ years.

Damian is a veteran Math teacher with over 20 years of teaching experience. After earning his Applied Mathematics degree from the University of California, San Diego, in La Jolla, Damian received his single subject teaching credential from National University. During his time teaching middle school, Damian also served as an instructional math coach, a department chair, a gifted coordinator, and an 8th-grade class sponsor. His experiences differentiating instruction and teaching math in a problem-based learning format make him an invaluable asset to our staff.
Krysta Henriquez was born and raised here in the San Fernando Valley. She received her degree in Applied Mathematics at UC Riverside. As an undergrad, she was an in-class math tutor at an elementary school in Riverside for three years, and that was where her spark for teaching really grew. After graduating, she moved to the Bronx, NY where she taught and tutored students in math, english and Spanish. After returning to the San Fernando Valley, she was a third grade TA at VCES for three years and was in awe of all the amazing students and teachers. Because of her great experiences at VCES, she is excited to stay a part of the VCS team and continue her passion for teaching math.

Stephen Lopez is a native Angeleno, born in Culver City. He studied kinesiology at Cal Poly Pomona. Before coming to VCMS, Lopez worked as an assistant athletic trainer. “What I love about being an athletic director is seeing the joy a student gets from playing a sport that without school athletics, they might not have had the opportunity to play,” he said. When he is not at VCMS, you might find Lopez playing soccer with friends or cheering on his beloved Dodgers.

Vermont native Kevin Waterman, served five years in the Marine Corps infantry, including seven months in Iraq, before pursuing his bachelor’s degree in history at California State University, Northridge (CSUN). He received his teaching credential at CSUN and student taught at Mulholland Middle School and Cleveland High School. On being a teacher, Waterman said, “I love working with kids and engaging with ideas. I have always been passionate about history and social studies. It feels very rewarding to see students really thinking critically and grappling with questions concerning the way the world works.” In addition to spending time with his wife and cats, in his spare time, the North Hills resident loves to read, exercise (and in particular, hike), and play strategy computer games such as Civilization V and Stronghold: Crusader.
Deans and Specialists
Rose Powers is a recent transplant to LA from Boston, Massachusetts where she taught high school Spanish for almost 10 years. She received her bachelor’s degree in Spanish language from University of Massachusetts Boston and her master’s degree in teaching from Simmons University. She then received a Certificate of Advanced Graduate Studies in educational administration from University of Massachusetts Boston. She ran several summer programs and worked as a substitute Dean of Students. Rose has a passion for leading professional development and has run sessions on restorative justice and culturally responsive teaching. She believes in positive behavior reinforcement systems and looks forward to developing meaningful relationships with the students and families of VCMS. In her spare time, Rose enjoys traveling, photography, listening to 90’s music and spending time with her husband and young son.
Special Education
Born and raised in the San Fernando Valley, Alicia has returned to the valley after living in the Palm Springs area for the last 23 years. She earned two Bachelor’s of Arts Degrees from the University of California at Riverside in Sociology and Administrative Studies and then completed her Master’s in School Psychology and obtained a Pupil Personal Credential from California State University at San Bernardino. Since completing her Master’s in 2019 she has been testing children for Special Education and evaluating how they learn. Alicia has worked with a large range of students with a number of disabilities. She is dedicated to matching students with their best learning modalities. She has been working in the field of school psychology for the last 7 years. This work experience has been in the private sector for an educational psychologist and in the public sector for school districts in Riverside County and Alameda County conducting assessments and providing counseling. She believes that every student has strengths and weaknesses and that we need to use our strengths to work around those weaknesses. During her free time she enjoys taking walks with her herd of miniature schnauzers and playing Pokémon Go. Parents and teams just love her and she is a true gem!
