Front Office

Addison Elementary School
650 Addison Avenue, Palo Alto, CA 94301
Tel: (650) 322-5935, FAX: (650) 322-3306
Office hours: 7:45 - 4:15

Principal: Jocelyn Garcia-Thome

Secretary:  Pam Lund

Clerk: Shiela Castro

Principal Bio:

Jocelyn Garcia-Thome became Addison’s principal in the summer of 2010.  This short biography will give you a sense of her background.

A native of California’s great Central Valley, Ms. Garcia-Thome came to the Bay Area to attend San Jose State University and never went back. She graduated SJSU with a Master of Science degree in Psychology and a business minor, and began her career as a psychologist for the Campbell Union School District (CUSD) in 1981. A few years later, she completed an Administrative Services Credential at the University of San Francisco and became an administrator in CUSD in 1987. Within a year she was running one of their largest elementary school sites where she focused on technology and hands-on science instruction. During the last three years of her tenure there, Ms. Garcia-Thome implemented a Spanish Dual Immersion program.

In 1999, Ms. Garcia-Thome left the school district to focus more on technology. Her first assignment was as a Staffing and Systems Manager for Hewlett-Packard in the Bay Area. After a year, she moved into managing the university recruiting relationships for 8 colleges on the East Coast.

In early 2002, Ms. Garcia-Thome left HP to move to IBM in order to stay focused on education while continuing in the technology sector. At IBM, she served as Corporate Citizenship and Corporate Affairs Manager for eight years, eventually managing a diverse team in fifteen western states, driving IBM’s philanthropic and employee engagement strategy, and actively promoting IBM’s community programs, most of which featured IBM’s technology. She also worked closely with organizations such as Silicon Valley Leadership Group and the Silicon Valley Education Foundation in an effort to improve educational practice in Silicon Valley and support local schools and school districts.

Ms. Garcia-Thome’s hobbies and interests include hiking, skiing, running and sailing. She has passed all of the American Sailing Association certifications including Celestial Navigation. She is also a passionate home improvement, loves fine cuisine and grows most of her own produce. She reads avidly, especially Latin American authors and other translated fiction as well as all of the books short-listed for the Man Booker prize. Additionally, she is a glass fusing hobbyist, using her kiln to make glass objects that are practical as well as beautiful to look at.

While at IBM, Ms. Garcia-Thome joined the boards of several organizations devoted to education, and she continues to serve on those boards now.  In the Bay Area she is on the board of the Pacific Autism Center for Education (PACE), an organization that serves students and families of students with autism. She also supports (as a board member) Industry Initiatives for Science and Math Education (IISME), a nonprofit that places K-12 teachers in industry fellowships in the summer to help them improve their science and math practice through real-life work in local companies. Working on the board of Pivot Learning Partners (formerly Bay Area School Reform Collaborative and Springboard Schools) she helps support school reform work. Pivot Learning Partners serves over 860,000 kids in more than 65 school districts by helping the school districts to become more equitable, efficient and effective. Lastly, she helps support STEM education through an advisory role for the Silicon Valley Education Foundation.

Ms. Garcia-Thome invites parents and students to stop by the office to talk about education, technology, reading, sailing, science or anything else of interest to you. She is enjoying the opportunity of serving as Addison’s principal.