Admission

Meet our Team

List of 7 members.

Lisa Wu

Director of Enrollment and Strategic Communications

626-396-6321

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Lisa’s favorite Poly tradition is the annual Lower School Book Fair. Her favorite spot on campus is the picnic tables on Arden Lawn or the balcony of the Upper School Library. She can write upside-down and backwards (from left to right)!
Kate Austin

Admission Systems and Office Manager

626-396-6322

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Kate’s secret superpower is interior design. You can see her handiwork in the Admission office! The Lower School Garden is her favorite spot on campus, and she also enjoys both libraries. Outside of work, she enjoys running, camping, reading, listening to all kinds of podcasts, and going to museums. She is currently in grad school for an M.A. in Art History.
Gretel Barsotti

Advancement and Admission Outreach Officer

626-396-6339

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Gretel’s favorite Poly tradition is Grandparents and Special Friends Day. She can always spot hidden treasure in any antique or thrift store. Outside of work she loves reading, watching movies, traveling, and thrifting. Her favorite spot on campus is Wendy’s Garden.
Esinam Bediako

Assistant Director of Admission, Middle School

626-396-6324

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The spot where you can most likely find Esi on campus is the library courtyard on North Campus. Outside of work, she spends a lot of time chasing after her two sons as they scooter around the neighborhood. She also enjoys reading and attempting to write fiction, cooking, watching movies and TV, and video chatting with friends and family back east.
Bobbie Jo Dobbs

Associate Director of Admission, Upper School

626-396-6323

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BJ’s favorite Poly tradition is rivalry week! The classes really come together to win points throughout the week to try and “beat” the other grade levels. Arden Lawn is the best spot on campus according to her. It’s beautiful and relaxing any time of day. Outside of work she enjoys crafting, DIY, and gardening.
Lindsay Morales

Financial Aid Director; Assistant Director of Admission

626-396-6326

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Lindsay’s favorite Poly tradition is the school-wide opening assembly at the start of each school year. She loves to watch the kindergarteners' faces as they experience Poly for the first time! Outside of work, you can catch her running around the Rose Bowl, finishing a book from her (never-ending) reading list, or listening to her favorite true-crime podcast.
Alex Velasco

Lower School Dean of Student Life; Lower School Admission Liaison

626-396-6437

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Outside of work, Alex enjoys spin class, spending time with family (also known as chasing her two sons around), and reading. She thinks the best spot on campus is the kindergarten classrooms and her favorite Poly tradition is the Lower School buddy program. Her secret superpowers are organizing and cleaning. She also speaks fluent Spanish.

Our Student Ambassadors

Bianca '21

Bianca is a leader of the Black Student Union, works with SLIDE (Student Leadership in Inclusion, Diversity, and Equity), contributes to the yearbook, serves on Ambassador Council, and helps with DEI groups on campus. She says Mr. Prater is the most inspiring teacher because he’s one of the most accomplished teachers on campus yet he’s still humble about everything he’s done.
Chloe '23

Chloe is involved in Ambassadors Council, Model UN, Paw Print, Sustainable Consumerism Club, and Poetry Club. Her favorite class is definitely English because it allows her to make independent inferences about the reading material, and then hear everything from a different perspective the next day. She says it always feels like the bell rings too early.
Dhilan '25

Dhilan’s favorite teacher is Mr. Johnson because he helped him transition from his old school into the Poly community. Dhilan is involved in tennis, guitar, and martial arts. His favorite Poly tradition is the pool party at the beginning of the year as it's a great way to reconnect with the rest of the school. His favorite class is history.
Phoebe '25

Phoebe says the best spot on Poly's campus the library because it's really a welcoming and fun place to be. A really inspiring teacher she had was Mrs. vonBreymann, because of her teaching style and how she included fun projects to help students learn. Her favorite class would probably be math because she loves how math is like a puzzle.
Ryan '21

Ryan’s favorite class at Poly is math. He is involved in Ambassador Council, Peer Mentors, Paw Print, and Global Scholars. He enjoys playing basketball and running track. His favorite spot on campus are the class patios.