Team Funetix
Executive / Research and Development / Product Management
Kali Woodward
Executive Director
As a former Spanish and Arabic linguist for the 101st Airborne Division, and former ESL instructor (at the age of 19) in Bogotá, Colombia, I had a moment of insight when my 8 year old son was struggling to learn how to read going into 2nd grade. That insight, specifically, that the ancient system of diacritic vowels used by the Greeks, Arabs, Hebrews and Persians, could be applied to English, in order to aid new readers in the decoding of English words, led me on a now 17 year journey to deliver a patented, 12 hour literacy app to millions of underprivileged and underserved children in America and the world. I have seen the fragile, flickering light of learning go on, and I have seen the light go out, in hundreds, if not thousands of children's minds. And I have asked the question: "How has the 'Greatest Country in the World' somehow lost the abilty to teach its own children how to read?" And I have made it my life purpose to end that injustice.
Lee Howard
Product Manager
I’m utilizing my experience in the tech. industry to help FUNetix get to market and iterate on its delightful and innovative mobile app. I am passionate about early education. In the past I was on the product team at mind mapping software company Mindjet. I also helped introduce Hour of Code events at my local schools. Before stepping into product management, I was a software product designer and user experience researcher.
Pat Aruffo
Research and Development
As a speech therapist and a grandmother, I have observed what happens to individuals that miss out on the benefits of literacy. The frustration and shame that emerge on an individual level often translate into a future of painful injustice in our society and our world. I want to make a difference in that trajectory.
