Meet the Project Rebound Team

Program Director Rudy Howell

Program Director Rudolph "Rudy" Howell earned a transferable A.A. Degree in Business Administration from Lassen College at FCC Herlong. A process that took 17 years to complete while in federal custody. He was accepted at San Francisco State University through the Project Rebound program before his release in 2013. He graduated in 2016 with a bachelor's degree in criminal justice.

In his role as Impact Coach for Rubicon Programs Rudy built out the Rubicon Education Partnership program. REP participants were able to attend the college of their choice in the Bay Area with support from the REP program, which included the tools required to be a successful college student. The REP program worked with many of the local community colleges and also Project Rebound at SFSU.

Rudy firmly believes that an education is a sustainable path to self-efficacy. Self-Efficacy is a person's belief in their ability to succeed in a particular situation. In his role as Project Rebound Director at San Jose State University, he looks forward to helping and supporting others on their journey to Self-Efficacy.

Contact: rudy.howell@sjsu.edu

Executive Director Oona Hatton

Executive Director Oona Hatton (she/her) is an Associate Professor of Performance Studies and Associate Chair of the Department of Communication Studies. She has published research about theatre programs and live performances in carceral settings in California, and is the author of SEE YOU IN MY DREAMS, a play adapted from the letters, artwork, and poetry of Jack L. Morris, a survivor of more than thirty-five years of solitary confinement at the Pelican Bay State Penitentiary. Dr. Hatton has served as Graduate Coordinator for her department's MA program as well as serving on multiple university, college, and department committees including the University Writing Committee, CoSS RSCA, the Campus Reading Program, and the Veterans Advisory Committee. In 2020, she was awarded the CoSS Teaching Excellence Award. In 2018 and 2019, Dr. Hatton was facilitator-in-training and co-facilitator of SJSU's Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion's faculty workshop series Whiteness and Race. Dr. Hatton holds a Ph.D. in Theatre & Drama from Northwestern University.

Contact: oona.hatton@sjsu.edu

Founding Executive Director Peggy Stevenson

Founding Executive Director Peggy Stevenson started the Record Clearance Project (RCP) at San Jose State University in 2008; she has worked as an attorney and teacher in the record clearance field since 2005. Peggy received the CSU Chancellor's Award for Faculty Innovation and Leadership in Fall 2018 for her work in establishing the RCP. Prior to the RCP, Peggy served as Executive Director of community-based clinical programs for Stanford and Santa Clara law schools. She has a JD from UCLA.

Administrative Coordinator Rachel Jones

Rachel is excited to join Project Rebound as Administrative Coordinator since March of 2025. She helps with the clerical, marketing, and accounting side of Project Rebound SJSU, using the skills she has developed running a business as an artist since graduating with a BFA in Illustration from BYU-Provo in 2009 with an emphasis on book illustration. She has since done fine art to graphic design for murals, businesses, merchandise, websites, and stories. She has also assists the Women in Engineering Conference at SJSU with graphic design and administrative work.