Esther Wojcicki lives less than 10 minutes from both of her daughters and many of her grandchildren in Palo Alto, Calif. On Mother’s Day, that closeness turns into, in her words, “chaos.” “The children are running with presents. No one is organized. They are all very happy. They want to know where the cake is,” he told the Observer before the holiday. “I celebrate my daughters as a mother, and they celebrate me as a mother. All children celebrate me as a grandmother, known as Nana.”
Esther, 85, is the subject of a new documentary this year called “The Godmother of Silicon Valley.” A former high school teacher for more than 40 years, he has many famous students, including former NBA player Jeremy Lin, actor James Franco and author Lisa Brennan-Jobs. At home, he has raised three equally successful women: former YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki, 23andMe founder Anne Wojcicki, and anthropologist and pathologist Janet Wojcicki.
In 2019, Esther published a best-selling book called How to Raise Successful Peoplewhere he reveals his educational philosophy known as “TRICK,” which stands for trust, respect, independence, cooperation and kindness.
The book was not a quick hit in his family. “When it first came out [in 2019], [Anne] he was laughing like, ‘Mom, I can’t believe you wrote this!’ But now, Anne is shaping that model with her three children.
“We tease him about TRICK all the time. But yes, I follow his path now,” Anne told the Observer in a separate interview recently. “My mother is very happy. She is crazy. She is like my teenage son.
Esther has 10 grandchildren, ages six to 26. He keeps in touch with all of them through WhatsApp. Most nights, he is at one of their dinner tables. “I take turns,” he said.
His former students take up a large part of his social calendar. You know, I have coffee and tea and lunch and dinner, and I was like, ‘God, I’m getting fat!'” said Esther. “But I’m so happy to see them all, my main goal is to support them in whatever they do.”
Esther taught English and journalism at Palo Alto High School. He is best known for founding the school’s Media Arts Program and growing it from a single journalism class into a larger program that allows students to specialize in various fields of media.
While some of her students went on to become highly successful journalists, such as The Economist editors Gady Epstein and Noah Sneider, Esther—the daughter of a struggling artist—made a conscious effort to coax her creative students, including her oldest daughter, Susan, into active paths.
“Susan was incredibly talented as an artist,” he said of the former YouTube CEO, who died in 2024. “And I was worried, because I wanted to make sure that he had other skills besides art, and he did that.”
“I’ve had hundreds of kids who are great artists, and I prepared each of them for graphic arts and computer design and anything related to computers and technology,” he added. “I was not against this field. I just don’t want any of my students to die of hunger.”
Esther retired from Palo Alto High School in 2020. He continues to write, speak and travel to share his TRICK method. “The TRICK model can work to help you get along with your child for life, and help you get along with your partner. It works in all human interactions,” he said.
