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Workshop Presenters
Soledad Alfaro
Director of Expanded Learning, Foundations, Inc., Moorestown, NJ
As Director of Expanded Learning at Foundations, Soledad is responsible for developing and sustaining initiatives that support learning across the school day, after school, and in communities. Soledad also provides leadership for Education for Sustainability programs in Northwest Philadelphia and other community-based projects. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Biology from the University of Colorado, Boulder and a Master's degree in Urban Education from Temple University.
Beverly Anderson, LMFT, PPS
Consultant/Trainer, Heartworks, Inc., Visalia, CA
Beverly Anderson received her second Master's degree in Counseling, with a focus on Marriage, Family and Child Counseling from California State University, Fresno. She also holds a Master's degree in Rehabilitation Counseling, as well as a Pupil Personnel Services Credential for School Counseling. She is a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, and has also held positions as director and trainer in counseling and medical agencies, as well as college instructor and consultant to community-based organizations, group homes, and educational settings.
Dr. Shirley Baker, Ph.D.
Director for the International Language Education and Cultural Center, Alliant International University, Fresno, CA
Currently the Director for the International Language Education and Cultural Center and Coordinator for the Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL), Dr. Baker holds an M.A. degree and facilitates K-12 California Teacher of English Learners (CTEL) Certification Programs at Alliant International University. Her teaching responsibilities include TESOL preparation for graduate students and K-12 teachers. She previously served as a Fulbright Senior Scholar at the State Islamic University in the Education Faculty, Jakarta, Indonesia, and later returned to train K-12 teachers throughout Indonesia in English as a Foreign Language (EFL), teaching techniques and materials design. Dr. Baker's teaching background and research shows an emphasis on understanding cultural diversity and differences in teaching and learning styles.
Jhumpa Bhattacharya
Senior Consultant, ThrivePoint Group, Oakland, CA
A former Senior Program Manager and Director at California Tomorrow, Jhumpa Bhattacharya has refined skills as a field researcher, writer, curriculum developer, facilitator, and trainer. She has provided her leadership, deep equity lens, and analytical thinking on various national research and capacity building projects that helped build high-achieving educational systems and programs that honor the languages and cultures of their students; promote personal reflection to unearth bias and assumptions; and name and address inequities. For over 10 years, her work has included providing professional development and coaching to practitioners, working directly with youth, advocating for and helping create policy and system changes, and identifying and highlighting promising practices for youth of color, immigrants and English Learners.
Gretchen Brion-Meisels
Doctoral Candidate, Harvard Graduate School of Education, Cambridge, MA
Gretchen Brion-Meisels is a doctoral student at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Her research seeks to explore holistic student support processes that build on the local knowledge of students and communities. She is particularly interested in finding ways to incorporate students in the researching and reforming of their own school's processes. Before returning to school, Gretchen taught middle school humanities in Baltimore, MD, Cambridge, MA, and Berkeley, CA. A former editor of the Harvard Educational Review, she helped edit a volume entitled, Humanizing Education: Critical Alternatives to Reform (2010).
Dr. Cheryl Chancellor-Freeland, Ph.D.
Integral Community Solutions Institute (ICSI), Fresno, CA
Dr. Cheryl Chancellor-Freeland is a neuroscientist whose research focus is on cultural and socioeconomic factors and mental and physical health. She is a member of the Latino Behavioral Health Institute, Western Psychological Association and Society of Neuroscience. Her current work involves creating mental health programs that are specific to cultural contexts. She is currently an Associate Professor of Psychology at San Jose State University.
Cathye M. Estes, MA
After School Site Coordinator, McLane High School, Fresno, CA
Cathye Estes has been the After School Program Coordinator for "Feel the Heat" at McLane High School in Fresno for 10 years. She's coached cheerleading, served as Department Chair, Intramural Sports Coordinator, Campus Culture Director, Sophomore, Junior, and currently Senior Class Advisor, as well as TUPE Coordinator for the last two years. She's worked on Winter Formal, Prom, two Prom Showcases, two College Showcases, three McLane Idols, two Female Youth Empowerment Conferences, Male Youth Empowerment Conference, presented at STEP UP '09 and '10, Getting it Done '10, TOT for Cal Sac, and Rev Up '10. She's a nationally trained representative and advocate for Project Unify of Special Olympics, as well as an active volunteer at local, state, national, and world events for 23 years. Professional clear credentials include; Multiple Subjects K-8, English Add-On, Severely Disabled, Learning Disabled, Ryan Supplemental, CLAD certified, and a Master of Arts Degree in Special Education. Cathye's also served as the district Mentor for Behavior Management with Fresno County Office of Education, in addition to adjunct faculty member and Assistant Cheerleading Coach for Fresno City College. Her professional goals include making State and Federal dollars work "NOW", reducing future dependence on public assistance, and affecting the future of youth with one touch ... one experience ... one heart at a time.
Vinny Ferraro
Training Director, Mind Body Awareness Project, Oakland, CA
Vinny Ferraro works for the Mind Body Awareness Project currently as Training Director. He has previously been training director for the Challenge Day program, which the critically acclaimed MTV series, "If You Really Knew Me" has highlighted this last season. He constantly teaches and facilitates Buddhist-based retreats internationally; is an authority on social- and emotionally-based interventions for high-risk youth; and is fueled by his early experiences with the judicial system and economic struggle.
John Forenti
CHARACTER COUNTS! Trainer, Josephson Institute of Ethics, Los Angeles, CA
John Forenti has worked in education since 1972. From 1987 to 1996, he was the lead teacher in the Tulare County Office of Education's court/community schools for high school youth on probation. In 1996, John was named the Tulare County Office of Education's CHARACTER COUNTS! Coordinator. This position allowed John to introduce the CHARACTER COUNTS! Program to over 200 schools in Tulare County. In conjunction with his tenure in Tulare County, John is also part of the national faculty with the Josephson Institute of Ethics. In this position, John travels the country conducting training seminars for educators, parents, and community members planning to implement the CHARACTER COUNTS! framework into thier schools and cities.
Dr. Juan C. Garcia, Ph.D., LMFT
Integral Community Solutions Institute (ICSI), Fresno, CA
Dr. Juan Garcia has received a doctorate in cultural anthropology from Stanford University and is a Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist. He is currently a professor at California State University, Fresno in the Department of Counseling, Special Education & Rehabilitation. Dr. Garcia has been a clinical supervisor and director for the Fresno Family Counseling Center, a training center for MFT interns, providing low cost mental health service for the Fresno/Clovis community. He has been training in multicultural aspects of counseling for 23 years.
Sammy Himelstein
Program Manager, Mind Body Awareness Project, Oakland, CA
Sammy Himelstein works for the Mind Body Awareness Project, currently as program manager. He worked as a meditation teacher for MBA for three years prior to becoming program manager. He is currently an Advanced Candidate at the Institute of Transpersonal Psychology for a Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology and will be graduating in June 2011. He is passionate about working with incarcerated youth and fueled by his experience as a young at-risk youth in and out of juvenile hall.
Jessica Lipschultz
Senior Program Officer, Youth Development Institute, New York, NY
Jessica Lipschultz is the Senior Program Officer for Young Adult Initiatives at Youth Development Institute, in which she works on theory, research, policy, and practice around literacy for young people pursuing their GED. Jessica is also an adjunct instructor at City University of New York in the Transformative Literacy program of the Education Department at City College where she teaches a course on negotiating curriculum and social justice. Jessica was a member of the curriculum design team at Teaching Matters, as well as a staff developer for middle school teachers. Prior to joining Teaching Matters, she taught in New York City public schools for several years and received a grant through Met Life and Teachers Network to perform action research in her classroom on incorporating social issues into literacy. She has presented this and related research at several conferences including American Educational Research Association (AERA) and National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE). Jessica received her Bachelor's Degree from Tufts University in Child Development and Psychology and her Master's in Education from Columbia University Teachers College. Jessica also developed a high school media literacy curriculum on intergenerational approaches to teaching technology to senior citizens, which she taught students at Hunter Science and the High School for Arts, Imagination, and Inquiry.
Dr. John Minkler, Ph.D.
Executive Director, Center for Multicultural Cooperation, Fresno, CA
John Minkler, Ph.D., was a secondary classroom teacher for 26 years and an administrator at the Fresno County office of Education for 8 years. He is author of Active Citizenship, Empowering America's Youth and co-author of Teacher Tools for Civic Education and Service-Learning, with Don Hill. He was Co-Chair of the Task Force for the Revitalization of Citizenship Education for the National Council for the Social Studies. John is now Executive Director of the Center for Multicultural Cooperation, with the California Voices Digital Stories Program. He is also a service-learning consultant with Youth Service California and with the National Center for Learning and Citizenship (Education Commission of the States).
Christian Moore, LCSW
Founder, The WhyTry Organization, Provo, UT
Christian Moore is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker, and has an M.S.W. from Brigham Young University. He has several years experience working with at risk youth, including work as a school counselor at an alternative high school, as a counselor with the Utah State Department of Youth Corrections, and as a youth outpatient therapist at a community mental health agency specializing in adolescents with conduct disorder and learning disabilities. He is the Founder of the WhyTry Organization, and has led the development of an at-risk program, The WhyTry Program, that is used by over 500 school districts nationwide. The program is also used by several private and public mental health agencies, group homes, and youth detention centers.
Annie Moyer
Director of Education, Youth Development Institute, New York, NY
Annie Moyer is the Director of Education at the Youth Development Institute (YDI). Annie provides training and coaching to community-based organizations (CBOs) and schools in the Learning to Work Initiative, which is a project of the New York City (NYC) Department of Education's Office of Multiple Pathways to graduation. This initiative assists over-age and under-credited youth to overcome obstacles that impede their progress in obtaining a high school diploma and developing a solid post-secondary career and education plan. Specifically, Annie provides capacity building in the areas of Youth Development, Supervision and Leadership, Building School-CBO Partnerships and Post-Secondary Readiness. Annie joined YDI in 2006. Prior to coming to YDI, Annie conducted workforce development for adult ex-offenders, and developed and directed a GED and Career Exploration program for youth at the Midtown Community Court in NYC. Annie holds a B.A. from Yale University, an M.S. in Non Profit Management from the University of Pennsylvania and is currently pursuing a M.Ed. from Columbia Teacher's College.
Dr. Edwyn W. Ortiz-Nance, MAOB, Psy.D.
Clinical Director, Synchrony of Visalia, Inc. and Assistant Director, Alliant International University Office of Professional Training and Placement
Edwyn Ortiz-Nance, MOB, PsyD. is a clinical psychologist at the Centre for Harmony with a focus on the family as well as its individual members. He received his Master's in Organizational Behavior and his Master's and Doctorate in Psychology with an emphasis in Cross Cultural Psychology and Neuro-Psychology from Alliant International University (formerly the California School of Professional Psychology). Post doctoral training include Infant and Preschool mental health; training in Brain Mapping and several neuro therapies (Neurofeedback, Audio Visual Entrainment (AVE) and Cranio-Electro-Stimulation (CES). In addition to his work with adolescents and adults, as a neuropsychologist, Dr. Ortiz-Nance has concentrated his interests, over the past six years, in the area of the neurobiology of early development and the environmental influences over that development. His current practice focuses on assessing, identifying and treating the precursors of, and the mental health and developmental issues of infants, preschoolers and older children (particularly regarding developmental issues of nonverbal learning disabilities, Sensory Processing Disorders, Autism Spectrum Disorders and Asperger's Disorder). As a lecturer and consultant he has worked with, or spoken before, numerous groups (Central and Northern California Round Table, CSUF President's Committee on Sexual Harassment, Employer Advisory Council of Merced County, The Southeast Asian Economic Exposition, Human Resource Association of Central California, Fresno Housing Authority, United Cerebral Palsy of Central California, Community Residential Care Association of California, Fresno Bar Association and the California State Bar). He is a recurring guest lecturer for Fresno Community College on Child development.
Amber Paim
Instructional Strategies Coach and Teacher, Mt. Whitney High School, Visalia, CA
Amber Paim is a high school social studies teacher and has been selected as a Teacher on Special Assignment (TOSA) in the areas of Content-Area Literacy in 2009-2010 and Instructional Strategies and Student Engagement for the 2010-2011 school year. She has been teaching at Mt. Whitney High School for seven years and has taught a variety of student sub-groups ranging from English Language Learners in a Sheltered Instruction format to GATE students in Honors classes. She has also been trained in the latest techniques for Second Language Acquisition, Content-Area Literacy, and Student Engagement.
Kelley Petty
CHARACTER COUNTS! Coordinator, Tulare County Office of Education, Visalia, CA
Kelley Petty has worked as a teacher and administrator since 1989. From 1989 to 2005, she was employed at Pixley Union School District as a classroom teacher, special education teacher and vice principal. In 2005, she joined the Tulare County Office of Education as the CHARACTER COUNTS! Coordinator. This position has allowed Kelley to train and support school districts throughout Tulare County with their CHARACTER COUNTS! Programs. She has also overseen a five-year, $1.9 million federal grant measuring the effectiveness of character education in Tulare County schools and their communities.
Kathryn Quillen
Program Analyst, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food & Nutrition Service, Alexandria, VA
Kathryn Quillen is a program analyst for the Child and Adult Care and Summer Food Service Programs in the Policy and Programs Development Branch of the Child Nutrition Division at the Food and Nutrition Service. This office focuses on ensuring meals are available to lower income children. Before joining USDA, Kathryn was employed by the state of Tennessee for 10 years. Her state experiences include administering the Food Stamp program and licensing child care facilities. Kathryn has a master's degree in public administration from Tennessee State University.
Jimena Quiroga
Senior Consultant, ThrivePoint Group, Oakland, CA
Jimena Quiroga brings a decade of experience in the after school sector, as a technical assistance provider, field researcher, and tool and curriculum developer. In her prior position at California Tomorrow, she played a key role in the organization's after school and youth development efforts. As a lead trainer, she has trained hundreds of individuals and her capacity building efforts have ranged from facilitating youth development leadership programs, to providing professional development to teachers and after school professionals. As a field researcher, she has lent her expertise to a number of national research projects on topics such as equity and diversity in after school and preparing staff to work with immigrant youth.
Donyale Reavis, Esq.
Executive Director, CORE Scholarships, Philadelphia, PA
Donyale Reavis has a profound passion for educating young people, and has worked with them since 1989. Ms. Reavis, formerly an intellectual property attorney, is a dual degree JD/MPA graduate of the University of Pennsylvania Law School and UPenn Fels Graduate School of Government. Currently the Executive Director of CORE Scholarships, Donyale has provided counsel to non-profit educational organizations and charter schools for more than a decade, including a five-year stint as founder and board president of a media literacy non-profit called kaPow!, which engaged high school students in nurturing critical thinking skills through media literacy and ultimately media production.
Peggie Salsubury
Psychologist Intern, Synchrony, Visalia, CA
Peggie has completed her doctorate studies and is now fulfilling the requirements for graduation by completing her hours through an APA-approved internship with Synchrony of Visalia, Inc. She has a Master's degree in Industrial/Organizational Psychology, as well as a Master's degree in Clinical Psychology. Her employment history includes Human Resource Manager and Director for two major companies in the San Joaquin Valley. She currently resides in Tulare County and is proud to be a member of this rural community. Peggie's goals are to help members of this community better understand the importance of their mental health, as well as their physical health. She is committed to carrying on the vision of Synchrony by helping to create a diverse, honest and rewarding environment that models wholeness and accountability. Peggie currently leads a women's group and does individual assessments and therapy for children, adolescents and adults.
Carla Sawyer, PHN
Supervising Public Health Nurse, Tulare County Health and Human Services, Visalia, CA
Carla Sawyer has been working for Tulare County Health and Human Services for 12 years as a public health nurse. Prior to this, she worked as a pediatric nurse. She became involved in suicide prevention after the loss by suicide of her 20-year-old son, Bo, in 2007. She has been married for 25 years and has one surviving son. With the help of other survivors, she has established a Survivor of Suicide Loss support group. She also dedicates herself to visiting individuals who have suffered a loss from suicide. She is currently involved in community outreach and education and has recently become an Applied Suicide Intervention Skills (ASIST) trainer. Her goal is to educate the community on suicide prevention and to support survivors as much as she can.
Larry Smith, M.A.
Program Quality Manager, National Summer Learning Association, Baltimore, MD
Larry Smith provides technical assistance and professional development for the leadership of summer learning programs across the country. He promotes the National Summer Learning Association's quality standards through facilitation of Professional Learning Communities, and strives to ensure that youth-serving programs demonstrate positive outcomes for youth. Prior to joining the Association,Mr. Smith managed a foster care program for high-needs youth, founded a summer camp, counseled youth in psychiatric hospitals and alternative schools, and taught in an urban public high school. Mr. Smith has a Master's Degree in Education (Counseling) from the University of Missouri, St. Louis, and a Bachelors Degree in Science (Engineering) from Cornell University.
Barry Sommer, LEP, LMFT
Educational Psychologist and Marriage & Family Therapist, The Helix Group, Visalia, CA
Barry Sommer is a licensed Educational Psychologist, certified school psychologist, and a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist in private practice with The Helix Group in Visalia, California. Training, consultation and facilitation for schools, businesses, and health organizations is a special interest. His primary goal is to support personal, family, community, and organizational development and health. Barry is a graduate from Cornell University and Queens College of the City of New York, with graduate degrees in Psychology and Education. For almost 30 years, Barry served as the Director of Student and Family Services for the Pixley Union School District. Currently, in addition to private practice in psychology, training and consultation, Barry is the Director of School and Community Development for the Lindsay Unified School District. Barry enjoys teaching graduate students in education, special education and peacemaking for the IMPACT Program at Tulare County Office of Education and for Columbia University in New York City. Most recently, he shifted an avocation to a vocational pursuit by designing landscapes for Sierra Landscape Architects, Inc., of Visalia, California. Barry is the author of You Can Choose Your Own Life, a decision-making curriculum for middle school students (Consulting Psychologist Press, 1994).
Gary Styer
Instructor, Madera South High School, Madera, CA and Fresno City College, Fresno, CA
Gary Styer is a high school teacher at Madera South High School and teaches computer drafting and design at Fresno City College. He has credentials in Mechanized Agriculture Engineering and Social Science. He has been teaching engineering and design for the past 18 years at the high school level and 12 years at the college level. He is currently working with at-risk teens, using the "Love & Logic" principles.
Connie Treis, RN, LMFT
Marriage and Family Therapist, Synchrony of Visalia, Inc., Visalia, CA
Connie Treis is a Marriage and Family Therapist of 22 years; a mother of two; has a B.S. in Nursing from Gustavus Adolphus College and an M.A. from the Professional School of Psychological Studies. She is the co-founder of Synchrony of Visalia, Inc., a not-for-profit psychotherapy, psychological and parenting agency in Visalia; has co-developed a 'Reactive Attachment Disorder' diagnostic and treatment program; and is trained in Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing (EMDR).
Dr. Kyle N. Weir, Ph.D., LMFT
Associate Professor/Program Coordinator, California State University, Fresno, Dept. CSER, Counselor Education Program
Kyle N. Weir, Ph.D., LMFT received a B.S., M.A., M.M.F.T., and a Ph.D. from the University of Southern California. Dr. Weir is an Associate Professor of Marriage and Family Therapy and Program Director of the Counselor Education program at California State University, Fresno. He is also a Supervisor, Clinical Faculty Member, and Former Director of Fresno Family Counseling Center (a student and faculty operated training clinic operated by the MFT program at Fresno State). He is married to Allison Brown Weir, and they have six children. It was through the personal adoption experiences with his children that Dr. Weir developed an academic interest in adoptive studies. Dr. Weir is the author of numerous peer-reviewed journal articles and the book Coming Out of the Adoptive Closet (2003; University Press of America) that explores the social disclosure and family development patterns of adoptive families. His next book, The Choice of a Lifetime: What Adoptive Parents Need to Know Before Adopting, focuses on aiding prospective adoptive parents through the intricacies of the adoption process for the myriad types of adoption opportunities available and is set to be published by NTI Upstream in 2011.
William Waxman
District Administrator, Simi Valley Unified School District, Simi Valley, CA
William H. Waxman is a 36-year educational veteran. With 18 years of classroom experience, 10 more as a comprehensive high school principal, and 8 more as a district administrator working in the areas of curriculum, professional development, compliance, and coaching, Mr. Waxman brings to the discussion a unique perspective and a wealth of knowledge. He is currently a district administrator for the Simi Valley Unified School District.
Crystal Weedall FitzSimons
Director, Food Research and Action Center, Washington, D.C.
Crystal Weedall FitzSimons directs Food Research and Action Center's work on the child nutrition programs that serve school-age children: the School Breakfast and Lunch Programs, the Summer Food Service Program, and the Afterschool Nutrition Programs. She analyzes policy to advocate for legislative and regulatory improvements to increase low-income children's access to the nutrition programs. She helps develop strategy and direct field efforts to achieve program improvements. She provides technical assistance, conducts training, and develops materials for national, state, and local organizations. She frequently speaks at national after school conferences and meetings. She is the author or co-author of numerous publications, including Hunger Doesn't Take A Vacation: Annual Summer Nutrition Status Report, Strategies in Tough Economic Times: Increasing Access to Summer Meals, A How-To Guide for Summer Food Sponsors on Purchasing High-Quality Summer Meals, and The Summer Food Standards of Excellence. Her previous work experience includes the Center for Community Change as a policy analyst on transportation issues and Housing Comes First, Missouri's statewide low-income housing coalition, as Director of Tenant Organizing. She holds a B.A. in Philosophy and Sociology from Carroll College and a M.S.W. from Washington University.
Noah Whitaker
Administrative Specialist II, Tulare County Suicide Prevention Task Force Coordinator, Visalia, CA
Noah Whitaker has worked for Tulare County Health and Human Services Agency for the last two years serving as an Administrative Specialist II, and has worked for the Administrative, Health, and Mental Health Departments. A primary role he has held is coordinator of the Tulare County Suicide Prevention Task Force. He helped write Tulare County's Mental Health Services Act Prevention and Early Intervention Plan, has administered grants, served as liaison to the statewide Office of Suicide Prevention, and has administered numerous programs. Previously, he had spent five years working for Kern County Department of Mental Health as a team lead providing services to the chronically, persistently mentally ill, homeless, and substance abusing populations. He is a loving husband, proud father of two, and feels privileged to serve the community.
Beth Wilshire
Program Manager, CASA of Tulare County, Visalia, CA
grade level: Pre-K, Elementary, Middle, & High School
Beth Wilshire has been with CASA of Tulare County since 1996 when she became a CASA advocate. In July 1997, she joined the CASA staff as Case Supervisor/Court Liaison. In this capacity, she supervised volunteers and was the contact person for the courts should there be concerns regarding cases and volunteers. She was promoted to Program Manager in 2003 and began supervising case supervisors while continuing to supervisor volunteers. Ms. Wilshire became interested in the education component of advocacy for foster youth after seeing large numbers of foster children exit the foster care system without enough credits to graduate. CASA of Tulare County, along with the entire National and State CASA organizations, began a concentrated focus on the education of foster youth and are seen by the courts and Child Welfare Services as a resource on cases where education was a concern for foster children. She has attended numerous conferences and trainings on education, special education and children in foster care. Ms. Wilshire is the current president of the Tulare County Child Abuse Prevention Council, past chair of the Children Services Network and is a current member of the Children Services Network Governance Committee. In 2006, she earned a Masters certification in Child Advocacy by the CDEC. She was awarded the Advocacy Award by the Tulare County Child Abuse Prevention Council in 2007.
Honorable Charlotte A. Wittig
Commissioner, Juvenile Court of Tulare County, Tulare County Superior Court, Visalia, CA
Honorable Charlotte Wittig has served on the Juvenile Court bench for 12 years. She has presided over juvenile delinquency, dependency, and traffic matters and is currently responsible for hearing the dependency calendar in Tulare County. Prior to serving in Juvenile Court, Commissioner Wittig was a partner in the law firm of Wilson, Altschule & Wittig in Visalia, California. Commissioner Wittig has served on various advisory committees throughout Tulare County, and frequently addresses community organizations regarding juvenile court and the needs of the families and children served. She was presented a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Tulare County Child Abuse Prevention Council in 2008, and has been recognized by the local branch of Soroptimist International as a Woman of Distinction in the area of Human Rights, received the Pro Bono Award from the Tulare County Bar Association, and has been recognized as Trial Attorney of the Year by the Tulare County Trial Lawyers Association. Commissioner Wittig has chaired the Committee for Access to Higher Education, a collaboration of private and public entities whose goal is to encourage foster youth to strive to access higher education, and also chaired the Permanency Planning Committee, a collaboration of private and public entities whose goal was to assist youth transitioning out of foster care. The Tulare County Renter-Mentor program was developed by the Permanency Planning Committee. On the State level, Commissioner Wittig is a member of the Executive Committee of the Juvenile Court Judges of California, a section of the California Judges Association, and just completed a term on the Board of Directors for the California Court Commissioners Association.
Nora Zamora, M.S.
Program Manager, After School Academics - California After School Resource Center, a statewide organization based at the Alameda County Office of Education in Hawyard, CA
Nora Zamora is a program manager for the California After School Resource Center (CASRC). Ms. Zamora is an experienced bilingual educator, part-time college instructor, and former literacy coach. She has provided professional development to teachers and after school staff throughout California in a variety of topic areas, including reading/language arts, mathematics, and youth development. Ms. Zamora holds a Master's of Science degree in education, and has a relentless passion for teaching and learning.
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