Alumni Leadership Council
The Alumni Leadership Council (ALC) was founded in 2006. The ALC represents the Pepperdine Alumni Association, and its 97,000 alumni. The ALC members serve as ambassadors for the University, and as advisers for alumni communications and engagement strategies. The mission and vision statements serves as its foundation the work is called to do for the alumni association and the University.
2015 - 2016 Alumni Leadership Council
Meet the ALC members who represent your schools. We invite you to contact any of us, and share your ideas about alumni engagement and communications. We are here to serve you and build a meaningful Pepperdine community that serves one another and its alma mater. Reach out to us, and share your thoughts!
Executive Committee
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President: |
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President Elect: |
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Vice President, Membership Chair: |
Council Members
Council Members
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Evelyn Aleman (MPP '00) |
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Denise Berger ('13) |
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Jasmeet Bhullar (MA '14) |
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Sara Ann Carmack Catalan (MPP '02) |
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Sarah de Diego (JD '05) |
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Susan Giboney ('62) |
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Crystal Claudett Jensen (EDD '13) |
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Lori D. Heffelfinger (MSOD '97) |
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Mindy Lamont (MBA '08) |
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Ezra Landes (JD '07) |
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Kevin Mills ('07) |
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Lisa Mitchell ('95) |
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Kelsey E. Morris (JD '11) |
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Darren Pitts (MBA '95) |
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Beverley Royster ('65) |
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Meisha Sherman (MBA '05) |
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Jennifer Schaeffer Snitko ('98, JD '02) |
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Matt Wallace ('07) |
A - D
Evelyn Aleman
Evelyn Aleman received her MPP with a specialization in economics and international relations from Pepperdine University's School of Public Policy. She holds a BA in English Literature from California State University, Los Angeles with a minor in Spanish-Literature from the Universidad Complutense in Madrid, Spain.
Evelyn is a writer, policy analyst, and public relations specialist with more than 20 years of professional experience. In 2004, she founded Media Image Public Relations which is a full-service bilingual (English/ Spanish) communications agency specializing in public relations, public affairs, media relations, grassroots, non-profit and corporate PR, government relations, community outreach, advocacy, and public policy.
Her work as a public affairs specialist has afforded her with unique opportunities to work with elected officials, community leaders, businesses, foundations, the media, and the community at large on various public education campaigns that address issues like health, education, the environment, small business development, and infrastructure. She has had numerous articles and op-eds published in The Los Angeles Times, Daily News, La Opinión, Eastern Group Publications, San Fernando Sun, LABeez.org, and the Oxford Monitor.
Evelyn lives with her husband, Joe Macias, and two daughters in the San Fernando Valley, California.
Courtney Ameli
Courtney Ameli recently relocated to San Francisco with her husband Maz, a fellow Seaver graduate, for his job in the tech sector. Prior to this, she was a senior account executive at Russ Reid, a direct response agency dedicated to helping nonprofits grow in their fundraising efforts through direct mail, television, radio, and digital channels. She was a trusted advisor for multiple clients and executed strategies for both acquiring new donors and cultivating current donors across integrated campaigns and efforts.
Before working at Russ Reid, Courtney was the manager of advancement operations at Pepperdine University. She is also involved in nonprofit ventures outside her specific job. She sits on the leadership council for YoungLife in Malibu and serves as a trustee on an endowment fund for a small private school in Ghana.
Courtney graduated summa cum laude from Seaver College in 2008 with degrees in public relations and German. She and her husband Maz live in San Francisco, CA.
Denise Berger
Denise Berger collaborates with leaders on sophisticated corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives, strategic planning, leadership, culture and organizational development, and multi-stakeholder partnerships to optimize collaborative contribution and team involvement, innovation and impact. She envisions a world led by ethical, intelligent, and innovative leaders who do good by doing better. She strives to help individuals, teams, and organizations realize their full potential and significance and develop a higher level of conscious involvement in society.
She holds a Doctor of Education from Pepperdine University in organizational leadership, and completed her dissertation on corporate social responsibility. In her dissertation, Doing it the Right Way, she identified the leading American Fortune 500 global corporations and analyzed why and how they do "itCSR" – a sophisticated level of CSR that represents a more ideal corporate contribution to society and produces meaningful triple bottom line impact. Upon graduation, she has been a consultant and advisor to for-profit companies such as Dogeared and Sony Pictures Corporation, and non-profit organizations such as Environmental Charter Schools, Violence Prevention Coalition, and Right Side of Literacy. She serves as a partner in Social Venture Partners in Los Angeles (SVP) and Gazelle Advisors, a consulting group for CSR initiatives. Within SVP, Denise is going into her third year as a coach to the Fast Pitch participants, mentoring social entrepreneurs in their business 3-minute pitch. Denise occasionally teaches special courses at the middle/high school level as well. For example, she created a Jr. Shark Tank class to teach introductory business concepts.
Prior to her doctorate, she was a Managing Director at Aon Risk Services, a global insurance broker and consultant. In this role, she successfully ran the East Coast operations of the global business unit, which handled the multinational risk management needs overseas of Fortune 500 companies. Denise successfully developed a team of 40 geographically-dispersed professionals, setting best practices for the global practice as a whole, and meeting retention and double-digit growth goals year-on-year. She was part of EXCELerate, a program focused on developing the top 50 women globally, and went on to lead the Women's International Network (WIN) worldwide chapters. Denise also authored articles on career and workforce opportunities. Denise Berger received her MBA from Fordham University with Beta Gamma Sigma high honors and her BA from Colgate University. She lives in Manhattan Beach with her husband, Eric, and two children, Max and Zoe. Her personal mission is to lead a life with integrity, intelligence, gratitude, and an ongoing learning orientation that results in meaningful impact in the world. She hopes to build a legacy of which her kids can be proud and which inspires them and their peers to do better in the world.
Jasmeet Bhullar
Jasmeet Bhullar is a recent graduate of the Pepperdine School of Education and Psychology. He received his MA in clinical psychology with an emphasis in marriage and family therapy (MFT) in 2014 and currently works as an MFT trainee at the Children's Institute Inc. in Torrance, CA. Additionally Jasmeet spends much of his time doing volunteer work at the Culver City Youth Health Center, Open Paths Community Counseling, and Schuyler Psychological Associates in Fresno, CA.
On top of all Jasmeet's volunteer work he is still able to find time to work as a research assistant at Pepperdine, Sherman Social Psychology Lab at UC Davis, and the Cognitive Development Lab at UCLA.
Stephanie Brown
Stephanie's passion for mission work and helping people led her to Pepperdine to pursue a law career in International Human Rights. At the University of Alabama, Stephanie graduated with honors, while holding leadership positions in many organizations on-campus including student recruiter in the admissions office, study abroad office intern, and she volunteered weekly as an English as a Second Language tutor.
As a Pepperdine law student, she has worked for International Justice Mission (IJM) in Rwanda, the Pepperdine Asylum Clinic, and participated in the London program. Stephanie currently serves as the Vice President of the Christian Legal Society, Co-President of International Justice Mission, Honor Board Chairman, and volunteers through Advocates for Public Interest. While finishing her last year of law school, she currently works for Christian Legal Aid of Los Angeles.
Sarah Catalan
A native Southern California, Sara was born and raised in San Diego and is the youngest of five children. Sara's interest in politics was formed at an early age when she participated locally in the debates surrounding the Presidential election in 1992. Sara has earned a Bachelor's Degree from the University of California Davis in History with a double-major in Modern Western European History and US History. She received her master of Public Policy from Pepperdine University's School of Public Policy, double-majoring there as well in International Relations and National Policy.
Using her background in both policy and politics, Sara has had a the opportunity to work on political campaigns at virtually every level of government including the State Assembly, State Senate, the U.S. House of Representatives, and the re-election campaign of President Bush in 2004. The combination of Sara's love for politics and her desire to travel led her to London where she became the campaign manager for a Member of Parliament in 2001. Her leadership on that campaign through her implementation of U.S. campaign strategies and voter identification tactics, assisted in leading the fist-term candidate to a successful re-election, increasing his margin of victory by over 200%.
After completing her graduate degree in 2002, Sara accepted a position with U.S Representative Ed Royce and was quickly promoted to Deputy Chief of Staff where she manages the district operations and staff for one of the most prominent elected officials in Southern California. While serving in this capacity, Sara has created a Human-Trafficking Congressional Advisory Committee, Federal Grants Assistance Program, a very successful Annual Women's Conference, developed various district outreach programs, and created community events including community forums, and has acted as the primary liaison between the Member of Congress and the community she represents.
Sara also serves as a coordinator for charity events and organizations in the 39th Congressional District. She has volunteered for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, The Lincoln Juarez Opportunity Center, the Orange County Human Trafficking Task Force, and the American Cancer Society's Relay for Life. Sara also serves as the statewide President for the California Woman's Leadership Association, is a graduate of the inaugural class of Marian Bergeson Excellence in Public Service series, served on the Government Affairs Committees for the Orange and Anaheim Chambers of Commerce, and is a member of the Board of Directors for the California Republican Party.
Randy Clark
Randy Clark served as president and CEO of Border Foods from 2008 to 2011. He sold the company and is now the chair of the board for Border Foods and a member of the executive committee for Mizkan Americas, the buyer. From 2004 to 2006 he taught at Wilberforce University in Ohio.
As board member/project manager (2003 to 2006) of the nonprofit organization Athletes in Action, he managed capital improvements
and building athletic fields. From 2004 to 2008 Clark was a founding board member of The Refuge Center, a nonprofit counseling center for underprivileged children and adults. From 1999 to 2003, Randy was a professor of accounting and marketing in the undergraduate and graduate programs at Masters College in Santa Clarita, California.
Randy started the $46 million company Golden Valley Produce and served as president, CEO, and board member from 1996 to 1999. During this time, he negotiated the licensing of the Green Giant label for a 25-year period with Pillsbury. He also played a part in the design and building of the 200,000 square foot, state-of-the-art processing plant and later negotiated the sale of the company to a competitor. Randy served as president, CEO, and board member of Mike Yurosek & Son LLC from 1994 to 1996. Under his leadership, the company went from losing $10 million in one year to making a profit of $15 million annually. He established procedures for quality output and created a desire for excellence in the leadership of the company.
He received his bachelor of arts degree in 1974 from Cedarville College, a master of science degree in accounting in 1977 from Kent State University (CPA 1978), and a doctorate in organizational leadership from Pepperdine University in 2005. He is also a GSEP Board of Visitors member.
Willis M. Clow
Willis Clow is currently an MBA student at Pepperdine's Graziadio School of Business and Management with a concentration in Dispute Resolution. In his previous career as a professional guitar player, Willis performed both domestically and abroad. He wrote songs and produced records for independent artists, taught guitar, and performed for numerous films, television spots, and video games.
At the Graziadio School, Willis has been active in networking and working towards building a stronger connection between alumni and full-time students. Following graduation, Willis plans to transition to the sports industry and utilize his knowledge of finance and corporate law to find a career as a general manager of a professional sports team.
Mike Costache
Mike never liked being put in a box so he spent the last 15 years as an entrepreneur, investment banker, author, university professor, angel investor, motivational speaker and as a pro-bono fundraiser for various non-profits such as UNICEF, United Way, Pepperdine University, Children Uniting Nations, H.R.H. Princess Margarita of Romania Foundation and Blue Heron Foundation. In 2012, Mike founded GeniusGiver, an online fundraising platform targeting the long-tail of online charitable fundraising.
Since 2012, Mike has been a member of the Tech Coast Angels (TCA), the largest network of angel investors in the world with 300 active members. Established in Southern California in 1997, TCA has invested $125 million in over 200 startups and has raised an additional $1.4 billion from venture capital funds.
From 2006 to 2011, Mike was the President of Leo & Leo, a European management consulting company based in Romania. Some of the brands represented or managed under a franchise included Maserati, Segway, NetJets, Sunseeker Yachts, Marsh, Miss Universe, and Rockstar Energy Drink. From 2000 to 2006, Mike served as the founding CEO of Pioneer TeleCare, an e-commerce company distributing consumer goods through 26 different websites. Annual revenues reached $2.5 million and the company employed 20 employees in Los Angeles and India. From 1998 to 2003, Mike was a Senior Associate at WestPark Capital, The Interlink Group, and Millennium Capital Partners, all Los Angeles-based investment banking firms with projects in China, Honduras, India, Pakistan and South Korea.
Mike holds a degree in Economics (1999) from Pepperdine University, a Certificate in Dispute Resolution (2003) from Pepperdine's School of Law and has completed the Program on Negotiations for Senior Executives (2008) at Harvard. Mike is currently the Chairman of the Advisory Board for the Master of Arts in Social Entrepreneurship and Change at Pepperdine's Graduate School of Education and Psychology and also a board member of the Alumni Leadership Council.
From 2003 to 2012, Mike served on the Board of Directors and as the Director of Fundraising & Strategy (pro-bono) for Blue Heron Foundation, a charitable organization that raised $1,250,000 from almost 1,000 donors to provide college scholarships to Romanian orphan teenagers.
Born in Bucharest, Romania in 1977, Mike migrated to Israel in 1988 and in 1992 to the United States. Mike was featured in over 4,000 articles, including: USA Today, Wall Street Journal, Entrepreneur Magazine, Inc. Magazine, Business Week, Men's Health, and Top Gear.
Sarah de Diego
Sarah de Diego is an experienced Internet attorney and founder of De Diego Law. Her practice focuses on helping her clients maintain compliance with the constantly changing laws and regulations that impact Internet marketing. Among other things, her time is spent reviewing and approving creative materials and landing pages, drafting and negotiating contracts, defending against regulatory action and civil litigation, and assisting with general business matters.
Sarah travels frequently for speaking engagements and compliance training. She is licensed to practice law in the State and Federal courts of California, Colorado, and Nevada. Sarah is the vice-chair of the California State Bar's Cyberspace Law Committee and a member of its legislative sub-committee. She is an active member of the Performance Marketing Association and chairs the PMA Attorney Special Interest Group. She is in her eighth year as a sitting board member of the Women Lawyers Association of Los Angeles and is active in mentoring new attorneys. She also attends and serves on the board of Hope Church Santa Monica.
Sarah received her bachelor's degree from the University of California San Diego and her juris doctor from Pepperdine University School of Law. In her free time she enjoys scuba diving, traveling, and good books.
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Jessica Freitas
Jessica Freitas graduated from Seaver College at Pepperdine University in 2013 with a double major in political science and international management. Jessica was a strong supporter of Pepperdine students and showed it through her regular attendance at sporting events, theater productions, and musical shows.
After graduation she went on to work as a legal assistant at Milstein Adelman which is a plaintiffs law firm that specializes in construction defect complex litigation in Santa Monica, CA. Jessica's was recently accepted into Pepperdine School of Law and after graduation she plans to pursue a career in corporate compliance. Jessica's dream job would be to work for the Walt Disney Corporation.
Jessica is a passionate alumna who is grateful to be included in the Alumni Leadership Council as an adjunct member this year.
Rudy Frias
Dr. Rudy B. Frias was born in Santa Ana, California and raised in Laguna Hills. He went to California State Polytechnic University, Pomona and received his bachelor's degree in biology. He then attended Pepperdine University for his master's degree in psychology and his doctorate of education in organizational leadership.
Dr. Frias has been employed at Santiago Canyon College for 16 years during which time he has taught English as a SecondLanguage (ESL), applied psychology, and has counseled students. Currently he is a tenured professor and counselor in the Continuing Education Division. Along with one of his colleagues, he facilitates the Counseling Department, providing leadership to the counseling faculty and staff.
In 2002 Rudy and his brother Oz founded Kingdom Real Estate Holdings, a real estate investment limited partnership. Rudy currently serves as the chief operations officer and works directly with real estate professionals throughout Arizona, California, and Texas. He has also gone on missionary trips to Africa, Europe, and Mexico. Most recently, Rudy became a member of the Crisis Response Network of Orange County. He is currently working with a group of fellow parishioners at Christ Our Redeemer Church, Irvine, in the enrichment program with high school students and their parents.
During his free time Rudy enjoys traveling all over the world. He is also trains in Tae Kwon Do and is working towards his black belt. But, he feels his most important time is spent with family, including his two nieces.
Susan Giboney
Susan Giboney received her bachelor’s degree from Pepperdine College and her master’s degree from California State University, Long Beach. After teaching school in Los Angeles, she and her husband, Terry (’61), went to Japan to serve as missionaries and to teach at Ibaraki Christian College. Their oldest daughter was born while they were in Japan.
Upon returning to the states, they had another daughter and a son. Later, Susan taught at Pacific Christian College and is a recently retired professor in education at Pepperdine University, where she was selected for the Teaching Excellence Award. She is a Certified Family Life Educator, teacher of premarital and parenting classes, and a frequent speaker for seminars and retreats. She is also a writer for devotional magazines and has written study guides for premarital couples and caregivers. She serves on the boards of the Center for the Family, Associated Women for Pepperdine, and the Alumni Leadership Council, and is an active member of the University Church.
Susan's family is her priority and joy. Her oldest daughter, Carrie (’88), is married to Andy Wall (’85), the minister at the Conejo Valley Church of Christ. Carrie is a professor at Pepperdine University. They have three daughters, one who is currently at Seaver College ('16). Susan's second daughter, Peggy (’90), is married to Greg Grande (’87), a business banking vice president. Peggy was the personal aide to President Ronald Reagan and continues to work for the Reagan Library. Peggy and Greg have four children. Susan's son, Paul (’92), is a physician for a clinic in South Los Angeles and LA Department of Health Services. He and his wife, Paula, have three daughters. Susan's husband Terry was in public education most of his career, serving from teacher to superintendent and became an administrator at Pepperdine University. He served as an elder at the church for many years. Terry died of cancer in December of 1996, and Susan carries on much of the teaching and counseling they did as a team.
Don Goodwin
Don Goodwin is the executive vice president of The Goodwin Company. The Goodwin Company is a fifth generation family business established in 1922 with an expertise in the production, packaging, and distribution of liquid products. Its primary segments of manufacturing include: general household cleaners, automotive appearance products, industrial cleaning products, and engine additives. The Goodwin Company currently manufactures and distributes more than 60MM gallons of product worldwide from its facilities in Los Angeles and Atlanta.
Don serves as chairman on the board of directors for a non-profit organization in Orange County, CA named Art and Creativity for Healing. The organization facilitates art projects at healing workshops for children and adults suffering from abuse, illness, grief, and stress. They work with various non-profit agencies such as Human Options, Choc Hospital, and Camp Pendleton. Don is also the President-Elect of the Pepperdine Alumni Leadership Council.
Don received his bachelor's degree in business administration and MBA from Pepperdine University. His wife, Raquel, also attended Pepperdine University and received her MA in clinical psychology with an emphasis in marriage and family therapy. He resides in Orange County, CA with his wife and two sons, Shane and Santiago.
Christine Grimm
In 1997, Christine Grimm founded Aria Consulting International, Inc., with the goal of providing highly effective consulting, facilitation services, and customized management training to organizations experiencing growth and change in the public and private sector.
Christine is a practice leader in the alignment of executive teams and diverse, cross-cultural work groups. She brings a broad range of business operations and organizational development experience to client engagements. She aims to help leaders create a clear path for their organization, align as a team, and develop strategy, structures, and processes that will help them exceed their strategic expectations and goals. Her interactive, high-energy approach incites groups to achieve their objectives, while participants acquire new skills and behaviors that are immediately applicable in both their personal and professional lives.
Christine is the coauthor of Training, Teaching, Transforming (Piccadilly Press, 2005), a text being applied in both corporate training and graduate-level teacher education programs. She is a member of the American Society for Training and Development (ASTD), the International Association of Facilitators (IAF), and the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM). Christine has earned her professional certification as a senior professional in human resources (SPHR). She is a master trainer of team effectiveness and in 2006 was certified as a trainer of the DiSC® Dimensions of Behavior Model by Inscape Publishing, the leading publisher of behavior and personal effectiveness tools.
Christine received her bachelor’s degree from Pepperdine University in social science and education, where she also earned a secondary teaching credential for the State of California.
Cynthia Guerrero
Cynthia V. Guerrero, founder of CG Consulting Group, Inc., is a California state and federally registered lobbyist specializing in broad range of issues specifically relating to the technology industry providing her clients with policy and political strategy as well as business development and crisis management. Prior to returning to her private practice, she served as the California Director for TechNet, the leading bipartisan political network of CEOs that promotes growth of the innovation economy by building long-term relationships between technology leaders and policymakers both on the state and federal levels.
Before to joining TechNet, Cynthia worked with various state legislators/public officials, Members of Congress and the U.S. Senate providing political/policy strategy. In addition, prior to her consulting work and masters program, Cynthia worked at the Rand Corporation as well as in the investment securities industry for top firms such as Credit Suisse First Boston – Technology Group, Barclays Global Investors, and Merrill Lynch.
Cynthia has her Bachelor of Arts in Political Science with an emphasis in Pre-Law and a minor in English Literature from Mount St. Mary's College. She also graduated with a Master in Public Policy specializing in Economics and International Relations from Pepperdine University and serves on the Board of Visitors for the School of Public Policy.
In 2011, she was asked to serve on the Board of Directors for ZeroDivide. Cynthia continues to champion issues on bridging the digital divide and access to technology in underserved/underrepresented communities.
Dorothy Hammond
Dorothy Hammond is an HR manager at NBCUniversal supporting the Operations & Technical Services teams dedicated to E!, Style, and G4 networks. Prior to this role, she was HR manager at Universal Studios Hollywood. Dorothy managed NBCU's West Coast internship program where she recruited, mentored, and coached over 300 interns each semester. She began her NBCU career as an HR coordinator within the Work Life department. Prior to working at NBCU, Dorothy worked as an assistant with Pepperdine University's Risk Management Department.
Dorothy is a graduate of Pepperdine University where she received her bachelor's degree in industrial organizational psychology and MA in organizational development. She is a member of the LA Waves Chapter Board. She spends her free time volunteering at various organizations including the Downtown Women's Center.
Mirjam Hatton
Mirjam Hatton is enrolled at the Graduate School of Education and Psychology where she is pursuing a Master's of Clinical Psychology with an emphasis in Marriage and Family Therapy (MFT) which she expects to graduate from in December. She received her Master's in Fine Arts in the Netherlands and has been utilizing her artistic abilities as an animator for 'adult swim' on Cartoon Network. She grew up in Germany on the Swiss boarder in a Dutch home so she learned to speak Dutch, German, English, and French.
Previously Mirjam worked as a volunteer at a suicide prevention center called Didi Hirsch where she found invaluable experience learning to assess and act assertively under stressful circumstances. It was there she became familiar with the unfortunate realities of life including homelessness, substance abuse, and domestic violence. However she also learned that there were resources available to victims of these circumstances.
Mirjam has pursued various volunteer and career paths that held the common goal of helping others. For one, she gained insight into family dynamics by working as a behavior therapist with children that have been diagnosed with autism and other developmental disorders. Also, she volunteered with Veteran Affairs and experienced what it was like to work with those that suffer from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
Mirjam finds great satisfaction working in populations affected by trauma and would like to concentrate her future efforts aiding that demographic. Upon successful completion of her MFT licensure, she intends to pursue a Doctorate of Psychology and become a psychologist.
She is very pleased to be considered as a member for the Alumni Leadership Council and is excited to have the opportunity to serve.
Lori Heffelfinger
Lori Heffelfinger received her MS in organizational development from the Graziadio School of Business and Management at Pepperdine University. Prior to that, she received her BS in business administration from the University of Nebraska. She also holds certificates in coaching and organization & systems development that represent five years of post-graduate study.
She is the founder of the Heffelfinger Company and has extensive experience working directly for Fortune 100 and Middle Market companies in the areas of strategy implementation, organizational change, and leadership development. She led organizational effectiveness at Raytheon and served as the director of organization and management development at Honeywell. She has also taught at the Graziaidio School of Business and Management.
Lori has over 30 years of management consulting experience working with companies that believe investment in people significantly impacts the bottom-line. Lori's clients have praised her for her ability to build "ownership" in individuals and organizations. She specializes in Strategy Implementation, Organizational Change, and Leadership Development.
She works with leaders, leadership teams, and organizations from Fortune 100 companies in Entertainment, Engineering & Technology, Financial Services, Healthcare, and Pharmaceuticals to Professional Services Firms to Non-Profits.
Prior to becoming a management consultant, Lori held leadership roles in Organization & Management Development and Human Resources with Raytheon, Honeywell, Ashland Chemical, and Monsanto. She was heavily involved in leadership assessment and development, as well business integration and change activities in these roles.
Lori lives in Redondo Beach with her wonderful husband James and loves hiking, sailing, swimming, friends and fine food (and Pepperdine).
David M. Johnson
David Johnson is the Chief Consulting Officer for Expert Resource. His wife, Holly Johnson, just completed her master in educational administration from Pepperdine. David's sister Carrie Beth Hunnicutt and father Paul Johnson are also Pepperdine graduates. David and Holly live in Westminster, CA with their children Mallory (15), and Wyatt (5). They are volunteers at their Christian Church and Holly created Women of Worth for Girls (http://www.wowforgirls.com/) designed to give young women a forum to discuss the moral and ethical challenges they face.
David enjoys his time camping with their old trailer and the dogs, riding his Harley, and visiting friends and family. He recently built a tree house in the form of a pirate ship complete with crow's nest, slide, zip line, rope ladder, and tire swing.
In 1987, Dr. Charles Runnells (Pepperdine Chancellor) invited many of the Southern California high school Principals to invite one junior year student to the Southern California Youth Leadership and Citizenship Seminar. As the representative from Lutheran High in La Verne, CA, David attended the week-long camp at Pepperdine designed to provide a creative opportunity to interact with community leaders, explore current national and world topics, discuss constructive solutions to critical issues, and share memorable interaction with other high school leadership peers. The experience had a profound impact on David which caused him to apply to Pepperdine. He was selected during Pepperdine's early acceptance period and did not apply anywhere else.
In 1989 David was in the Heidelberg, German program and visited the Soviet Union and East Berlin three months before The Wall fell. That next semester as part of the Florence, Italy program, he was at The Wall when it did fall. The next issue of Pepperdine People included his photos and those of when he was in Prague, Czechoslovakia the day the Soviets were pushed out during the Prague Spring II revolution. Coincidentally, David returned to Prague during the summer of 1992 to visit with other Pepperdine alumni when the country split into Slovakia and the Czech Republic.
Returning to Pepperdine after the international programs, David pledged the Lambda Omega Sigma fraternity (now Psi U) and became a dormitory residential advisor.
During his junior year David joined the Pepperdine Ambassador's Council (PAC) and was the Chairperson during his senior year. This opportunity allowed him to start giving back through service to Pepperdine, those that supported the university's mission, and to the community.
David had a desire to stay in Malibu. He entered the Graziadio School of Business and Management's full-time master of international business (MIB) program at the upper campus. After 11 months in Malibu this included a 6-month consortium with the European Business School in Germany and a 6-month internship with IBM in Stuttgart.
After the Master's program David joined the Pepperdine Russian Conversion Program, also known as the US Committee to Assist Russian and Ukrainian Reform. Approximately 7 student consultants were sponsored by Pepperdine and the US government to help train Russian and Ukrainian defense executives on free market enterprise at the Pepperdine campus in Long Beach. They helped them start ventures with US companies to reduce their dependency on defense.
Utilizing his experience with international business and the defense industry, David started Expert Resource, a company that specializes in business improvement initiatives. His largest segment includes international manufacturing and quality standards for the aerospace and defense industry. Other segments in electronics, automotive, medical devices, etc.
In the USA, Expert Resource (ER) is one of the largest consulting providers of Corporate Strategy, Performance Management, Employee Development, Quality & Environmental Management Systems, and Performance Management. Worldwide, ER is the largest provider of Nadcap Aerospace Special Processes Consulting. ER's international consultants are located in China, Singapore, Malaysia, Japan, Canada, South Wales, and England. Other projects have also included Mexico, Ireland, Brazil, India, Saudi Arabia, and Thailand.
ER has over 300 clients include Fortune 500, medium, and small companies in various industries. Notable large clients include Allergan, BAE Systems, BASF, Black & Decker, Eaton, Edelbrock, Esterline, Fleetwood, Goodrich (UTC), Invitrogen (Life Technologies), J.D. Power & Associates, L3 Communications, Lisi Aerospace, Microsoft, Miller Brewing Company, Northrop Grumman, Parker Aerospace, and Rolls-Royce.
As the Chief Consulting Officer, David manages all ER consultants and strategizes all ER client projects, directing all activities related to consulting, sales, marketing, and customer relationships. David also provides on-site consulting and training for multiple initiatives. He specializes in business excellence with a focus on process, employee, and systems integration.
David's love for Pepperdine runs deep and continually strives to live up to its mission statement: a Christian university committed to the highest standards of academic excellence and Christian values, where students are strengthened for lives of purpose, service, and leadership.
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Robert Katch
Robert Katch is president of Manchester Financial, an investment counsel and wealth management group, located in Westlake Village, California. He founded Manchester Financial in 1990 while serving as Pepperdine University’s associate treasurer from 1989 to 1996. Robert was responsible for the University’s $250 million investment portfolio and corporate finance functions. He started his career with Arthur Young & Co., serving in both the International Taxation and Merger & Acquisition Departments. From 1991 to 2003, Robert taught investment, accounting, and finance courses for Pepperdine University’s undergraduate and graduate programs. Robert holds a BS in accounting and an MBA from Pepperdine University. He serves on Pepperdine’s Seaver College Board of Visitors and as Chair for Ventura County Community Foundation’s Investment Committee. Robert and his wife Loretta (’85) were married in 1987 and have two daughters attending Pepperdine and two that are pre-college. They attend Conejo Valley Church of Christ in Thousand Oaks, California.
John Katch
John Katch and his wife, Linda, are Pepperdine alumni, as well as their son, daughter, and daughter-in-law. John is a former district manager for the Southern California Edison Company. His activities beyond line management included time as assistant treasurer and involvement on many special projects encompassing mergers, systems, and public affairs. Throughout most of his career, he managed multifunctional organizations and was responsible for service to 250,000 customers in west Los Angeles County, San Bernardino County, Ventura County, and other areas. He also received an MBA in finance from the University of Southern California. John serves on the University Board of Regents and the Seaver Board of Visitors. He also is a founding member of the Alumni Leadership Council, where he is currently serving as the regent liaison.
Ezra Landes
Ezra Landes is a partner at Spertus, Landes & Umhofer, LLP. Mr. Landes joined the firm in 2007 from Pepperdine University School of Law, where he was the note & comment editor of the Pepperdine Law Review. Mr. Landes handles a wide variety of civil and criminal matters, with a special emphasis on intellectual property and entertainment litigation. Mr. Landes has successfully authored and argued numerous motions in state and federal court; including motions to dismiss, motions for summary judgment, and special motions to strike under California's anti-SLAPP statute.
Mr. Landes has also authored a number of successful appellate briefs in the Second and Ninth District of Columbia circuits and the California Court of Appeal. In one notable case, Mr. Landes was part of the team that obtained a $307.5 million wrongful death judgment on behalf of a victim's heir. In another case Mr. Landes was part of the team that obtained reversal of a dismissal on appeal and then successfully defeated an entertainment company's summary judgment motion in an idea theft case relating to the reality-television show "So You Think You Can Dance." Mr. Landes was also part of the team that obtained a dismissal of the California Attorney General's public corruption lawsuit against City of Bell official Robert A. Rizzo. Additionally, Mr. Landes has successfully represented clients in numerous celebrity cases involving unlawful computer hacking.
Mr. Landes is a graduate of the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University, where he majored in film and television production. After earning his BFA from Tisch, Mr. Landes completed a number of screenwriting assignments. For example, he wrote and directed the film "Reeling in Reality," which was an official selection of the Angelica New Filmmakers New York Summer Series.
Martin Mathers
Martin Mathers is a graduate of the Pepperdine School of Law. His wife, Liz Mathers, is also a graduate of the law school (JD ’87). He also has a bachelor of science in business administration (finance/marketing) from the University of Denver. Martin has an active civil trial practice in Phoenix, Arizona, with Gage & Mathers.
Martin is also an investor and board member of several start-up companies. His current investments include Batter Blaster-Organic Waffle and Pancake Batter, a fast-growing consumer products company based in Austin, Texas. He is also an early investor in Freedom Wireless, Inc., a holder of significant patents in prepaid cellular services based in Scottsdale, Arizona.
Martin is an active Pepperdine alumnus and has been a Pepperdine Associate for over a decade. He is also an active alumnus of the law school, cohosting law school alumni receptions in Phoenix and contributing to and attending the 10th Anniversary Gala for the Geoffrey H. Palmer Center for Entrepreneurship and the Law and the annual law school dinner.
Martin and Liz live in Scottsdale, Arizona and are actively involved in the alumni associations of their sons’ universities: Nick Mathers (Santa Clara University) and Matt Mathers (University of Colorado).
Kevin Mills
Kevin is a 2007 summa cum laude graduate of Pepperdine's Seaver College where he served as president of the student government association and was the 2007 recipient of the George Pepperdine Award. Kevin began his career working at Pepperdine as the university's inaugural Leadership Fellow.
After graduation Kevin attended Stanford University and graduated with a joint JD/MBA degree. He served as president of the law school student government and earned several academic honors. Kevin has worked at Apple Inc., Stanford University, and international law firms Dewey & LeBoeuf and Hogan Lovells in San Francisco and in Washington, D.C. where he focused on corporate and education legal matters.
Kevin currently manages business development and strategic partnerships at Udacity, one of the world's leading online education providers, serving nearly 2 million students worldwide. As an early employee at this Silicon Valley-based startup, Kevin wears many hats but is primarily responsible for building relationships with companies, universities, and other organizations around the world that work with Udacity to create, use, or distribute Udacity's career-focused, online courses. This path gives Kevin an avenue to use education to help individuals reach their full, God-given potential.
Kevin originally hails from Wenatchee, WA, but currently resides with his wife Eryn (another Pepperdine Alumna '08) in Mountain View, CA.
Lisa Mitchell
Lisa has held multiple leadership roles with large, public technology and education companies, most recently as Director of Finance with Pearson, Higher Education Services division. Prior to her five-year tenure at Pearson, Lisa worked with various tech companies including Sequent Computer Systems (now IBM), Oracle Corp, InFocus and Electro Scientific Industries. Over the course of her career, Lisa has had the opportunity to architect and grow numerous financial teams and systems that deliver critical business impact. She is passionate about helping organizations and individuals find their path to effectiveness.
Recently, Lisa transitioned to independent consulting work and is assisting a large privately-held cold storage and logistics company build out enterprise-wide budgeting and management reporting systems for intelligent decision support. As a consultant, Lisa is keenly aware of the importance of working alongside clients, calibrating with their organizational goals, maturity, and culture. She enjoys mining nearly 20 years of diverse work experiences with fast-paced tech companies, along with graduate studies, to help all kinds of organizations thrive through periods of transition or growth.
After graduating from Seaver College with a BS in Accounting, Lisa joined Deloitte & Touche in Portland, Oregon, earning, a CPA (inactive 2002) and later moved to Denver, CO where she received a Masters in Public Administration, Non-Profit Management from University of Colorado. In addition to her work experiences, Lisa has served on the board of various non-profits including the Denver Young Artists Orchestra and eight years on the Colorado Alumni Chapter board. She also has an interest in short-term mission work, having served in Kenya, Chile, the Czech Republic, and in fall 2015, Hyderabad India.
T. Nicholas Mitchell
T. Nicholas “Nick” Mitchell is currently the president and CEO of Sohve Corporation. Sohve offers consulting services in sales, marketing, international business, and strategic organizational development. Their clients are typically small- to mid-size high technology organizations interested in expanding their top line through fostering internal sales and marketing channels, developing external partnership relationships, and considering merger and acquisition (M&A) options.
Prior to founding Sohve, Nick had a variety of experiences within the pharmaceutical industry. From 2002 to 2008, Nick was the business development manager at Phenomenex, a mid-size chemistry company ($120 million) headquartered in Torrance, California. In this role, Nick was responsible for expanding revenues and propelling Phenomenex into new markets by identifying external industrial and academic collaborations to facilitate organic and non-organic M&A expansion.
Prior to joining Phenomenex, Nick spent five years at Wyeth, a U.S.-based multinational pharmaceutical company, as an analytical research chemist. At Wyeth, Nick was responsible for employing a variety of analytical chemistry techniques supporting drug discovery and development research.
Nick is currently the Chair Emeritus for the Pepperdine Graziadio Alumni Network–Los Angeles. In this role, Nick works to engage fellow alumni to give back to their alma mater.
Nick holds a bachelor of science in chemistry from Gannon University in Erie, Pennsylvania, and an MBA from Pepperdine University.
Tristian Hall Monterastelli
Tristian Hall Monterastelli is pursuing her Master's in Public Policy with an emphasis in Economics at the Pepperdine School of Public Policy. Previously she had earned her Bachelor's degree from the University of Alaska and worked at Fairbanks Youth Facility where she was able to positively guide the transformation of young offenders through individual counseling, tutoring efforts, and interactive educational activities.
Currently, Tristian works for Serving California which is a faith-based nonprofit in Malibu that concentrates on assisting those that are struggling, broken-hearted, and neglected. In addition to this, she has continued to pursue her deep passion for juvenile justice at Camp David Gonzales and through her research under the guidance of Dr. Angela Hawken.
Kelsey Morris
Kelsey Stapler Morris received her J.D. cum laude from Pepperdine University School of Law in 2011, graduating as a member of Order of the Coif and Order of the Barristers. While a Faculty Scholar at Pepperdine, she was an associate editor of the Pepperdine Law Review and a member of Pepperdine's nationally ranked Trial Advocacy and Appellate Advocacy teams.
Prior to her studies at Pepperdine, Ms. Morris received her B.A. summa cum laude in the study of public policy from Patrick Henry College in 2008. She also served as an extern to the Honorable Arthur L. Alarcon, senior judge for the Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals. She currently practices commercial litigation as an associate at Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP.
Christiana Osti
Christiana is a 2011 graduate of Seaver College with a BS in international business. During her time at Pepperdine she was the founder/president of the American Marketing Association, VP of membership for Alpha Kappa Psi (business fraternity), and was highly involved with the Student Alumni Organization, Entrepreneur Club, and Career Coaching program. Throughout her junior and senior years she interned at The Walt Disney Company in corporate brand management before moving to Italy for six months to study Italian and economics.
Christiana's experience at Disney led to opportunities with TED, Creative Artists Agency, and Sony Pictures Television. Recently she transitioned to northern California to continue her career at Google working on the Chrome Product Management team.
P - Z
Nancy Padberg
Nancy Padberg is the CEO and founder of Navigate Boomer Media and Best Boomer Towns. She is a former Fortune 500 Times Mirror executive, strategist, and marketing agency vice president. Nancy has built her media, marketing, and sales career in Los Angeles for 18 years.
NavigateBoomerMedia is the largest online boomer marketing source in the world with display advertising on 120 sites delivering 112 million unique visitors per month, 20 million e-mail and a 2 million-mobile-device database with 800 data segments, e-newsletters, and custom research. Best Boomer Towns was developed and launched based on research of 40% of the 78 million U.S. baby boomers (ages 45 - 65) who will retire or relocate. The site highlights the best 21 towns through facts, stats, real time news feed, weather feed, 60-minute podcasts, and video highlights. Town selected criteria include university presence, airport access, mild climate, more doctors per capita, cultural activities, and community vibrancy.
Nancy was the 2009 Friends of George Graziadio School of Business Golf Tournament chair and committee member for five years. She has been nominated for "Women to Watch" by the Los Angeles Business Journal and as an "Outstanding Alumna" at Iowa State University. She has served on several nonprofit boards, is a guest speaker, and former Big 12 golfer. She is a MBA graduate from the Graziadio School of Business Management at Pepperdine.
She resides in Seattle with her husband David and daughter Nina. They enjoy their happy dogs Snickers and Buttercup, as well as travel, volleyball, and golf together.
Zachary Palsson
Zachary Palsson, originally from Rancho Palos Verdes, CA, is a recent graduate of Seaver College at Pepperdine University where he majored in sociology. He was heavily involved in Greek life working with the university on philanthropic events and with the inter fraternity council which assisted in fostering a more collaborative spirit among Greek organizations on campus. Zachary also worked with alumni affairs and the Crest associates by personally interacting with donors and Pepperdine alumni.
After graduation, Zachary moved to Spain and studied Spanish for six months. He is now back and currently pursuing his master's degree and teaching credentials at the Pepperdine Graduate School of Education and Psychology. Zachary works with students in his cohort to help them progress as educators and as a graduate assistant to Dr. Stevens, which includes multiple facets of administrative duties at GSEP. Additionally, he is a student teacher at WISH Charter school in Westchester for third graders.
Most of Zachary's family has attended and graduated from Pepperdine University and he is excited to be working on the council and helping fellow alumni.
Jason Pates
Jason H. Pates is a manager of customer business transformation in the voice technology group at Cisco Systems, Inc. Cisco Systems is the worldwide leader in networking for the Internet, whose networking hardware, software, and services provide increased productivity and communications for individuals, education, business, and government. In his current role, Jason serves on a global team that identifies, quantifies, and demonstrates the business value of Cisco’s unified communications solutions. He is responsible for a clientele of large manufacturing, energy, and high-technology enterprises, such as General Motors, Pacific Gas and Electric, MGM Resorts, and Symantec Corporation.
Prior to his current position, Jason worked as an account manager for ChannelAdvisor Corporation, an electronic commerce startup in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, where he managed online shopping strategies for large retailers and manufacturers like Nike, Dell, and AT&T Mobility. He was previously a management consultant at both Booz Allen & Hamilton and Accenture, analyzing business processes for public and private sector clientele. He was selected as the School of Public Policy’s first U.S. Presidential Management Fellow, and was appointed in 1999 to his role as a financial economist in the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Financial Institutions Policy.
He serves as president of the finance board and deacon at the North Raleigh Church of Christ in Raleigh, North Carolina. He is a founding member and former president of the Pepperdine Alumni Association’s Carolina Waves chapter, in addition to prior service as the president of the Washington, D.C. Waves alumni chapter.
He is a double graduate of Pepperdine University, earning his bachelor of arts in economics from Seaver College in 1995, and his master’s of public policy from the School of Public Policy in 1999.
He resides in Wake Forest, North Carolina, with his wife Olena, who is also a graduate of the School of Public Policy, Class of 1999.
Darren Pitts
Darren Pitts is an executive vice president, principal and cofounder of Velocity Retail Group and Accelerated Development. His firms provide corporate real estate strategy, brokerage, and development services to many of the nation's Fortune 500 retailers. Some current and former clients include JPMorgan Chase, Target, Wal-Mart, Lowe's Home Improvement, JCPenney, Lifetime Fitness, Old Navy, Gap, Banana Republic, Mervyn's Department Stores, Ross Dress for Less, CVS Pharmacy, Mimi's Cafe, and others.
He was formerly a senior vice president, principal and cofounder of the Phoenix office for Staubach Retail, a Texas-based commercial real estate firm founded by NFL Hall of Fame legend Roger Staubach. He was also a principal in two of Staubach's affiliated development companies, Cypress Equities and Velocity Development Services. He recently partnered with another former NFL Hall of Fame All-Star and "Dancing with the Stars" Champion Emmitt Smith on a 240,000 square-foot retail development project in the Phoenix area.
At the age of 29, Darren became one of the youngest senior vice presidents at the nation's largest commercial real estate firm CB Richard Ellis (formerly CB Commercial). He led one of the firm's top retail tenant representation teams and was regularly in the firm's Top 20 ranking nationally, having won numerous awards for top performance and for leading performance-based teams.
He was a James Millikin Scholar and a 1993 magna cum laude honors graduate of Millikin University (Illinois) while lettering in three NCAA sports. He later completed his MBA with magna cum laude honors in finance in 1995 from the Pepperdine University Graziadio School of Business and Management.
Darren and his wife Denise are active members of the Camelback Church of Christ in the Phoenix area, where he frequently leads the congregational singing. Darren and his wife Denise have a 11-year old son Davis and a 10-year old daughter Denae. They are residents of Scottsdale, Arizona
Beverley Royster
Beverley Smith Royster received her bachelor's degree from George Pepperdine College (GPC) in 1965 and earned her master's degree from California State University, Dominguez Hills in 1991. Upon graduation from GPC she attended a fifth year of college in the Year-In Europe program in Heidelberg, Germany, where she was the girls' representative for all events. During her years at GPC she served as co-chairman of Spring Sing and vice president of Phi Beta. She additionally was a member of Alpha Gammas, Delta Iota, and a participant in the Religion Department's Biblical Greek Program in which she received a minor upon graduation. Beverley has participated in the Class Agent program and Founder's Day march of the flags since its inception.
She retired in 2006 from Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) after 40 years of educational commitment. She spent the first 20 years of her career as a K-6 classroom teacher, advisor, and instructional coordinator. The last 20 years of her career were spent as a K-12 administrator for the Information Technology Division, director of the $18,000,000 Technology Literacy Challenge Grant, and coordinator of Writing to Read/Voy a Leer Escribiendo classroom programs and district-wide conferences, including the first InfoTech Conference. Additionally, from 1987-2006, she was the liaison to The Riordan Foundation for LAUSD.
The teacher is out of the classroom, but the classroom is not out of the teacher as Beverley continues as an instructional technology consultant for The Riordan Foundation and an active founding board member for New Millennium Secondary School in Carson, CA. She is also an active member of Friends of the Santa Fe Dam in Irwindale, CA where she served as secretary for the passed five years. Additionally, Beverley serves in leadership for the Small Groups/Assimilation Department at Faith Community Church in West Covina, CA.
Meisha Sherman
Meisha R. Sherman joined Hewlett-Packard in August 2011 and leads the accelerated development strategies, efforts, and initiatives for leaders and executives for global talent management and succession of the Hewlett-Packard Company. With over 15 years of human resources experience, she leads talent management strategies and processes, top talent pools, learning and development efforts, employee engagement initiatives, succession planning, talent review, and scorecard metric design and reporting.
Prior to her current role at Hewlett-Packard, Meisha served as manager for talent management and diversity for Raytheon, a leading Fortune 100 government aerospace defense company. Ms. Sherman was responsible for talent development, combining OE and talent management key principles to deliver pragmatic solutions, leading succession planning, and leading diversity strategies. This included execution of diversity efforts, employee resource groups, diversity and inclusion awareness training, metrics, and communication.
Prior to joining Raytheon, Ms. Sherman held various leadership positions such as director of human resources, talent management, and talent acquisition for a leading woman minority owned consulting firm. She led regional and national teams by providing solutions for clients in the telecommunications and technology industries. She was responsible for acquiring top talent and ensuring workforce diversity, developing top leaders, and retaining top talent. Additionally, Ms. Sherman was responsible for exempt and non-exempt level human resources, employee relations, and talent acquisition in corporate human resources for a top national financial institution for over five years. Ms. Sherman served in the United States Army for six years, where she was responsible for the recruitment of prospective soldiers, and the development and retention of existing soldiers.
A native of Los Angeles, CA, Ms. Sherman is an active leader in the community. She is a civic leader with the 48th District Constituent Services Center in partnership with the Los Angeles Mayor's Office, serving at risk youth in the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD). She is also a mentor to the second year MBA students at Pepperdine University. Additionally, Ms. Sherman is an advisory board member of the Los Angeles chapter of the California Diversity Council (CADC), is an officer of the National Association of Women MBA's (NAWMBA), serves on the Pepperdine University Graziadio Alumni Board, and serves on the board of directors with the American Red Cross Santa Monica chapter.
Ms. Sherman earned her MBA from Pepperdine University Graziadio School of Business and Management. Ms. Sherman received her bachelor's degree in interdisciplinary studies from California State University Dominguez Hills where she graduated magna cum laude.
Miatta Snetter
Dr. Miatta R. Snetter received her undergraduate degree from Clark Atlanta University, in Atlanta, Georgia. She then went on to earn both her master’s and doctorate in clinical psychology from Pepperdine, where she gained the tools to become a life-changing psychotherapist, consultant, guest lecturer, educator, and community advocate. During her time at Pepperdine, Miatta was fortunate to serve as both a graduate assistant and a teacher’s assistant, where she was exposed to guest lecturing for master’s level psychology students. As a student, she was invited by the late Dr. David Boyd to sing with Pepperdine faculty and staff members during their annual Christmas celebration, which led to her first solo debut. In 2005, she was honored to be selected to sing the National Anthem at GSEP’s graduation ceremony. She was later selected to sing during her own graduation ceremony in 2007, one of her greatest honors and privileges.
Miatta was on the Discovery Channel’s 10-episode series The Colony as a psychology expert. Here, she provided commentary about the various threatening scenarios presented to nine individuals living in a simulated post-apocalyptic environment.
She is currently a professional consultant and sits on the board of directors for local nonprofit organization Daughters of Power, Inc., which encourages young girls to identify and pursue their full academic, social, and spiritual potential. She previously sat on the board for the Los Angeles County Psychological Association, where she cochaired the “Mind-Body Project,” promoting awareness within the community about the relationship between mental and physical health. She is also actively involved in her church, Full Harvest International Church, where she heads the counseling ministry and other service-oriented projects.
Currently, Miatta is the coordinator of the military sexual trauma treatment program at the Los Angeles Veterans Center, where she provides PTSD treatment for male and female veterans from various war eras, including WWII, Vietnam, Korean, Persian Gulf, Operation Iraqi Freedom, and Operation Enduring Freedom.
Jennifer Schaeffer Snitko
Jennifer is currently Vice President of Television Business & Legal Affairs for CORE Media Group, the owner of "American Idol," "So You Think You Can Dance" and Sharp Media, where she is responsible for handling the business and legal aspects of television development and production. Jennifer joined CORE from her previous post as VP of Business & Legal Affairs at Eyeworks USA where she oversaw production legal for a slate of shows including successful franchises "Extreme Makeover: Weight Loss Edition" for ABC, "Bar Rescue" for Spike, and "Flying Wild Alaska" for Discovery. Prior to Eyeworks, Jennifer practiced entertainment law at the Beverly Hills firm McKuin Frankel Whitehead LLP, where she developed an expertise representing unscripted and independent production companies, including 51 Minds and Glassman Media. Jennifer began her legal career at GRB Entertainment, an independent producer and distributor of unscripted television programs, including the Emmy winning show "Intervention."
Jennifer received her B.S. degree in business administration from Pepperdine University in 1998, where she graduated magna cum laude, and obtained her J.D. from Pepperdine University School of Law in 2002, where she graduated cum laude and was a member of the Pepperdine Law Review.
Raised in both Oregon and Indiana, Jennifer now lives in Pacific Palisades, California with her husband. She and her husband are both avid sailors who enjoy every opportunity to explore new places and meet new people on their adventures at sea.
Brad Starkey
Brad Starkey is a partner in Jerry Johnson and Associates (JJ&A), a design firm specializing in marketing the products of entertainment and retail-based Fortune 500 Companies. JJ&A's current client base includes the Walt Disney Company, DreamWorks, Mattel Toys, Express Stores, Warner Brothers, Universal Pictures, Disney Store, and Sunkist.
Prior to JJ&A, Brad was marketing manager for Ventura County National Bank, a small business bank headquartered in Oxnard, California. From 1988 to 1992, he was in charge of marketing, including promoting the bank, its subsidiaries, and the complete line of products and services.
Brad is a graduate of Pepperdine University, Seaver College. He graduated in 1988 with a degree in advertising. He serves the University on the Seaver Board of Visitors, the Alumni Leadership Council, and as chair of Seaver's career coaching program.
Born in Akron, Ohio, and raised in Orange County, he currently lives in Westlake Village, California, with his wife Patricia and their children, Brandon and Lauren. Brad and his family are active in their church, the Conejo Valley Church of Christ, where they have actively participated in mission trips to Mexico and Nairobi, Kenya.
Brandon Stillwell
Brandon Stillwell is currently a sophomore at Pepperdine University with a strong interest in Sports Administration who aspires to work for the Golden State Warriors. At nineteen years old, Brandon has grown a great deal in his transition from the small rural town of Elk Grove to the larger beach community of Malibu. He looks forward to embracing further growth in academics as well as his faith through his experience at Pepperdine.
Many would describe Brandon as an outgoing and friendly person. His strong leadership and communication skills have received notice and helped him advance on campus to become the President of the Student Alumni Organization. Brandon stays active and social playing basketball and enjoys spending time with his fraternity brothers.
Brandon is very thankful to God and his parents for the opportunity to serve at Pepperdine and is very proud to be a part of the ALC. He is eager to learn from the upperclassmen representatives and Alumni.
Matt Wallace
Matt is a 2007 graduate of Seaver College. While at Pepperdine Matt was a part of the Student Government Association, Student Programming board and was a Resident Advisor. Since Graduating from Pepperdine Matt has continued to be very involved with the Waves serving on the Los Angeles Waves Alumni board for over 6 years and holding the role of President for 3 years, in which during that time he won Chapter of the Year for Los Angeles.
Since Graduating from Pepperdine Matt has worked in Commercial Real Estate specializing in corporate office users. He was one of the first hires for a Canadian firm Avison Young when they launched into the United States in 2011 now the firm has more than 50 offices and almost 1,500 employees in the United States. When not working Matt and his wife enjoy golfing and traveling.
Eric Yomantas
Eric Yomantas was raised in Thousand Oaks California and graduated from Seaver College in 2012 with a BS in business administration and an IMBA from the Graziadio School of Business and Management. During his time at Pepperdine, Eric was very active both on-campus and abroad. He volunteered as a NSO coordinator, and was an active member on the University Ministries Student Leadership Team and the Student Alumni Organization. Eric also studied abroad in Germany and spent a portion of his time at the European Business School in Wiesbaden.
In 2013 Eric married his Pepperdine sweetheart, Elizabeth, and they now live in Toluca Lake, CA. Eric has worked for the past two years as a finance manager for World Vision International which is a large humanitarian non-profit.