2023

Angelic Davis, Director of Purchasing, Printing and Mail Services at Mt. San Antonio College, has over 20 years of experience in procurement, 15 years of which have spent in public procurement. Angelic has gained valuable experience and knowledge working for diverse agencies, including the City of San Bernardino Municipal Water Department, the City of Moreno Valley and most recently at Mt. San Antonio College. In addition to her vast experience, Angelic holds a Master of Public Administration, is a Certified Public Procurement Officer (CPPO), and has also obtained NIGP-CPP certification.

Dr. Anthony Maciel is the Associate Vice President / Chief Information Systems Officer at MiraCosta Community College District where he oversees the Information Technology Services division. With an educational background in engineering, management, and higher education leadership, his IT management career expands over two decades with a successful record implementing complex enterprise-level systems that transform education and create more equitable opportunities for students. Dr. Maciel is a technology visionary leveraging technology to improve student success, enhance academic programs, and increase operational efficiencies while ensuring IT systems are secured and data safeguarded. He is well-versed in the complex state and federal IT regulatory compliance California community colleges operate in.

April Marin is the Executive Director, Contract, Procurement, and Risk Management Services for the Santa Clarita Community College District. She has over seventeen years of hands-on contract experience, including education, healthcare, and medical laboratory agreements. April is highly regarded by her colleagues for her can-do approach and takes special pride in helping others, especially when they have unique purchasing or contract needs. She oversees over $50 million in Purchase Orders each year, and her department was recently awarded the Achievement of Excellence in Procurement Award from the National Procurement Institute for the second year in a row. Her District was 1 of only 14 higher education organizations in the United States and Canada to receive the award. She currently serves as an alternate Board member on the Statewide Association of Community Colleges (SWACC). She is the Vice Chair of the SWACC Claims & Coverage Committee, and she represents California community colleges on the Schools Association for Excess Risk (“SAFER”) Board of Directors. She earned her Associate’s degree in Social Science at College of the Canyons, and then went on to graduate with honors from California State University, Dominguez Hills, where she received her Bachelor’s degree in Applied Studies, with a minor in Public Administration.

Heather Cade-Bauer has worked for Lake Tahoe Community College District since 2011 in various capacities. Since 2014 she has worked in the Purchasing Department overseeing all District procurement of goods and services. Heather has served on the CollegeBuys Advisory Committee since 2020, is a co-chair of the Northern California Community College Purchasing Group since 2021, and has been a CAPPO member since 2017.

Hugh Lee is a senior partner/shareholder of Tao Rossini, APC. Mr. Lee’s practice is primarily focused on representing and advising various public agencies including community college districts, school districts, county offices of education, charter schools, and non-profit organizations, in all aspects of public works construction law. This includes handling construction claims, disputes and litigation, construction contract administration, procurement, bidding and bid disputes, labor issues, and architectural malpractice. Mr. Lee advises clients in drafting construction-related documents including contracts and front-end documents for various construction delivery methods. Prior to becoming an attorney, Mr. Lee practiced as an architect working for various architectural design firms.

Jennifer Keiper currently serves as Senior Director of CollegeBuys at the Foundation for California Community Colleges, where she oversees business development efforts and program operations for the CollegeBuys program. One of her key roles is to sustain core business lines, diversify procurement opportunities, improve operational efficiencies and lead the department’s compliance efforts. Jennifer and her team work closely with the Chancellor’s Office, the Advisory Group and key stakeholders across the 73 districts to ensure their needs are being reflected in systemwide agreements, while simultaneously collaborating with corporate and intersegmental partners to increase access and cost-savings for students, colleges, and the system as a whole.

Jennifer has over ten years of experience in California’s public sector, eight of which have been dedicated to contracting in higher education within the CCC and UC systems. In her previous role as Contracts Officer for UC Davis Health, she was responsible for negotiating business contracts for UC Davis Medical Center, School of Medicine, and School of Nursing. Jennifer earned her bachelor of arts in political science from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, and her juris doctorate in public interest from UC Davis School of Law.

Jesse currently serves as the Assistant Vice Chancellor of Information Technology Services at Rancho Santiago Community College District, where he is responsible for the overall leadership and administration of the Information Technologies Services Department. Jesse oversees all aspects of information technology, including enterprise applications, infrastructure and telecommunication services, cloud computing, data analytics, academic technology, and information security and compliance.
Jesse has over 23 years of Information Technology experience in a variety of industries, including 16 years in various IT management and supervisory roles, 12 of which have been within higher education. Jesse holds an MBA with focus on Information Technology, Management and Business strategy and a bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, as well as ITIL, CISOA and EDUCAUSE Leadership Institute certifications.

Jorge Burwick serves as the Operations Manager, CollegeBuys where he oversees CollegeBuys contracts, vendor relationships, and contract support functions. Based on systemwide need, he works to develop new business lines by vetting prospective vendors and managing compliant requests for proposals. Jorge supports systemwide collaborative procurement initiatives.

Jorge has over 10 years of experience in higher education and has committed himself to working with projects that focus on equity and inclusion. Prior to joining the Foundation, he managed student programs at the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities where he was responsible for corporate relations and campus outreach. Jorge is a native Texan and earned his bachelor’s from Trinity University and master’s from the University of Texas at San Antonio.

Kevin Flanagan is a program manager for SPURR’s Renewable Energy Aggregated
Procurement (REAP) Program. Kevin has 15+ years of experience working in the energy
industry with a focus on renewable energy, RFP management, feasibility studies, and
contract negotiation. Kevin is a graduate of Cal Poly SLO and more than anything enjoys
spending time with his family exploring the world.

Kim Aviles started her professional career in public purchasing in 2019 as an assistant in the Procurement Department of her alma mater, San Francisco State University. From there, Kim became a temporary buyer for the University. Upon graduation, she went into private sector purchasing for a commercial real estate firm. In 2022, Kim went back to serving her community as a full-time buyer for San Mateo County Community College District where she is now the interim senior buyer. As the senior buyer for the district, Kim is in charge of managing the district’s fixed assets, the Xerox fleet, as well as the purchasing for: Cañada College, the ITS department, 2 athletic centers, and the district’s radio station – KCSM. When Kim isn’t crushing it at work, she can be found hiking, whipping up culinary masterpieces in the kitchen, or getting lost in a good book.

Kim Simonds is the Purchasing Supervisor at MiraCosta College. She has a Bachelor of Science degree in Organizational Leadership from Colorado State University and a Master of Public Administration from California State University, Long Beach. She has over 20 years of procurement experience in the California Community College System. In the 13 years she has been with MiraCosta College, she has specialized in Public Works/Construction including related professional services and Contract Administration.

Lisa Mealoy is the Chief Operating Officer for the Community College League of California. She
oversees the District Services Division which includes Energy Services, its Solar and Storage and
Direct Access Electricity Program. She has been with the League for six years.