Meet Our Team

Eloy Ortiz Oakley joined the Foundation as President & CEO in August 2022. As president and CEO he works in partnership with organizations and leaders around the state to ensure that more students who reflect California’s diversity can complete their postsecondary journeys, access the opportunity for a better life, and participate in an inclusive and robust economy. Eloy is known as a leading voice on improving equity in higher education and for positioning institutions for global shifts in the workforce and the future of learning.

In 2016, Eloy became Chancellor for the California Community Colleges, the nation’s largest higher education system, serving mostly students of color, many of whom are low-income and the first in their families to attend college. There he has been instrumental in the development and adoption of the Vision for Success, a guiding set of goals and commitments designed to significantly improve the system’s student outcomes.

Previously, Eloy was superintendent and president of the Long Beach Community College District (LBCCD), where he helped launch the Long Beach College Promise Program, a compact that outlined clear pathways from high school to Long Beach Community College and Cal State Long Beach. He also previously worked as LBCCD’s executive vice president of administrative services as well as vice president of college services at Oxnard College.

A forward-looking thought leader on higher education and its connection to the economy, he has served on many boards and committees, including the California Governor’s Council for Post-secondary Education, the California Forward Leadership Council, the PPIC Higher Education Advisory Council, the California Chamber of Commerce, the California Economic Summit, and the American Association of Community Colleges 21st Century Commission on the Future of Community Colleges. He joined the College Futures Foundation board of directors in 2013.

After serving in the U.S. Army from 1984-1988, he began his postsecondary education at Golden West College, then transferred and earned his bachelor’s degree and his MBA from the University of California, Irvine.

Dana Washington joined College Futures Foundation in 2019 as executive assistant to the president and CEO.

Prior to joining the Foundation, Dana supported the executive leadership and board of directors at the Museum of the African Diaspora in San Francisco. She brings more than 15 years of executive assistance experience at both for-profit and non-profit organizations in the Bay Area.

Dana earned her A.A.S. in Business Administration, Criminal Justice from Heald College in San Francisco, where she maintained a 4.0 grade average.

Elizabeth González is a long-time philanthropy professional working for national, state, and regional foundations in support of public-sector systems change strategies and the advancement of equitable intergenerational social-economic mobility. She joined College Futures Foundation in 2019. As chief program & strategy officer, Elizabeth leads the development and implementation of the Foundation’s strategy in service of the foundation’s vision and mission.

Previously, Elizabeth was a portfolio director at The James Irvine Foundation, where she oversaw the education and workforce portfolios and teams – the Better Careers initiative, postsecondary success grantmaking, and Linked Learning, Irvine’s signature initiative to integrate academic and career-technical education for better student outcomes in high schools throughout California. Prior to her work at the Irvine Foundation, González was a postsecondary success program officer at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation overseeing a national portfolio of municipal partnerships for college success.

Elizabeth is the proud daughter of Mexican immigrants and a first-generation college student from southeast Los Angeles. She earned a B.A. from Columbia University, and a Ph.D. in sociology from the University of California, Los Angeles, with a focus on poverty, labor market inequality and social policy. Elizabeth currently serves as a member of the KQED board, USC’s Center on Philanthropy and Public Policy advisory board, Center for Effective Philanthropy’s advisory board and the Public Policy Institute of California’s Statewide Leadership Council. She lives in Albany, CA with her husband and son and enjoys hiking, poetry, and the joy of a good cumbia.

Social media handle:
Elizabeth4CollegeFutures, @Dr_E_Gonzalez

Maria Anguiano is a globally recognized executive and board member at the intersection of technology, education, finance and social impact. With a proven track record of scaling organizations, managing complex operations and driving innovation, Maria has dedicated her career to creating opportunities and improving outcomes for learners and communities worldwide.

As executive vice president of Arizona State University’s Learning Enterprise, Maria launched and scaled a premier lifelong learning model that engaged over 1 million learners in 140+ countries. The Learning Enterprise provides accessible, technology-enabled pathways to education for individuals at every stage of life.

Maria began her career in finance at Barclays Capital and Deloitte, where she gained deep expertise in financial management. This foundation in global finance shaped her ability to design scalable, sustainable business and education models that drive impact.

She has since held leadership roles across VC-backed start-ups and large public research universities, including serving as CFO of the Minerva Project and as vice chancellor of planning and budget at the University of California-Riverside. At UC Riverside, she managed an $800 million budget and oversaw campus-wide strategic planning, financial analysis, institutional research and capital asset strategies.

Among her notable achievements, she successfully negotiated the university’s first design-build contract for a major research facility, guided a Physical Master Plan Study, and initiated organizational excellence efforts. She also pioneered groundbreaking efforts to enhance cost transparency in higher education and later contributed her expertise at the University of California Office of the President, where she tackled the system’s most pressing financial and strategic challenges.

Through her extensive board service with the James Irvine Foundation, KIPP Foundation, Campaign for College Opportunity and Alliance for SoCal Innovation, Maria advances initiatives that foster economic and social mobility. She also serves as vice chair of the University of California Board of Regents, helping shape the strategic priorities of the nation’s leading public university system, which represents a $50 billion enterprise.

A first-generation college graduate, Maria earned her BA in economics-accounting and Spanish from Claremont McKenna College and her MBA from Stanford University. She grew up in National City and now resides in San Diego, California, with her husband, Nisan.

Amanda DeLaRosa joined the Foundation in November 2024. As director of program and strategy, Amanda plays a key leadership role in advancing our strategy.

Previously, Amanda was strategy officer for state policy at Lumina Foundation. Prior to that, she held the position of chief of staff for the Colorado Department of Higher Education, policy specialist for the National Conference of State Legislatures, and Policy and Advocacy Manager at Scholarship America. Her career and commitment to student success began as legislative director at the University of California Student Association. She brings extensive experience in the public, nonprofit, and philanthropic sectors.

Amanda received her Masters in Public Administration from the University of Colorado, Denver and her Bachelor of Arts in Politics and Sociology from the University of California, Santa Cruz.

Alyssa Pine joined College Futures Foundation in 2020. As a program associate, she provides grant management and administrative support to the Foundation’s program and evaluation and learning teams and helps facilitate the grantmaking and grants-monitoring processes.

A new resident of the Bay Area, Alyssa previously worked at Park Avenue Synagogue in New York City, where she assisted with their adult education department and Synagogue programming.

Originally from Golden, Colorado, Alyssa took a gap year before college and worked as an au pair in Paris, France. She earned a B.A in Political Science with minors in Media Studies and French Language from Colorado State University.

Rebecca Ruan-O’Shauhnessy joined the Foundation in January 2025. As director of program and strategy, Rebecca plays a key leadership role in advancing our new strategy.

She brings a wealth of experience from her work in the private and public sectors, as well as the nonprofit sphere. Rebecca was most recently vice chancellor for educational services and support for the California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office. Prior to this, she was senior project manager for economic advancement strategies at Jobs for the Future, vice president for integrated health and human services at UnitedHealthcare Community and State, chief of staff to the chairman and director of legal affairs and government relations at Fuyao Glass Industry Group, and deputy chief for the Office of Strategic Business Investments at the Ohio Department of Development.

Rebecca received her Juris Doctorate from the University of Minnesota Law School and her Bachelor of Arts in Economics and Japanese Studies from the Connecticut College.

Joanna joined the Foundation in June 2012. As program manager, she supports oversight of the Program functions of the foundation, including managing and reporting on the programmatic budget and related grantmaking processes, budget forecasting, and coordinating annual budget planning. In her former role as associate program officer, she managed the foundation’s Community Philanthropy Initiative and previous scholarship grantmaking portfolio.

With several years of experience in San Francisco schools and nonprofit educational organizations, Joanna is committed to improving the lives of low-income youth through increased opportunities for college. Prior to joining the Foundation, she was a high school Special Education and English teacher in San Francisco. She also brings with her experience in the legal field, primarily tax and employment law and in legal publishing. Joanna has volunteered with various literacy programs and community-based organizations dedicated to improving educational outcomes for low-income youth in San Francisco.

Joanna holds a master’s degree in education from the University of San Francisco and a bachelor’s degree in English Literature from the University of California, Berkeley.

Henry Velasco joined the Foundation in 2018. As grants manager, he is responsible for the management and implementation of the Foundation’s policies and procedures related to grants administration.

Previously, Henry was the grants manager at the Jewish Community Federation and Endowment in San Francisco. He has 10 years of grants management experience, and over 7 years of legal administrative experience.

Henry received a B.F.A. in Theater from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts.

Sara Sandhu joined College Futures Foundation in November 2022. As Senior Communications Officer, she is responsible for a range of institutional, programmatic, and initiative-specific communications, including activities under the areas of: audience engagement, issue framing, messaging, publication and content production, research, media relations, communications grantmaking support, branding, and related projects.

Sara brings ten years of work and service in the field of education to this role, with eight of those years focused on marketing and communications. Most recently, she has been instrumental in shaping GO Public Schools’ policy platform and leading their college affordability work. She previously worked for East Bay College Fund and also held roles at Merritt College and Berkeley City College.

She brings with her a sound understanding of K-12 and higher education policies and practices in California, and experience in advocating for vital education and financial resources for Black, Latinx, and Asian American & Pacific Islander families. She has worked directly with educator communities of practice around guided pathways and dual enrollment, run electoral campaigns, and engaged in movement-building around educational equity.

Sara holds a bachelor’s degree in English from the University of California, Berkeley as well as certificates in microscopy from Merritt College in Oakland.

Valery joined College Futures Foundation in July 2021. As communications manager, she collaborates with the director of strategic communications to produce and support a range of effective communications efforts to catalyze systemic change for equitable student success—including a focus on digital and project management, audience engagement, marketing campaigns, production processes, and events.

Through prior roles with Sonoma State University’s School of Business and Economics (SBE), Valery brings several years of experience in leading, developing, and implementing integrated communications and marketing campaigns that advance student-serving programs and initiatives. In her most recent position as marketing and communications lead for SBE at Sonoma State, her work emphasized promoting social mobility for California’s first-generation students of color, a priority shared by College Futures Foundation as mission critical. Valery began her career in the AmeriCorps, serving the Community HealthCorps program.

Valery earned her M.B.A. from Sonoma State University, as well as a B.S. in communications and a B.A. in health science from California State University, Chico.

Phillippe Wallace joined College Futures in 2010. He oversees the Foundation’s $600 million investment portfolio as well as finance, accounting, information technology, facilities, and non-grantmaking operations. He has served in the CFO and COO roles in philanthropy for almost 20 years. Earlier in his career he focused on investment management, technology investment banking, and private equity.

Phillippe has an M.B.A. in Strategy and Finance from the Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley, where he was a Fellow in the Consortium for Graduate Studies in Management. He received his bachelor’s degree from Harvard College and has a Chartered Financial Analyst designation from the CFA Institute. He is active in the sector, serving as a trustee of The Christensen Fund (TCF), a private foundation supporting and strengthening Indigenous Peoples’ efforts to secure and exercise their rights to their land, territories, resources, and sovereign systems of governance. He currently serves as the chair of TCF’s Investment Committee, and he has served as the chair of the Finance & Administration Committee as well as board secretary. He has also served as the board chair of Community Initiatives, a fiscal sponsor of projects for the benefit of communities in service to social change, as director and treasurer for Hispanics in Philanthropy, on the board and several committees of the Foundation Finance Officers Group (FFOG), and as a member of the Alumni Diversity Council at the Haas School of Business.

Inanna Hazel joined the Foundation in May 2024. As director of finance and administration, Inanna is responsible for all finance, accounting, and reporting activities. Additionally, in partnership with the COO, Inanna is responsible for oversight of Foundation-wide operations, including human resources. She also develops content for and interfaces with the Audit Committee and the Finance and Administration Committee of the Board of Directors.

Previously, Inanna was managing director of Pesticide Action Network in Berkeley, California, for over eight years. She has over 20 years of nonprofit finance, human resources, and operations management experience in organizations with national and international staff.

Inanna received her B.A. in psychology from the University of Arizona. She holds two certificates in nonprofit accounting from the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.

Niesha Ambeau joined the Foundation in April 2025. As human resources coordinator, Niesha works closely with the fiscal operations team to foster positive employee experience, and with colleagues across the organization to achieve the Foundation’s goals.

She was previously clinic administrator and human resources manager for St. Anthony Foundation based in San Francisco, California. Prior to that, Niesha was pharmacy technician benefit specialist at Pain and Rehabilitative Medical Group in Oakland, California.

Niesha received her Associate of Arts in Business Administration from City College of San Francisco.

Stefanie Charren joined the Foundation in 2011. As the board liaison, Stefanie supports the scheduling, docket material, and meeting needs of the Board of Directors; as facilities and events manager, Stefanie ensures back office operations and Foundation events are executed to high standards.

Prior to her current role, Stefanie supported the Foundation’s work in several consulting capacities, from grant administration and selection to coordinating the Foundation’s grantee convenings. Previously, she coordinated the Youth and Scholarship Program at Habitat for Humanity East Bay—a three-year pilot scholarship and college access/success program serving children of Habitat homeowners. Stefanie’s interests and work experiences are informed by a desire to foster effective systems and happy people. From writing a behind-the-scenes column for the San Francisco International Film Festival, teaching college-level English and writing, and crewing for private yachts in the Mediterranean to co-managing a domestic violence shelter, recruiting and managing IBM’s contracted administrative workforce in Northern California, and offering administrative and organizational support to small businesses as an independent consultant—she brings a creative touch to support meaningful learning experiences and sustainable business practices.

Stefanie earned a B.A. in American Studies and Women’s Studies from the University of California, Santa Cruz.

David Guzman joined College Futures Foundation in 2006. He is responsible for maintaining the Foundation’s computer hardware, operating systems, servers, and collaboration tools, as well as managing all outside IT support vendors. David also oversees the Foundation’s portfolio of student loan receivables and related servicers.

Previously, David was with Chela Education Financing and moved to the Foundation when it was created in 2006. He has over 13 years of experience in consumer lending with institutions in Utah and California. David’s background includes positions at commercial banks and credit unions, where he has managed IT and credit and collections systems, and helped launch electronic banking for credit union members.

Sherry Li joined the Foundation in October 2024. As staff accountant, Sherry works closely with the fiscal operations team and colleagues across the organization to achieve the Foundation’s goals.

Sherry has 18 years of accounting experience. Previously, she was lead general ledger accountant and accounting manager at Enovix Corporation and Davis Instruments Corporation, respectively. Prior to that Sherry was general ledger accountant at Lucid Motors.

Sherry received her Master of Business Administration from San Jose State University, Master of Accounting from Central University of Finance and Economics in Beijing, China, and her bachelor’s degree in accounting from Shanxi University of Finance and Economics in Taiyuan, Shanxi, China.

Mark Terrell joined the Foundation in 2006 as a senior accountant, focusing on accounts payable, benefits administration, and payroll. He also assists with the month-end close process, preparing financial statements and account reconciliations.

Mark has over 20 years of experience in the accounting and administration field. Previously, he worked for a variety of businesses including architecture firms, hotel and restaurant management, and nonprofits.

Mark was a music major in college. He was a keyboardist and vocalist for a rock band in the late-80s and early-90s, and had the big hair to prove it.