Government Relations builds and strengthens relationships with municipal and county elected and appointed officials and community organizations to enhance the University’s external relationships by informing and educating external stakeholders about the impact of CSUF and our students on the region. Government Relations works cooperatively with the CSU Office of Advocacy and State Relations, CSU Office of Federal Relations, and higher education associations to respond to legislative, regulatory and budget actions affecting higher education. Community Relations fosters partnerships between higher education and the community. Our mission includes ensuring the needs of students, faculty and staff bridge with the needs of our neighbors and local organizations to find mutually beneficial partnerships intended to provide opportunities for the campus to reach beyond our walls. Our collaborations are with K-14, nonprofit organizations, corporations, academics, policymakers and civic leaders. Community Relations provides a single point of contact for anyone interested in developing a partnership with California State University, Fullerton.

Professional coach to online MPA students. Connecting students with appropriate university, academic, and community resources, and encouraging students to reach their full academic potential. Teaching assistance for introduction to public administration including grading, supporting lead instructor with lectures, and guiding students to success.

● ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES DIRECTOR: Project Manager for Environmental Services program for the City including coordinating annual Earth Day Festival. Responsible for compliance with all state and federal environmental mandates. Develop City processes for compliance with CALGreen and organic mandates. Spearheads annual AB 939 compliance reporting. Solicit grant funding applications for development of new environmental programs.● CDBG/HOUSING AND REDEVELOPMENT: Leads grant compliance efforts for annual Community Development Block Grant program through HUD. Facilities sub-recipients and all compliance reporting, including contract administration.● BUDGET ANALYSIS: Prepares annual budget materials including grant monitoring and compliance reporting, researching market trends, and updating budget to reflect fiscal constraints and opportunities.● LEGISLATIVE RESEARCH AND ANALYSIS: Monitors state and federal legislation for policy trends and impacts to the City. Develops policy memorandums and recommends positions for City Council.● POLITICAL LIAISON: Maintains relationships with key political contacts and City Council. Briefs Council on recommendations for actions related to housing and redevelopment and environmental services. Develops staff reports, presentations, agenda items, and related materials for presentations to public, City staff, and elected officials.● STRATEGIC COMMUNICATION: Develops comprehensive communication plans for assigned topics including print, web, and social media. Engages stakeholders to share and exchange information.

PROJECT MANAGEMENT: Oversees policy development and analysis to identify communication priorities for government relations department. Establishes project outcomes and leads team to complete tasks on time and under budget, including delivery of information via the web which increased visibility by 200%.COLLABORATOR: Connects public, private, and nonprofit partners to address complex problems and uses innovative solutions for partnerships including serving as an advisor on federal agency committee. Frequently engages in working groups to partner with organizations to enhance research metrics and service delivery for impacted population.LEGISLATIVE RESEARCH AND ANALYSIS: Monitors state and federal legislation for policy trends. Conducts surveys and evaluates survey findings with legislative research to develop policy priorities. Develops white papers, testimony, support letters,talking points, website materials, and collateral materials based on legislative positions.POLITICAL LIAISON: Maintains relationships with key political contacts to ensure advocacy of the Association is a priority. Advise legislators about the needs of Association stakeholders. Lobbies for legislative and policy changes to benefit stakeholders. Knowledgeable of local, state, and federal legislative cycles and key policy makers.STRATEGIC COMMUNICATION: Directs print, web, and social media messaging to engage constituents with legislative advocacy and translates complex policies into understandable language. Educates the public about the quality of life issues. Routinely utilizes social media to engage stakeholders and measures impact with analytics. Frequent guest speaker and media spokesperson.MANAGER & TRAINER: Implements annual interactive training using various media platforms for a world-wide corps of volunteers. Overseas daily activities of legislative analyst. Develops annual legislative training for staff, board, and volunteers.

DOCUMENT PREPARATION AND CLIENT SUPPORT: Drafted pleadings, letters, and memorandums for attorney review. Collected, reviewed, and organized incoming and outgoing discovery. Prepared trial notebooks and organized trial exhibits. Educated clients on family law process and addressed client concerns. Guided clients through trial process under direction of attorney. Briefed attorney on clients’ concerns and provided recommended solutions. KEY ACCOMPLISHMENT: Structured firm wide tracking system for new state mediation deadlines. Evaluated case load and recommended efficiencies to streamline finite resources.

LEGAL RESEARCH AND ANALYSIS: Researched health insurance related legislation nationwide including state mandated benefits, ERISA, HIPAA, COBRA, state filing requirements, and compliance and regulatory trends. Drafted memorandums on new state legislation and impact on business areas. Drafted language for insurance booklets based on regulatory requirements. Filed insurance products with state for approval. Responded to Department of Insurance inquiries. PROJECT MANAGEMENT: Coordinated company-wide projects across functional groups for state specific compliance. Tracked compliance of new state regulations and briefed impacted departments on requirements. Monitored business lines for compliance and advised impacted departments for noncompliance risks. TRAINER: Legal research trainer for compliance healthcare analysts. Conducted legal research training for new analysts and provided updates on latest research techniques and trends. Evaluated effectiveness of new software and recommended improvements. KEY ACCOMPLISHMENT: Negotiated compliance settlement with Department of Insurance to mitigate compliance fees and costly system changes.

RESEARCH AND ANALYSIS: Initiated national legal research for trends in the mortgage and banking industry including predatory lending, ethic rules, fair debt, and privacy issues. Developed template letters for fair debt compliance. Evaluated record tracking system and implemented improvements. PROJECT COORDINATION: Standardized communication with co-counsel nationwide. Managed office records and client files. KEY ACCOMPLISHMENT: Exceeded internship expectations and was offered a full time position with the firm.