Team

The Faces of Our Leadership Team

Meet the dedicated leaders behind Health Career Connection—passionate change-makers driving our mission to build a stronger, more equitable health workforce.

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Driven by Passion, Experience, and a Shared Vision to Make a Lasting Impact.

Our team brings decades of experience in public health, healthcare, education, and workforce development, united by a shared commitment to equity, opportunity, and impact. They guide Health Career Connection with vision and purpose—shaping strategies, forging partnerships, and creating pathways that empower the next generation of health leaders.

Executive Leadership

Team 1 Jeffrey S. Oxendine, MPH, MBA (Board Chair) Co-founder and President
Team 2 Abraham Cicchetti, MSHA, CHEP Chief Operating Officer
Team 3 Iman Nazeeri-Simmons, MPH Senior Vice President of Student Programming and Operations

Team

Team 4 Aileen Babadjanians, MPH National Placement Director
Team 5 Vicky Phung Bocanegra, MHA Regional Manager of Southern California and Coachella Valley
Team 6 Larry Bullins Director of Technology
Team 7 Cassandra Chavez, MSW Senior Program Manager, Northern California & Central Valley
Team 8 Alyssa Colon, MPH Director of Evaluation, Workforce Division
Team 9 Katy Cushman, MPH Vice President, East Coast
Team 10 Patricia S. Etem, MPH Vice President, Southern California & Coachella Valley
Team 11 Vanessa Flores, MCM Director of Communications, Alumni Engagement and Project Implementation
Team 12 Dana Friez Grants Manager, Workforce Division
Team 13 Rachel Gregoire, MPS Senior Director, Business Development & National Partnerships
Team 16 Jana Hiraga, MPH Vice President, Northern California & Central Valley
Team 17 Melissa Infusino, MPP Vice President of Operations & Innovation, Workforce Division
Team 18 Babar Iqbal Program Coordinator
Team 19 Jimmy Jean-Baptiste, MPH Data & Technology Manager
Sylvia Profile Photo Sylvia Kincer Senior Project Manager
Team 21 Jamison Lowery, MEd Director of the Southeast Region
Team 22 Sergio Martinez, PhD Senior Program Manager
Team 23 Melissa Torres-Montoya, JD, MPH Senior Director, Strategy, Policy & Stakeholder Engagement, Workforce Division
Team 24 India King Walker Finance Manager
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Board of Directors

Our Board of Directors combined have over 150 years of experience and leadership in healthcare management, workforce development, and mentorship.

Team 25 Joseph Betancourt, MD, MPH
Vidiana Vidiana Birts, MPH
Oc Oliver Chu, MBA, MPH
Sd Shelby Decosta, MHA
Team 26 Kai Drekmeier, BA
Team 28 Anthony Iton, M.D., J.D., MPH (Secretary)
Team 29 Gail Knight, MD, MMM
Team 30 Laura Long, MBA
Team 31 Rishi Manchanda, MD, MPH
Team 1 Jeffrey S. Oxendine, MPH, MBA (Board Chair)
Pr Patrick Ramirez, MPH
Team 34 Montrece Ransom, JD, MPH, PCC, BCC
Josephine Josephine Stacey, MA
Team 36 Karen Stander, MBA (Treasurer)
Team 37 Calvin Wheeler, MD, BS Pharm, FAAP
Team 38 Mike Williams, MBA (Vice Chair)
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Advisory Board

The HCC National Advisory Board informs HCC’s Programs, organizational development and provides support to HCC interns and alumni. Many also host HCC interns and lead HCC workshops.

  • Kevin Barnett, Dr. PH, MCRP, Senior Investigator, Public Health Institute
  • Esther Dyer, D.L.S., Managing Director, Partners in Philanthropy. Principal, ExecHQ
  • Francis X Garcia, Co-Founder, Health Career Connection
  • Kathy Kwan, MBA, MPH, Former President, Eustace-Kwan Family Foundation, HCC 30th Anniversary Sustaining HCC Champion Awardee
  • Margaret Lapiz, MBA, MPH, CEO & Co-Founder, Under One Roof
  • Tomás Magaña, MD, MPH, Assistant Professor & Medical Director, Samuel Merritt University; Lead Physician La Clinica de La Raza, Oakland; Francisco Founding Director, FACES for the Future Coalition, HCC Champion Awardee
  • Ike Mmeje, MHSA, FACHE President and Chief Executive Officer, USC Arcadia Hospital (HCC Alumnus)
  • Bob Montoya, MD, MPH Consultant
  • Arnab Mukherjea, Dr PH, MPH, Professor of Public Health, Faculty Director, Health Sciences, Chancellor’s Office, California State University, East Bay
  • Gail Orum-Alexander, PharmD., Dean, Marshell B. Ketchum University, College of Pharmacy
  • Edgar Quiroz, MPH, Partner, Chief Operations and Senior Administrative Officer, Ace Home Health Care Services, HCC Champion Awardee
  • Raul Ruiz, MD, MPH, MPP, Director of Coachella Valley Health Care Initiative, Coachella, CA, Congressman to CA 36th District
  • Sheila Thornton, President and CEO, OneFuture Coachella Valley, HCC Champion Awardee
  • Monica Valdes-Lupi, JD, MPH, Managing Director, Health, The Kresge Foundation, Detroit, MI
  • Ronny A. Bell, Ph.D. MS., Fred Eshelman Distinguished Professor and Chair of the Division of Pharmaceutical Outcomes and Policy in the Eshelman School of Pharmacy, University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, Chair, North Carolina American Indian Health Board, HCC Champion Awardee
  • Jeffery Simms, MSPH, MDiv, Associate Chair and Assistant Clinical Professor, Department of Health Policy and Management, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill Gillings School of Global Public Health
  • Linda Lombardi, Ph.D., President, Leslin Healthcare Foundation
  • Paul Meissner, MSPH, Director, Research Program Development, Montefiore Medical Center
  • Nancy Turnbull, MBA, Senior Associate Dean for Professional Education, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, HCC Champion Awardee
  • Catherine West, MPA, Founder and Principal, 43 Strategic Consulting (HCC Alumnus)
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