Lisa Allen
Superintendent, Sacramento City Unified School District
Lisa Allen is the superintendent of Sacramento City Unified School District (SCUSD), which serves just under 40,000 students across 75 campuses in the Sacramento region. In this role, she oversees funds allocated to the school district, creates and modifies district-wide policies, ensures curricula comply with local and state guidelines, and leads all stakeholders in upholding the district’s core mission and values.
Maria Arvizu-Espinoza
Deputy Superintendent, Yolo County Office of Education
Maria Arvizu-Espinoza has served as Deputy Superintendent of the Yolo County Office of Education (YCOE) since 2021. In this role, she leads the Educational Services Division, overseeing programs including Early Childhood Education, Prevention and Wellness, Special Education, Curriculum and Instruction, Alternative Education, and Adult Education. With a strong track record of enhancing educational services and driving systemic improvements, she continues to apply her expertise to strategic initiatives such as the Yolo County Roadmap to the Future.
Brett Barley
Superintendent, Dixon Unified School District
Brett Barley has served since 2024 as Superintendent of the Dixon Unified School District, which serves 3,000 Transitional Kindergarten (TK) through 12th grade students across six school sites. In his previous role, he served for five years as the Superintendent of the California Montessori Project (CMP). CMP serves 2,900 students in six public TK-8th grade schools in four school districts across the greater Sacramento area.
Constance Best
Executive Director, Yolo-Solano Center for Teacher Credentialing, Davis JUSD Induction, Intern, and CTE Programs
Connie Best has led efforts to expand programs and support for teacher preparation as the Executive Director of the Yolo-Solano Center for Teacher Credentialing since 2012. With over 40 years in education, she has worked extensively with new teachers as a mentor, coach, coordinator, and seminar facilitator.
Matt Best
Superintendent, Davis Joint Unified School District
Matt Best began his career in public education in 2000 as a
student teacher in the Davis Joint Unified School District and
has remained ever since. Since 2000 he has served as a teacher at
Davis Senior High School, founding teacher at Da Vinci High, a
Junior and Senior High School Principal, Assistant Superintendent
of Human Resources & Secondary Education, Associate
Superintendent of Administrative Services, Deputy Superintendent,
and since 2021, Superintendent.
Rody Boonchouy
Superintendent, Winters Joint Unified School District (Ed.D. ’14)
Rody Boonchouy has served as the Superintendent of Winters Joint Unified School District since 2022, after having served for five years as the Associate Superintendent of Instructional Services for the Davis Joint Unified School District (DJUSD). He started his career in public education as an English teacher in DJUSD, served on the founding team for Da Vinci Charter Academy, and later served as the Principal of Da Vinci Charter Academy.
Chris Hoffman
Superintendent, Elk Grove Unified School District
Chris Hoffman has served since 2014 as superintendent of Elk Grove Unified School District (EGUSD). The fifth-largest school district in California, EGUSD serves over 62,000 students across 68 schools. From 2009-2014, Hoffman served as superintendent to the El Dorado Union High School District, where he oversaw almost 7,000 students across eight high schools.
Jennifer Johnson
Vice President of Government Relations, Calbright College
Jennifer L. Johnson currently serves as Vice President of Government Relations for Calbright College, which was established to increase California’s access to skills-based credentials and certificates, helping to address the state-wide issue of income inequality.
Ed Manansala
El Dorado County Superintendent of Schools (Ed.D. ’11)
Dr. Ed Manansala has spent more than 20 years working in the public school system. He started as a Coordinator of Learning Support Services with the Sacramento Unified School District and then became Principal and Superintendent of St. HOPE Public Schools. He served as the Deputy Superintendent of El Dorado County before his appointment to Superintendent of Schools at the beginning of 2016.
Nancy McTygue
Executive Director, UC Davis Center for Public Service and Education (’88, Cred. ’89, MA ’96)
Nancy McTygue has served since 2024 as the Executive Director of the UC Davis Center for Public Service and Education, which supports educator professional learning, applied research, and career diversity initiatives on and off campus. From 2005-2024, McTygue worked as Executive Director to the California History-Social Science Project, a branch of the statewide California Subject Matter Project (CSMP). CSMP serves, on average, more than 25,000 California educators annually through its professional learning and leadership programs.
Steve Winlock
Executive Director, Sacramento County Office of Education, School of Education
Kristin Wright
Executive Director, Equity, Diversity, Prevention, Early Intervention and Title 9, Sacramento County Office of Education
Kristin Wright is the Executive Director of Equity, Diversity, Prevention, Early Intervention, and Title 9 at the Sacramento County Office of Education. Kristin brings a wealth of professional and personal experience to this important position as a policy expert, a former special education student teacher, and a mother of a child with disabilities. Her public service career took a turn with the birth of her middle daughter, Shelby, who has significant intellectual and physical disabilities.
