Commission Members
Members of the California Student Aid Commission
The Commission consists of 15 appointed members. Eleven of the commissioners are appointed by the Governor and represent students, segments of the State’s higher education community, and the general public. The Chair of the Senate Rules Committee and the Speaker of the Assembly each appoint two members.
Commission Member List or view biographies below
Catalina Cifuentes
Chair
California Secondary Schools Representative
Catalina Cifuentes is an educator who has demonstrated a gift for counseling and advocacy on behalf of all students.
In her former position as lead counselor at Santiago High School, Corona- Norco Unified School District, Catalina worked with the counseling team to design a successful guidance program which led to Riverside County as well as California Department of Education recognitions for exemplary counseling practices. She worked with her administrative team and staff to transform the school by raising the academic rigor and expectations from students resulting in the highest graduation rate and second highest A-G completion rate in Riverside, Inyo, Mono and San Bernardino County.
Jamillah Moore, Ed.D.
Vice Chair
California Community College Representative
President’s Biography | Office of the President | Cañada College
With an educational career spanning more than 20 years, Dr. Jamillah Moore has become known for her passion on educational excellence, equity, tackling difficult issues, and leveraging collaborative partnerships to ensure student success.
Judith Greig
Secretary
Independent California Colleges & Universities Representative
President Judith Maxwell Greig, Ph.D., has led Notre Dame de Namur University since January 2008, first as acting president and then as president. Under her leadership, the university has made a remarkable turnaround, increasing enrollment by a third, qualifying as a Hispanic-Serving Institution, receiving national recognition for community engagement and instituting the university’s first Ph.D. program. Dr. Greig has gained national recognition as an advocate for increased access for low-income and Hispanic students.
Juanita Doplemore
General Public Representative Speaker of the Assembly Appointee
Juanita Doplemore General Public Representative Speaker of the Assembly Appointee.
Bio has not been posted.
Hal Geiogue
General Public Representative Governor Appointee
Hal Geiogue brings to the commission more than three decades of experience in formulating education and fiscal policy for the state of California.
He started his public service in 1965 with the state Department of Finance. From 1967 through 1990 Geiogue then served in the Office of Legislative Analyst where he directed a staff of nonpartisan professionals who were responsible for the program and budget review of K-12 education and postsecondary education institutions and programs in California. In 1979 and 1980 he was the co-chairperson of the Student Financial Aid Policy Study Group which helped reform the state’s student financial aid system.
Maria Fernanda Manjarrez
Student Representative Governor Appointee
Maria Fernanda Manjarrez, a graduate from Temple City High School, is a first-generation college student enrolled in the University of Southern California. Maria has always been a diversity advocate and brought her vision of a more inclusive classroom environment into fruition by founding and presiding over the RAMS World Culture’s Club. She was a trained Peer Listener, where she served to enhance emotional and psychological well-being to faculty and students and was selected to serve as a Head Student Coordinator for Every Fifteen Minutes, a drunk driving prevention program.
Guillermo Mayer
General Public Representative Speaker of Assembly Appointee
Guillermo Mayer is President & CEO of Public Advocates Inc., a nonprofit civil rights law firm and advocacy group committed to challenging the systemic causes of poverty and discrimination. Under his leadership, the organization has expanded its advocacy into postsecondary education, with the goal of expanding college access, affordability and success for low-income students and students of color in California.
Debra Maxie
General Public Representative Senate Rules Appointee
Mrs. Maxie began her teaching career in 1973 in the school district where she was educated Kindergarten – 12th grades, the Chicago Public School system, teaching physical education before moving into the field of counseling. In 1979, Mrs. Maxie relocated to San Diego where she immediately joined the teaching force of the San Diego Unified School District.
Charles Nies
UC Representative Governor Appointee
Dr. Nies is the Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs. He has responsibility for areas that create an engaged campus life and that foster student learning outside of the classroom
Steve Ngo
General Public Representative
Steve Ngo is a partner at Lozano Smith LLP, an education and public agency law firm. He began his legal career at Minami Tamaki LLP, a San Francisco law firm known for its civil rights work and community advocacy.
Wm. Gregory Sawyer
CA State University Representative Governor Appointee
Dr. Wm. Gregory Sawyer, Founding Vice President for Student Affairs at California State University Channel Islands (CI), completed his Bachelor’s degree in Communication and English from Mount Union College in Alliance, Ohio;
Caroline Siegel Singh
Student Representative
Caroline Siegel Singh is currently an undergraduate student studying Political Science and Public Policy at the University of California, San Diego.
Recently, she served as the President of the University of California Student Association (UCSA) — the official voice of students from across the UC’s system of campuses — where she spent two years advancing student-centered higher education policy and advocating for accessibility, affordability, and quality of the University of California system. While in this role, she also served as the Vice President of External Affairs for the Associated Students of UC San Diego and represented university students at a local, state, and national level. In this capacity, Caroline led campus-wide voter registration and engagement efforts, resulting in an increased on-campus voting rate from 21.7% in 2016 to 73.50% in 2018.
David Valladolid
General Public Representative Senate Rules Appointee
President and CEO Emeritus, David Valladolid has spent 18 years managing and overseeing all administrative and personnel aspects of Parent Institute for Quality Education (PIQE). His responsibilities included financial management, fund development, program operations, new hires, and program evaluations. Mr. Valladolid served as the primary spokesperson for the organization and as the liaison to the PIQE Board of Directors.