Staff & Board

The California CASA Association relies on a shared sense of purpose. With a variety of backgrounds, each of these remarkable individuals is dedicated to improving the lives of foster children. Meet our staff and board members.

Staff:

California CASA Board of Directors

The purpose of our Board of Directors is to govern California CASA.  Each Board member is a voting member with the authority and responsibility to establish vision and direction, to develop policies and procedures for the California CASA Association; to ensure adequate funding; to monitor and sanction the California CASA Association activities.

Officers:

Kevin Gardner, President, is a marketing consultant in Silicon Valley with 25 years of experience in product marketing and marketing communications in the areas of semiconductors, networking and decision support software. In addition to serving as the chair of the CalCASA board of directors, Kevin serves on the board of Child Advocates, Santa Clara County’s CASA program. He also chairs the advisory board of the Outlet Program in Mountain View, California.  

Kevin Gardner became affiliated with CASA in 1996 when he became an Advocate volunteer for two teenagers aged 15 and 17. Kevin worked with these young men until they emancipated from the foster care system. 

The Honorable Patricia Bresee, Vice President A recognized expert in Juvenile Law, the Honorable Patricia Bresee (ret.) has devoted most of her professional life to children’s issues. Serving as a Superior Court Commissioner in San Mateo County for 15 years, she was assigned to sit as a Juvenile Court Judge, and handled dependency and delinquency matters, as well as adoptions and guardianships.  As an original member of the California Judicial Council Family and Juvenile Law Advisory Committee, she served as Chair of the Juvenile Law Rules and Forms Committee. 

She continues to participate as faculty for the California Center for Judicial Education and Research, and is a regular presenter at Beyond the Bench and other conferences.  In 1994 Commissioner Bresee was named Juvenile Court Judge of the Year by the California Judges Association, and in 1998 the National Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) awarded her the title of Judge of the Year. She is an American Leadership Forum Silicon Valley fellow.  As former Chair of the Peninsula Community Foundation Board, she participated in the negotiations for, and implementation of the merger with Community Foundation Silicon Valley, and in January 2008 completed a term as Chair of the Silicon Valley Community Foundation Board of Directors.  She has recently joined the Board of Directors at Resource Area for Teaching (RAFT.)

Lynda Perring, Secretary, currently serves as part time Director of Programs at Orange County CASA. Ms. Perring served 17 years in the Orange County Probation Department, supervising children in foster care, training new Probation Officers and performing the role of Juvenile Court Officer.  

Ms. Perring served on the Technical Advisory Committee of the Orange Co. Children and Families Commission for 4 years as well as a coach for the Fieldstone Foundation’s Executive Coaching Program. 

Cindy Nasser, Treasurer is a California CASA board member as well as a CASA volunteer with CASA of Los Angeles. Ms. Nasser emancipated from foster care at the age of 16 and remains passionate about improving the lives of children in foster care through her advocacy. Ms. Nasser is the Director of Operations with a staff of over 100 people.  

Ms. Nasser has been a CASA volunteer since 2004. She is part of the speaker’s bureau for the Los Angeles CASA program as part of her commitment to recruit and educate potential CASAs.

Members:

J. Riccardo Benavides is the Creative Director and Founder of i-de-as, The Special Events Co., Inc. Mr. Benavides has 20 years of experience transforming venues to create unique and beautiful corporate functions and social galas.  

Mr. Benavides has volunteered with Hospice by the Bay, Marin Advocates for Children, and the Mill Valley Film Festival. He has served on Boards of Directors for the San Francisco Visitors and Convention Bureau, the Mexican Museum and the Marin Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.  

His most long-standing service has been to CASA where he first served on the Marin CASA Board of Directors 16 years ago. Mr. Benavides is presently Board Member Emeritus in Marin and is serving his fourth year on the Cal CASA State Board.

Alison Carlson

Patricia Clark-Ellis was appointed the Associate Dean in the College of Health and Human Services at California State University, Sacramento in 2002.  Prior to this appointment, she had achieved the rank of full professor and held the position of coordinator for the undergraduate program in the Division of Social Work at Sacramento State.   Previously, she was an associate attorney at The Crow Law Firm in Sacramento and later a sole practitioner, specializing in Social Security Law.

Patricia serves on several boards, including her recent membership on the California CASA Association Board.  She is also a member and serves on two committees of the Sacramento Children’s Home Board of Directors and is a member of the President’s Sacramento State University Foundation Board of Directors. 

She has continuously volunteered in her community and at her university.  Presently Patricia is a mentor for the Guardian Scholars Program, a program that mentors foster children who are attending college.  She is a mentor and member of the Sacramento State Cooper Woodson Enhancement Program Advisory Board, an academic support and retention program.  She has provided pro bono legal assistance to the HIV-Positive Women’s Group in Sacramento for more than eight years and is a volunteer for special projects.

Patricia has a Juris Doctor from the University of California, Davis School of Law, and a Master of Science in Social Work from The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, College of Social Work and a Bachelor of Science in Social Work from Barry University, Miami Shores, Florida.  Patricia is a member of the California State Bar Association, the American Council on Education and the Zonta International Club.

Susan Dorsey has served as the Executive Director for CASA El Dorado since 2007 and is proud to report that the program is successfully providing advocate service to 80% of eligible children and youth in the county. Prior to joining CASA El Dorado, Ms. Dorsey served as the Executive Director for El Dorado County's nonprofit Hospice Program. Ms. Dorsey holds a Bachelor's of Science Degree in Nursing and a Master Degree in Business.

Ms. Dorsey participates on the Executive Committee for the El Dorado County Child Abuse Prevention Council (CAPC), Executive Committee for the Non Profit Alliance of El Dorado County, Educational Committee of the local Association of Fund Raising Professionals (AFP) Chapter, and on the local Blue Ribbon Commission. Ms Dorsey also volunteers in mission youth related projects through her church.

Siobhan M. Greene is the Executive Director for CASA of Monterey County as well as a board member for California CASA Association. Originally serving as the agency’s Development Director, she has been with CASA since 2002. She is an appointed commissioner for the Juvenile Justice Commission.  

Ms. Greene is part of the local implementation team for the Blue Ribbon Commission on Children in Foster Care. An integral part of the Phase II implementation of the California Permanency for Youth Project, Ms. Greene serves on the planning team to engage Monterey County foster youth. 

J. Michael Hughes is a juvenile law attorney, specializing in dependency, delinquency and adoption in Orange County, California.  He has represented and advocated for children's and parents' rights in over 2000 cases, represented pro bono over 100 Guardian Ad Litum cases, and represented pro bono the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma in litigation involving Native American children.  He was a founding member of CASA in Orange County working with the Junior League of Orange County to establish the program.  He has served on the Orange County CASA Board of Directors for over twenty-five years as President, Secretary and legal advisor.  He received the CASA Judicial Honoree award and the CASA Children's Champion award. 

J. Michael Hughes is a member of the American Bar Association, the State Bar of California and the Orange County Bar Association.  He is also a member of National CASA, ISPCAN (International Society for Prevention of Child Abuse & Neglect) and the National Association of Council for Children.  He is currently serving on the board of CAL CASA and the board of CASA Orange County.

Don Kleinfelder has worked in the non-profit sector for over 17 years, including 13 years as Executive Director. He holds a MS in Hydrology/Hydrogeology from the University of Nevada-Reno, and prior to entering the non-profit sector, worked in the private sector as a hydrogeologist, focusing on groundwater remediation.  

Since assuming the role of Executive Director of Child Advocates of Placer County (the Placer County CASA program) in 2006, he has overseen a six-fold increase in the number of CASA volunteers trained and youth served.  

In addition to being a member of the California CASA Board of Directors, Mr. Kleinfelder is the Chair of the Placer County Community Services Commission, a member of the Auburn Exchange Club. Mr. Kleinfelder continues to serves as an active CASA volunteer. 

Kerry Mazzoni is one of California’s foremost experts on education policy, having served as Secretary for Education for former Governor Gray Davis and as Chair of the Assembly Education Committee.  

During her tenure in the State Assembly (1994-2000) representing the counties of Marin and Sonoma, Ms. Mazzoni developed a reputation as a consensus builder, garnering support from both Democrats and Republicans on several important policy initiatives.  

She is currently a contract lobbyist with Government Strategies, Inc. located in Sacramento and is a principle consultant in Mazzoni and Associates, Inc. located in San Rafael. 

Tish Reyes

Patricia Reynolds-Harris Ms. Reynolds-Harris has been working in child welfare and related fields for over forty years. She served the Stuart Foundation by managing the program area of "Strengthening the Child Welfare System" for over nine years. She also served the City and County of San Francisco as both director of the public child welfare agency and the director of community health services.

Also, in January 2003, she founded the California Permanency for Youth Project (CPYP), which is a project dedicated to the notion that no youth leaves the child welfare system without a permanent lifelong connection with a caring adult. Ms. Reynolds-Harris retired from CPYP at the end of March 2007.

As a result of her outstanding work in child welfare, Ms. Reynolds-Harris has received a number of awards. She was given an Adoption Excellence Award for 2004 by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services for her lifelong achievements and her work in youth permanency. Most recently, she received the 2007 T. George Silcott Lifetime Achievement Award at the Annual Conference of the Black Administrators in Child Welfare (BACW).

Jennifer Rodriguez is a staff attorney at the Youth Law Center. Prior to joining the YLC, Ms. Rodriguez was the Legislative and Policy Manager for the California Youth Connection. Her advocacy at CYC resulted in a number of major legislative accomplishments for California foster youth.  

Ms. Rodriquez grew up in California’s foster care system, and personally experienced the impact of institutionalization. In 2004, Ms. Rodriguez earned her JD from UC Davis Law School, having won numerous scholarships.  

In addition to training court staff and advocates, Ms. Rodriguez has served on numerous child welfare reform taskforces including the California Foster Care Redesign and the Blue Ribbon Commission on Foster Care. 

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