Board Of Directors' Bios

Margaret (Maggie) Macari-Hinson, RN, MSN, CCM

Board Chairperson

Maggie Macari-Hinson RN, MSN, CCM has over 35 years’ experience as a registered nurse.  A native New Yorker, Maggie completed her BSN at the State University of NY (Downstate Medical Center) and her MSN at Hunter College.  She has held positions as a nurse educator, clinical nurse specialist, clinical research coordinator and case manager.  Maggie works at a large academic medical center in Southern California where, for the past four years, her focus has been transitional care across the continuum and optimization of resource utilization.  She also manages the Transitional Care Management Program.  In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with family and friends.

Mandy Corrales

Mandy is an Account Executive, where she manages corporate benefits portfolios for her clients.  Key responsibilities include marketing client portfolios, rate negotiations, ensuring compliance, and ongoing stewardship. Prior to her 9 years in the insurance industry, Mandy worked in Advertising as a national Media Buyer.  In her spare time, Mandy enjoys instructing indoor cycle classes and training for triathlons.  Mandy graduated from the University of California, Santa Barbara with a Bachelor of Arts in Communications, and from the University of Denver with a Master of Science in Advertising Management

Pam Hall

Board Treasurer

Pam Hall is a native Californian.  She was raised and lived in South Huntington Beach for 30 years.  Raised by her single mother along with her older brother, she can appreciate the role of the Head Start program in working family’s lives. She graduated from Edison High School and continued on to graduate from Cal State Long Beach with a degree in Psychology.  She funded her college education herself and graduated debt free by working for Ralphs Grocery Co.  In 2002 Pam married Chad Hall and moved to Newport Beach where ten years later their daughter Olivia arrived.  Olivia is now four and a half. Pam and Chad are finally adjusting to their new life style as parents and loving almost every minute they get to spend with Olivia. Olivia is fortunate to have access to many great sport, cultural, and academic programs that all children should have access to for the benefit of their lives and for the benefit of our country’s future.  In 2003 Pam began working as a Real Estate Agent.  She finds it rewarding to see first time property owners beginning to build their real estate futures. In 2006, she earned her Real Estate Broker License. The majority of her transactions are residential but also include commercial and industrial.  Pam enjoys almost all outdoor activities. She loves to travel and enjoys adventure.   Learning new things and pushing herself out of her comfort zone for personal growth are part of who she is.  Pam looks forward to contributing to Head Start in her area of expertise and learning from others with varied specialties.

Steffi Gascon Hafen

Board Secretary

Steffi is a licensed attorney in California. She received her JD from USC and her LLM in Tax Law from Loyola. She has experience in fundraising through her participation in Team in Training with the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Steffi is also a board member of the OC Hispanic Bar Association Board (OCHBA). She has served on the OCHBA board since 2013.  Additionally, she ran the Mentor Program for OCHBA. The Mentor Program provides mentoring for OCHBA law students attending law school in Orange County.  Steffi has also served on the USC Law Alumni Association Board since 2012. She is in charge of the programming for the Alumni Association and has set-up various networking and educational opportunities for their membership.  Finally, during her time in law school, Steffi was on the board for the USC Latino Law Students Association and Honors Moot Court, and was the Vice-President of her 3L class.

Shelley Beckham, LCSW, MSW

Shelley Beckham has more than 25 years’ experience as a Licensed Clinical Social Worker. She received a BS in Sociology from Weber State University and a MSW from the Graduate School of Social Work at the University of Utah. Shelley has worked in youth substance-abuse prevention, developing and coordinating community-based programs to reduce high-risk behaviors in vulnerable middle-school youth, and in adult substance-abuse treatment. She was a psychotherapist for many years at a community counseling center in Park City, Utah, where she was also a nationally-certified alpine ski instructor for 15 years and enjoyed mountain biking and camping. For the past decade Shelley has worked at a major academic medical center as a social worker, working with individuals and families to promote adjustment to illness, improved medical compliance and health, and more effective personal and social functioning. Shelley lives with her husband, Scott, a biomedical engineer, and a very large cat, Lily.

Dennis Nguyen

Director of Network Engineering

As Director of Network Engineering, Dennis Nguyen works with engineers and field technicians to deliver sound solutions to support his company's growing customer base.  His leadership focuses on understanding the fast changing nature of the industry and deploying solutions that meet customer needs. Dennis brings 20 years industry experience managing national and international networks from manufacturing to service delivery for Fortune 100 companies such as Cisco, Lucent and AT&T.  He has an extensive background in software development, information technology, and IP networks.  Dennis graduated from the University of California Irvine with a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science and Information Services.

Shannon R. Thomas

Attorney at Law, Certified Family Law Specialist

Shannon Thomas is an attorney, certified by the State Bar of California Board of Legal Specialization as a specialist in the area of Family Law and currently practices family law. Ms. Thomas attended the University of California, Irvine where she received a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) degree in Psychology in 1997. Thereafter, in 2001, Ms. Thomas went on to receive Juris Doctor (J.D.) and Master of Dispute Resolution (M.D.R.) degrees at Pepperdine University School of Law, Malibu. In December 2001 Ms. Thomas was licensed to practice law in the State of California.   Ms. Thomas knows firsthand the challenging road that many children of humble beginnings face to achieve academic and professional success. Ms. Thomas further understands that today’s students need as much support as possible in an educational world that oftentimes feels unsupportive and isolating. Ms. Thomas was raised in Pomona, California. She is the youngest of four children and the first to complete an advanced degree in her family.

Rick Verdugo

Vice President, Team Lead  

Rick has been in the banking industry since 1980.  Because of his profession, he has served on several Boards primarily representing the Boards as Treasurer.  Additionally, he has served on various committees related to the financial aspects of foundations, chamber of commerce and other non-profit entities.  Rick finds tremendous satisfaction in giving back to the community and currently serves on the investment committee for the Saddleback Memorial Hospital Foundation.