General Announcements

Cristina Gonzalez (MA ’25, BA ’23) was hired as a school counselor for Exeter Middle School.

Darrin Person Jr. (MBA ’23) hosted a basketball camp June 30-July 1, 2025, at Immanuel High School (his high school alma mater). Darrin now plays in the French basketball league, where he is his team’s leading scorer.

Taylor Moore (MBA ’19, BA ’16) is a senior revenue analyst for Samba TV.

Michael Mori (TC ’19) was appointed principal of Penngrove Elementary School starting July 1, 2025. The school is part of the Petaluma City Schools District.

Denise Burris-McKendell (BA ’18) received her MFA with a 4.0 GPA from Southern New Hampshire University in December 2024 and began teaching English composition at Lemoore College (formerly West Hills College) in January 2025.

Shantay R. Davies-Balch (BA ’15), founder of BLACK Wellness & Prosperity Center (BWPC), is the recipient of a 2025 Leadership Award by The James Irvine Foundation. The award includes $350,000 to further BWPC’s mission.

Shawn Grieco (BA ’13) was hired as head soccer coach at Buchanan High School in June 2025. He has also played for Fresno Fuego FC.

Jason Salazar (MA ’13) was named president of the California Police Chiefs Association (CPCA) March 10, 2025. Jason is the chief of police in Visalia and has more than 30 years of experience there as a community service officer, patrol officer, violent crimes detective, member of S.W.A.T. and the Special Enforcement Bureau. He was a captain for four years before becoming chief in 2015. He was appointed to the CPCA Board of Directors in 2021.

Ray Eggert (FS ’12) returned to FPU as head coach for the Sunbirds Men’s and Women’s Swimming and Diving teams in May 2025. Ray has coached at Sanger High School, where he led teams to back-to-back CMAC (County/Metro Athletic Conference) championships, and served as director of swimming at Clovis North High School. As a student-athlete, Ray served as swim team captain, helping the Sunbirds to an NAIA national championship and winning the national 400m individual medley title with a time that is still an FPU record.

A quartet of Sunbirds are among Fresno’s 40 Under 40 for 2025:

  • Steven Baronian (BA ’11), director of marketing and communications, California Autism Center & Learning Group
  • Indira Vilchez Salaverri (MBA ’13, BA ’12), marketing and communications specialist, Marjaree Mason Center
  • Marianela Borbon (BA ’07), CEO, Uplift Balloon Events
  • Michael Manjarrez (BA ’12), investment advisor, Whelan Financial

Dora Briseno (MA ’09) and Natasha McCullough (TC ’01) received Crystal Awards for 2024 from Clovis Unified School District. Dora teaches third grade at Tarpey Elementary School and Natasha teaches kindergarten at Riverview Elementary School. The Crystal Award is the highest honor a Clovis Unified employee can receive; recipients are nominated by their peers and selected by a panel of judges.

Ken Melban (MA ’07, BA ’03) was appointed president of the California Avocado Commission in May 2025. Ken has also served as director, issues management; vice president of industry affairs and operations; and co-executive leader. His previous two decades of produce leadership include working with California commodity boards and the National Grape & Wine Initiative. Throughout his career Ken has served with numerous community service organizations as well as the California Department of Food and Agriculture Climate Change Adaptation Consortium and Ventura AG Futures Alliance.

Morgan Doizaki (BA ’06) has run the family-owned Central Fish Co. since he took over the 1535 Kern Street mainstay in 2003. He and his business were profiled May 4, 2025, in The Fresno Bee.

Jen Paul Schroer (BA ’06) was profiled in the April 13, 2025, Santa Fe New Mexican.

Sean Hancock (BA ’03) was guest speaker at the Rotary Club of Tehachapi in June 2025. Sean is president of Cerro Coso Community College.

Joanne Pacheco (BA ’00), of Fresno, was appointed to the Dental Hygiene Board of California in February 2025. She has been director of the dental hygiene program at Fresno City College since 2017. She is a member of the American Dental Education Association, American Dental Hygienists’ Association, California Dental Hygienists’ Association and California Dental Hygiene Educators’ Association.

Kimberly Vargas Agnese (BA ’86) published Kadupul Flower, a book of original poetry, in October 2025. The collection’s overriding theme is dignity, while individual entries address poverty, homelessness, racism, sexual assault and ecological justice. Kimberly lives in the Central Valley in the Meadow Arc young food forest. Her work has appeared in Anacua Literary Arts Journal, The Seventh Wave, Rappahannock Review and Awakened Voices, among others. Her first full-length collection, Red String on a Saguaro Cactus, was a finalist for the 2022 Andrés Montoya Poetry Prize, awarded by the Institute for Latino Studies at the University of Notre Dame. More at kimberlyvargasagnese.com

Steve Taylor (BA ’85) retired as Rocklin (CA) High School boys’ basketball coach in April 2025. The school’s first basketball coach, he compiled a 499-254 record, with several league and section championships and one state championship appearance.

Rose Marie Caglia (BA ’80), received the Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award from Who’s Who in America. Rose has been a public school history and music teacher, manager of Warnors Theater in Fresno and business executive. She is a member of the Fresno Parks, Recreation and Arts Commission and is or has been involved with the San Joaquin River Parkway, the National Education Association, Hinds Hospice and the Marjaree Mason Center, among other organizations.

Rev. Richard Miles (BA ’72), came out of retirement in October 2024 to pastor part-time at St. John’s Episcopal Church (St. John’s Chapel) in Monterey, CA. He and his wife, D’aun, now split their time between Monterey and Kenai, AK, and other places populated by grandchildren.