Our Leadership

CAPSES Board of Directors consists of current member agencies and organizations, who are committed to stewarding our work and support members statewide by advocating locally and in Sacramento. Our Board of Directors is active in statewide policy discussions and special education work groups that seek to increase the awareness, understanding and standards of practices in nonpublic and public schools and agencies.

Meet The Team
Board of Directors

Adrienne Kessler, Ed.D., BCBA

President & Region Representative

Adrienne is Chief Executive Officer of Speech and Language Development Center in Buena Park, Southern California, non-public school and therapy center for children and adults with special needs that provide special education services K- 12 and transition, Adult Day Programs, and full Therapy Services. She also serves as Orange County Regional Representative.

Hillary Whiteside, M.S., BCBA

President Elect & Region Representative

Hillary is the Executive Director at The Institute for Effective Education in San Diego, California a not-for-profit organization with the mission to provide positive and effective learning environments for children, adolescents, and adults whose talents span the full range of ability.

Ryan Eisenberg, Ed.D.

Chair of Government Affairs Committee

Ryan is the Chief Executive Officer of the Children's Health Council, located in the Bay Area Peninsula. CHC provides life-changing services for learning differences and mental health for children, teens, and young adults. Ryan serves as our Government Affairs chair.

Angie Rowe

Treasurer

Angie is the President & CEO of Beyond Blindness, which serves and empowers children with visual impairments and other disabilities to achieve their fullest potential in Santa Ana, California.

Randye Eichler

Board Secretary & Region Representative

Randye Eichler is the Director at Placer Learning Center in Granite Bay, California a Non-public/Private school that serves students with special needs. She also serves as Sacramento Valley Region Representative.

Richard Schnetzer

Board Member & Consultant

Dick has served as a Special Education Teacher, Special Education Program Administrator, and Business Services Coordinator for the Mardan School in Irvine, California since 1966. He also serves as CAPSES Governmental Affairs and Public Policy Advisor.

Ray Richard

Board Member & Region Representative

Ray is the Co-founder and Executive Director of Valley High School and Learning Center for middle school and high school students. He also serves as the CAPSES Regional Co-Representative to the Los Angeles Area Region.

Chris Holmes

Board Member & Region Representative

Chris is the COO of SPG Therapy & Education Center, a non-public agency with a holistic support team of clinicians, therapists, and others in the Bay Area. Chirs is also the Regional Representative for the Noth Bay region as well as our statewide NPA group.

Teresa Malekzadeh

Board Member & Region Representative

Teresa is the former ED of the Beacon School an NPS that helps each student to develop independent thinking, living skills, and academic achievement in San Jose, California. Teresa also serves as the Regional Representative for the Peninsula/ South Bay Region.

Rob Clizbe

Board Member & Region Representative

Rob is the Chief Operating Officer at Golden State Triad, a nonpublic agency that provides behavioral and mental health supports for general and special education students in the school setting. Rob is also the Regional Representative of the Inlad Empire region.

Dan Maydeck

Board Member

President & CEO at Haynes Family of Programs, a comprehensive nonprofit organization dedicated to helping children with special needs relating to emotional development, autism, learning disabilities, abuse, neglect and abandonment though various programs.

Jason Bolton

Board Member

Jason is Senior Vice President of School Services & Program Development, Intercare Therapy, Inc., a leading provider of personalized, evidence-based autism therapy in the Los Angeles Area.

Mishelle Ross

Board Member

Mishelle is President of AHEAD, Inc. or Advancing Higher Education and Development, a nonpublic agency and consulting organization that works with public, charter and private schools.

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Ed Danskin

Board Member

Ed is the Executive Director at Intensive Behavior Intervention Consultants in Southern California.

Katie Wilson

Board Member

Katie is the Academy Program Manager at San Diego Center for Children and part of our San Diego Regional chapter.

Daniel Ramirez

Board Member

Vice-President/Principal at Aldar Academy in Sacramento, bringing his voice to our Sacramento region and statewide.

Jennifer O' Grady

Board Member

Jenny is the current Vice President of Linden Oaks and part of our OC regional chapter.

Jen Swope

Board Member

Jen is the School Director at COOK Education Center and Urban Skills Center, part of TIEE.

Our Professional Team

CAPSES counts with the support of professionals, both employed or contracted, that support daily operations and the advancement of our mission.

Pati Ortiz

Executive Director

Pati comes with two decades of experience working in education practice, policy & advocacy, as well as nonprofit consulting, both in California and abroad. Pati is excited to jump back into policy to support her biggest passion, education equity and access.

Jeanette Rittgers, CPA

CPA

Jeanette has been working with CAPSES for over a decade, supporting all our bookkeeping, accounting, and payment processing needs. She brings decades of professional excellence to her work.

Capital Advisors

Capitol Advisors has been our formal lobbying partner for many years, supporting our understanding of statewide bills and budgeting realities that impact the special education sector. They provide real-time lobbying support and technical assistance.

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Richard Schnetzer

Dick not only stands as our longest-serving board member, but is also our governmental affairs consultant, providing invaluable insights into Ed code history, California Department of Education dynamics, and policy building strategy.

Upcoming Board Meetings

2025

June 13th (F)- Virtual
July 7th-8th (M,T)- In Person (Southern- San Diego)
October 9th-10th (Th, F)- In Person (Northern- Bay Area)
December 12th (F)- Virtual

2026

Feb 6th (F)- Virtual
April 16th-17th (Th, F)- In Person (Central)
June 5th (F)- Virtual
July 23rd-24th (Th, F)- In Person (Southern)
Oct 1st-2nd (Th, F)- In Person (Northern)
Dec 4th (F)- Virtual

2027

February 5th (F)- Virtual
April 15th-16th (Th, F)- In Person (Central)
June 4th (F)- Virtual
July 15th-16th (Th, F)- In Person (Southern)

Oct 21st- Oct 22nd (Th, F)- In Person (Northern)

Dec 3rd (F)- Virtual

Our Leadership

Meet The Team Board of Directors

Our Professional Team

Upcoming Board Meetings

Meet The Team
Board of Directors