SoCal Chapter Past Events

CUPA-HR Southern California Chapter

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Past Events:

CUPA-HR Southern California Chapter Spring Event

“Bend Without Breaking – Endurance, Adaptability, and Impact.”

April 10, 2026 | 8:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. PT | California State University, Fullerton

Registration is now closed. We have reached room max capacity.

Please let us know if you registered and can no longer attend via email to Susan at [email protected]


Back by popular demand:

Keynote speaker: Stefan Jungmichel

Bio: Stefan Jungmichel, MBA, is an AI researcher and consultant who co-founded the AI Lab at Biola University. He works with students and organizations to understand and implement generative AI thoughtfully and effectively. At Biola, he focuses on AI research and education, while his consulting practice helps teams across various industries adopt AI solutions responsibly and effectively.

Presentation: AI is rapidly reshaping the HR landscape in higher education, bringing both unprecedented opportunities and new challenges. This session will help equip HR professionals with the tools to navigate this evolving terrain with confidence and strategic foresight. We'll explore the latest AI developments and emerging applications through the lens of HR professionals, offering current use cases and a forward-looking perspective to help you prepare for what's ahead. Thediscussion will address important AI ethics considerations specific to HR contexts, including frameworks for risk mitigation and effective response to potential challenges. Finally, we'll examine practical AI automation opportunities that free up human capacity for more meaningful, strategic work while maintaining rigorous safety standards and ethical practices.

 

Plenary speakers: Kayla Shawver and Amy Heinze

Bios:

Kayla Shawver is a seasoned HR professional with a strong foundation in higher education, where she has led transformative initiatives in career framework development and job design. With a creative and people-centered approach, Kayla is committed to making a lasting impact on campus communities through thoughtful leadership and service.

 

 

With over 25 years of experience, Amy Heinze acts as an advisor to Boards and Executive Leadership Teams on the strategy, design, implementation, and communication of HR and total rewards programs. She has deep expertise in the development of HR strategy and career frameworks that are aligned with organizational objectives and designed to enhance employee engagement, mitigate organizational risk, and optimize human capital investment.

Presentation: Building a Sustainable Future Through Strategic HR Initiatives

Using a recent case study, discover how this university overcame staffing challenges and budget gaps by establishing a Staff Career Framework. Learn about strategic HR practices, data-driven decisions, and efficiency improvements that optimized the university’s budget and ensured competitive staff pay, fostering a sustainable future.

    1. Learn how to build a strategic job architecture, leveraging data to inform staffing level decisions.
    2. Learn how to interpret organizational data for streamlining the organization.
    3. Understand how to guide leaders in attracting and retaining staff while improving efficiency.

Plenary speakers: Amie Gonzalez, Associate; Exrah Bryant, Associate from Atkinson, Andelson, Loya, Ruud & Romo

Bios:

Amie Gonzalez provides advice and counsel for private employers with respect to labor and employment law to a variety of employers including colleges and universities. Ms. Gonzalez handles matters involving employment policies and procedures, litigation, personnel matters, leaves of absence, discrimination, harassment, negotiations, retaliation, compliance with state and federal labor laws, and wage and hour matters. Her practice includes advising clients on employment policies and procedures, personnel matters, leaves of absence, discrimination, harassment, retaliation, wage and hour compliance, negotiations, and compliance with state and federal labor laws. She also represents employers in employment-related disputes and litigation.  Ms. Gonzalez brings both legal expertise and practical, real-world perspective to her practice. Prior to becoming an attorney, she worked in Human Resources at a private higher education institution, where she handled personnel and employment matters firsthand. This experience allows her to provide practical guidance to colleges and universities navigating complex workplace issues.

 

Ezrah Bryant advises and represents private and public colleges and universities, community college districts, school districts, county offices of education, and as well as private schools, on a wide range of employment and labor matters. His practice focuses on labor relations, personnel issues, wage and hour compliance, discrimination, harassment, retaliation, and other civil rights matters. Mr. Bryant also represents public entities in litigation matters, including employment disputes, school board governance issues, and labor matters before the Public Employment Relations Board.  Prior to joining the firm, Mr. Bryant worked at a private university, giving him firsthand insight into the operational, governance, and employment challenges facing colleges and universities. This experience allows him to provide practical, informed counsel that aligns legal strategy with the unique needs of higher education institutions.

Presentation: Built to Last: Leading HR in an Evolving Higher Education Landscape
Higher education institutions are navigating a rapidly changing landscape shaped by workforce expectations, regulatory developments, and evolving institutional priorities. This session will explore key employment and HR challenges facing both public and private colleges and universities and provide practical strategies for building resilient HR practices that support long-term institutional success.

 

Plenary speaker: Eric Canny, nextSource|USC Professor and Jennyn Herrera, Biola University

Bios:

Eric Canny is a global program and project leader with over three decades of experience in education and organizational development. He holds an Ed.D. focused on global awareness and multilayered assessments, with expertise in curriculum development, accreditation, organizational change, human resources, and DEI/DE&B initiatives. His leadership includes program governance, program evaluation, and strengthening organizational culture through outreach and engagement., and DEI/DE&B initiatives.

 

Jennyn Herrera has worked in the talent acquisition space of higher education for twenty years. She has a passion for innovative approaches to service and business operations. She holds her bachelors and masters of business administration degrees from Biola University, the same institution where she proudly serves from within the Human Resources department. She is also a SHRM Senior Certified Professional.

 

Presentation: Beyond Boundaries: Why Multi-State Hiring Is Reshaping Higher Education's Competitive Edge

The permanent shift to online and hybrid education has fundamentally changed institutional talent strategy. With over half of U.S. college students now taking online courses, what began as emergency remote teaching has become core infrastructure. This creates a critical challenge: delivering competitive programs nationally requires access to specialized talent that doesn't exist in your local market—but hiring across state lines introduces compliance, cost, and operational risks most institutions weren't built to manage.

This session examines why multi-state hiring has become a strategic necessity rather than an administrative preference, and how to build sustainable models that preserve speed and flexibility while reducing institutional exposure. Participants will explore the competitive pressures driving remote talent acquisition, the early warning signs institutions miss as multi-state hiring expands, and where compliance constraints most often surface—from program launches to specialized faculty searches to international expansion.

The discussion focuses on practical alignment strategies that bring HR, finance, legal, and academic leaders around a shared operating framework. Attendees will learn how modern workforce models like Employer of Record solutions enable hiring in any jurisdiction without entity creation, how to build clear decision trees for multi-state hiring requests, and what tradeoffs successful institutions navigate between control, cost, speed, and risk tolerance.

Participants will leave with actionable next steps to audit current exposure, establish cross-functional governance, and create sustainable infrastructure for multi-state talent access—turning what could be a compliance liability into genuine competitive
advantage in today's higher education landscape.

 

CUPA-HR Southern California Chapter Fall Event

“Bend Without Breaking – Endurance, Adaptability, and Impact.”

October 17, 2025 | 8:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. PT | Biola University, La Mirada

Note: If you have already registered, parking and other instructions will be emailed to you directly via the email on your registration.

The CUPA-HR SoCal Chapter board is pleased to announce our Fall Event is going to be in-person! The event will be held at Biola University, La Mirada, in the Andrews Banquet Room from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on Friday, October 17.

 

Keynote Speaker: Paul Falcone
Bio: Paul Falcone is a renowned expert on effective hiring, performance management, and leadership development, specializing in helping companies build higher performing leadership teams. He spent the last three decades in human resources executive roles at organizations including Nickelodeon, Paramount Pictures, NBCUniversal, Time Warner, and City of Hope Cancer Center Hospital.

He is also a bestselling HarperCollins Leadership, SHRM, and American Management Association author and long-term contributor to HR Magazine.

 

 

 

Plenary speaker: Bailey Graves

Bio: Bailey Graves is a member of CUPA-HR's government relations team located in Washington, DC. She has worked with CUPA-HR on federal policy issues for over five years and provides routine updates for members on relevant policy changes via conference presentations, webinars, and written communications.

Plenary speaker: Stefan Jungmichel

Bio: Stefan Jungmichel, MBA, is an AI researcher and consultant who co-founded the AI Lab at Biola University. He works with students and organizations to understand and implement generative AI thoughtfully and effectively. At Biola, he focuses on AI research and education, while his consulting practice helps teams across various industries adopt AI solutions responsibly and effectively.

 

CUPA-HR Southern California Chapter Spring Event
“HR for HR: The Value of HR”

May 9, 2025 | 8:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. PT | University of California, San Diego

 

The CUPA-HR SoCal Chapter board is pleased to announce our Spring Event is going to be in-person! The event will be held at the University of California, San Diego, in the Great Hall from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. on Friday, May 9. Plans are starting to come together and registration will open soon.

Registration is now closed. Thanks for stopping by.

 

Keynote Speaker: Kurt Dorschel

Building Bridges: Strengthening HR and Finance Partnerships highlights the importance of collaboration between HR and finance in higher education institutions. The presentation focuses on building trust through logic, empathy, and authenticity (the “trust triangle” framework). Through an interactive discussion, we will review practical strategies to cultivate trust, including developing financial acumen, understanding business drivers, and fostering transparency. We’ll also highlight key institutional activities, such as workforce planning, compensation strategy, and benefits management, as critical opportunities for partnership. The presentation concludes with an implementation framework for building sustainable collaboration and an opportunity to discuss concrete strategies as a group.

Bio: Kurt is a Principal in Huron’s Education and Research Practice. He has worked in the higher education sector for 24 years as both an administrator and consultant. His work has spanned every major function in higher education. As a co-leader of our Organization and Talent Strategy team, he focuses on organizational effectiveness, including operating model design and workforce strategy. Kurt works with a broad range of higher education institutions to advance their core functions through organizational design, management practices, performance measurement, and leadership/culture.

Kurt has presented on the future of work and the employment value proposition at NACUBO, was a featured speaker at Tambellini’s Future of Work summit on the intersection of AI and talent management, and has facilitated panel discussions at CUPA-HR related to technology and the future of HR

Plenary Speaker: Bailey Graves

Bailey will be sharing some of the most relevant topics coming out of Washington, DC from Washington, DC! Bailey and the rest of the CUPA-HR National Government Relations team are located in Washington, DC in order to stay on top of the latest executive orders, bills and proposed actions impacting CUPA-HR members across the nation and in order to be best positioned to advocate on behalf of all members. Bailey will be joining the SoCal Chapter live virtually in order to give us any up to the minute updates.

Bio: Bailey Graves is a member of CUPA-HR's government relations team. She has worked with CUPA-HR on federal policy issues for over five years and provides routine updates for members on relevant policy changes via conference presentations, webinars, and written communications.

Plenary Speaker: Julie Chobdee

Maximizing Impact with Minimal Resources: Employee Health & Well-being Strategies

Employers are increasingly investing in employee health and well-being to create a health promoting workplace with positive outcomes both for employees and the organization. Investing in wellness programs can be done with limited resources. This session will explore cost-effective strategies for developing impactful wellness programs and provide actionable insights for HR professionals to integrate employee well-being into organizational practices.

Bio: Julie Chobdee, MPH, is the Associate Director, Health & Well-being Program, with the USC WorkWell Center. She leads the development of USC Healthy Campus, collaborating with campus partners to develop strategy to improve health and well-being.

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Thank you to all who attended our all-California CUPA-HR
Virtual Event!

The Northern & Central California Chapter and the Southern California Chapter of CUPA-HR are uniting efforts to provide an all-California virtual event entitled HR for HR: Light Your Candle First, Strengthening Ourselves to Support Others.

When: Friday, February 28, 2025

Time: 9:00 am – 12:00 pm

Where: Virtual Event

Keynote speaker: Dr. Alonzo Kelly

A dynamic Executive Coach, Professor, 3x Best Selling Author, and Radio Host, Dr. Alonzo Kelly has gained international and global attention as a premier consultant and strategist. Alonzo is recognized as one the nation’s leading experts on leadership development, strategic thinking, planning, and acting which results in individual and organizational goal achievement. He has appeared on America’s Premier Experts which airs on major networks across the country including ABC, NBC, CBS, and FOX.  Alonzo has served over 1,000 individuals through personal and professional development, delivered training to a plethora of Fortune 500 Companies, College and Universities, Foreign Countries (Netherlands, Belgium, Canada, Guam), nonprofit organizations, and is consistently retained to be the keynote speaker at large and small events across the country.

Plenary speaker: Heather Heyerdahl

Heather is the Director of Learning and Organizational Development at the University of California, Santa Barbara.  She is also a Globetrotter, wanderluster, wannabe digital nomad. Heather has created an intention of inviting disruption into her life to go against the grain and discover what's possible. She's an explorer, an adventurer, a calculated risk-taker, and most importantly a learner. She is a firm believer in Tolkein's words, "Not all those who wander are lost", and is always looking forward to what lies around the next corner.

___________________________

Thank you to all who attended!

You made it a great day!

Please check us out on Facebook or LinkedIn, we have some fun photos from the day on our social media sites.

Welcome back from the CUPA-HR SoCal Chapter Board!

We are having our Fall Kick-off CUPA-HR SoCal Chapter Event

on Friday, October 18, 2024.

The CUPA-HR 2024-2025 SoCal Chapter Board is excited to announce that registration is now open for our Fall Kick-off SoCal Chapter Event.

Our theme this year is: HR for HR. Who takes care of the HR professionals who are taking care of everyone else? We are! Whether it is keeping you up-to-date on latest legal developments, giving you tips and tricks as we learn from each other, or giving you a moment for self-care, we are here to support you!

Date and Venue

When: October 18, 2024
Time: 8:30 am – 2:30 pm
Where: University of California Irvine, University Club [location link].

 

Agenda

  • 8:30 a.m. - Kick off with Registration and Welcome Continental Breakfast
  • 9:30 a.m. - Employee Wellbeing and Engagement with Dr. Maritza Salazar Campo, Assistant Professor of Teaching, Organization and Management, UCI
  • 10:30 AM – Emotional Intelligence (HQ) for Managers with Janie Honeycutt, Client Partner, Newleaf Training and Development
  • 11:30 AM – Self-care circuit and Delicious Lunch Break
  • 01:00 PM – Legal Update from AALRR
  • 02:15 PM – Raffle and Thank you

Featured Speakers

Our lineup of speakers will provide you with valuable insights:

  • Maritza Salazar Campo, Assistant Professor of Teaching, Organization and Management, UCI

Maritza Salazar Campo, Ph.D., M.S.W. is an Assistant Professor of Organization and Management at the Paul Merage School of Business.  Her research explores the impact of talent and team development interventions to foster organizational effectiveness.  Her research has been cited by the National Academies of Science and that National Institutes of Health to support collaborative science and innovation.  She has consulted with the Army Research Office, PwC, the Center for the Integration of Research, Teaching, and Learning and Healthcare Centers to foster improved teamwork and patient outcomes.  She also served as the chair of the UCI/OC Healthy Schools Restart group, which helped all children in the region to return to school safely during the COVID pandemic. Most recently, Maritza founded the Latinx Initiative at the Paul Merage School of Business and proudly serves as a member of the UC-OC Alliance.

    • Presentation Topic:  Work is pivotal to psychological health and well-being for individuals and communities (Blustein, 2008). However, excessive workloads and long hours can harm emotional and physical health (Guimont et al., 2006) and diminish job performance (De Gieter, Hofmans, & Bakker, 2018). Data from the National Survey of Midlife Development in the United States (MIDUS) II Study (2004-2009) corroborate the negative impact of job demands on the well-being of the US workforce. Few studies, though, have explored contextual factors that mitigate burnout. This presentation integrates work climate literature to examine how a supportive work environment, encouraging well-being activities like breaks, gratitude, and restorative practices, affects employee recovery and burnout. Dr. Salazar Campo will also share promising findings on how team leaders and team contexts influence recovery experiences and burnout reduction. Implications for university settings and academic research hospitals will also be discussed.
  • Janie Honeycutt, Client Partner, Newleaf Training and Development
    Prior to joining Newleaf, Janie worked for Accenture and American Honda Finance Corporation. She holds a Master of Communication Management from the University of Southern California and a Bachelor of Arts in Communication from Loyola Marymount University. Janie is a certified Change Practitioner with Prosci® Change Management and a Certified Coach (CCF). "Inspirational" is the word that best describes Janie; as a versatile consultant, facilitator, keynote speaker, and coach, she is responsible for delighting Newleaf’s clients with consistently outstanding work. Janie has been married to Alan since 1994 and loves traveling and Latin ballroom dancing.
    • Presentation Topic: How the timeless principles behind emotional intelligence can help people better manage themselves and lead others more effectively in today’s working world. Managers with high emotional intelligence (EQ) combined with a high general intelligence (IQ) tend to lead people better to achieve organizational results. Incorporating an understanding of EQ into your workplace can improve management effectiveness, increase teamwork, and positively impact key measures. More and more organizations are discovering that management EQ is a vital component of success. Managers with high EQ understand the importance of communicating effectively with staff members and treating each employee with respect while remaining laser focused on the organization’s desired results. In short, they know how to bring out the best in people.
  • Aaron O’Donnell, Anna Miller, and Tom Lenz from Atkinson, Andelson, Loya, Ruud & Romo

Aaron O’Donnell, Partner - Atkinson, Andelson, Loya, Ruud & Romo
Aaron O'Donnell represents California community college districts, universities, and school districts in education and employment-related matters. He provides experienced advice and counsel to clients in all aspects of education and employment law, including compliance with Title IX and related federal and state laws, employee evaluation and discipline, employment discrimination and wrongful termination, labor relations, reductions in force, student discipline, disability accommodation, Brown Act compliance, conflicts of interest, First Amendment and other constitutional rights of students and employees, whistleblower protection, and investigations of employee misconduct. He represents education clients in grievance arbitrations, administrative hearings, and civil litigation in state and federal court.

Anna Miller, Partner - Atkinson, Andelson, Loya, Ruud & Romo
Anna Miller represents public school districts and California community college districts in all areas of general education law; labor relations; employment matters such as discrimination, dismissal and harassment; student issues such as fraudulent receipt of federally issued financial aid, grade disputes, student discipline and harassment charges; and First Amendment rights. She is active in the firm’s Title IX group, conducting Title IX investigations and giving presentations on Title IX issues.

Ms. Miller conducts complex workplace investigations for both public and private sector entities, including universities and colleges, school districts, public safety entities, counties and cities; and provides legal counsel on matters involving safety, campus police and human resources. In addition, she has a wealth of experience representing clients in court, arbitration proceedings and administrative hearings.

Tom Lenz, Partner - Atkinson, Andelson, Loya, Ruud & Romo
Thomas Lenz is a recognized authority on labor and employment law and all issues pertaining to the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).  He advises, trains, and represents employers on a wide range of labor and employment matters.  He is bilingual in Spanish.  In a typical work day, Mr. Lenz might train Spanish-speaking supervisors on harassment prevention, participate in collective bargaining to negotiate a labor agreement, edit employment policies, respond to an NLRB investigation, help an employer prepare for labor arbitration, and review the terms of a corporate transaction for potential labor vulnerabilities, while also responding to calls and emails on day to day employee issues affecting our client employers. Since beginning his career at the NLRB, and in over 30 years with the firm, Mr. Lenz has worked with a variety of clients and industries across California and regularly in other states.

Mr. Lenz is an Adjunct Lecturer at the University of Southern California Gould School of Law.  He is an advisor and former Chair of the Labor and Employment Law Section of the California Lawyers Association (CLA), formerly the State Bar of California.  He currently Chairs CLA’s Civics Education and Outreach Committee.  In 2023, Mr. Lenz was named a Fellow of the College of Labor and Employment Lawyers, a national organization for leading labor and employment attorneys.  He has been honored as one of the Top One Hundred Labor Attorneys in the United States by Labor Relations Institute, Inc.

    • Presentation Topic: Legal update.

 

To be a sponsor this event,  please reach out to us using the "About" link in the header and click "Contact Us." The form will automatically be sent to a Board member who will contact you in order to tell you more about sponsorship levels and opportunities.