Finalists

Public Forum

Each finalist will take part in a forty-five-minute forum, which will be held in-person in AC1-150 at Clovis Community College on Thursday, June 27, 20024, and broadcast to the public. Attendees will be able to view the forums via YouTube until Tuesday, July 2, 2024.

Candidates will present their vision for Clovis Community College Student Services and answer pre-submitted questions from the public. The deadline for those wishing to submit questions in advance to be considered during the public forums is 5 p.m. on June 25, 2024. by using this question submission link.

Feedback on each candidate will only be collected online using this forum feedback link. The link for forum feedback will be activated on the day of the forums. Feedback on candidates must be submitted by Tuesday, July 2, 2024, at 5:00 p.m.

The public forum schedule is as follows:

• 8:30 – 9:30 a.m. Doors Open & Welcome from Vice Chancellor, Human Resources Julianna Mosier
• 9:30 – 10:15 a.m. Nestor Lomeli
• 10:30 – 11:15 a.m. Dr. Natalie Culver-Dockins
• 11:30 – 12:15 p.m. Kira Tippins
• 12:15 – 1:00 p.m. Lunch Break
• 1:00 – 1:45 p.m. Lorena Lopez
• 2:00 – 2:45 p.m. Cecilia Alvarado
• 3:00 – 3:45 p.m. Dr. Amanda Xu

Cecilia Alvarado

Cecilia Alvarado is a local California resident. Her professional experience includes over 25 years in the California Community Colleges system. Her career in academia within student services includes a vast experience in student leadership, non-credit & credit, outreach, categorical programing, fundraising, project management, student life, budget, and equity. Cecilia is a proud mother to two daughters and blessed to have raised one foster daughter. Her parents are immigrants from Mexico, she is fluent in English and Spanish, and her upbringing stems from a humble home. She earned a Bachelor’s in English from Cal State University Fullerton and a master’s in education administration from Pepperdine University.

Her community college career started as part time EOPS faculty coordinator for Santa Ana College in 2003. After Santa Ana College she left to work as the Fullerton College EOPS/CARE Manager. While at Fullerton College EOPS she served in many EOPS roles. For EOPS region eight, she originated, and managed the non-profit status and later held the position of treasurer and president. She also held the position of region 8 State representative. In 2010 she transitioned to region nine as the Riverside District EOPS Director/ Dean and later to Vice President of Student Service. As Vice President of Riverside City College, she chaired the equity committee lead the start of Guided Pathway Pillars. Currently she serves as the Dean of Student Services at Taft College and overseas General Counseling, Student Government, Basic Needs, Veteran, Outreach, DSPS, EOPS, Cal WORKS, CARE, Next UP, and a new Career Center. Her work philosophy is “What’s in the best interest of the student.”

Dr. Natalie Culver-Dockins

Dr. Natalie Culver-Dockins is a proud community college graduate who continued her education and earned a B.S. in Business Administration with a Human Resources Management focus from CSU Stanislaus and an M.A. in Education with an emphasis in Counselor Education from San Jose State. She received a Doctorate in Educational Leadership from Fresno State in May 2012. She has been a member of college and districtwide shared governance committees including Reedley College Program Review Committee and College Council; and State Center Community College District Technology Advisory Committee, Dual Enrollment Committee and the State Center 2035 Commission. Dr. Culver-Dockins has served as chair/co-chair of the Reedley College Student Experience Committee, Reedley College Noncredit Committee, and inaugural co-chair of the Fresno City College Institutional Effectiveness and Research Committee. She is actively engaged in the Association for California Community College Administrators, California Community College Association for Occupational Educators, and the Chief Student Services Officer Association.

Dr. Culver-Dockins has dedicated 23 years to making a positive impact in the lives of students. She is passionate about education which is demonstrated in her commitment to first generation and disproportionately students. As both an advocate and partner, she has created, developed and led programs and services with a diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility lens leading to improving the economic vitality and growth in communities. She works daily with faculty, staff and student leaders ensuring that disproportionately impacted students are achieving their goals. She has written numerous successful federal, state and local grants; led student support programs including Puente and UMOJA; writing program reviews and developing Student Learning Outcomes/Service Area Outcomes; planning and submitting reports, ensuring budgets are aligned with college goals; and identifying opportunities to assist dual enrollment, high school graduates and adult learners. Her successful work has been presented at conferences on topics ranging from student-centered scheduling, student success strategies, and workforce development.

Nestor Lomeli

Nestor Lomeli currently serves as the Dean of Student Services at Lemoore College. He is a valley native from Coalinga, a first-generation student, and the son of migrant farm workers. With a Master's in Higher Education Administration from National University and a Bachelor's degree in Social Sciences with a concentration in Spanish from California State University, Fresno, his career has focused on student success and equity. Over ten years in the California Community College system, he has overseen admissions, records, student life, pre-college programs, and outreach, emphasizing strategic enrollment management and data-driven decision-making. He has led the adoption of equity-focused frameworks like Guided Pathways and Achieving the Dream and has spearheaded initiatives for underrepresented and equity-impacted students. Nestor has also served as a peer review team member for ACCJC under the new standards, played a key role in strategic planning and shared governance, and presented best practices at state and national levels. He is committed to innovation and creating efficiencies to remove barriers for students and staff.

Nestor cherishes spending time with his wife and kids outside of his professional life. They love traveling together and exploring new places, which has become an excellent way for them to create lasting memories. Recently, he took up playing golf and finds it a great way to relax and enjoy the outdoors. Whether it's hiking, camping, or simply spending time in nature, being outdoors is something he enjoys.

Lorena Lopez

Lorena Lopez is widely recognized by her colleagues and community as a prominent advocate for positive change. She approaches even the most challenging situations with unwavering perseverance and a strong commitment to students' success, consistently leading with amiable confidence. Originally from Guatemala, Lorena is a native Spanish speaker. She obtained her teaching credentials and a bachelor's degree in business administration and management in her home country. Her dedication to social justice and equality led her to the US to escape the violence and repression inflicted upon the native Mayan population. In the US, she faced discrimination, unfair wages, and segregation while working entry-level jobs. Despite these challenges, she continued her education and earned a Master of Arts in higher and postsecondary education. She is currently working towards a Doctoral degree in higher education administration.

Lorena has been involved in various roles within higher education institutions for over twenty years. She has served as a human resources director, registrar, academic counselor, and dean of students in the private sector, as well as a registrar and dean of student services. Most recently, she served as the vice president of student services and equity. She had to leave her position to take care of immediate family health issues, but her dedication to students and the community remains unwavering, shaped by her personal and family experiences. Lorena's professional advancement has strengthened her commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility, as well as to fostering partnerships within campuses and engaging with the community. Lorena’s professional career has been marked by her unwavering commitment to creating a more inclusive campus environment. Her focus has been on supporting a wide range of student groups, including first-generation, migrant, immigrant, undocumented, LGBTQIA+, technical careers, ESL, incarcerated, formerly incarcerated, out-of-school youth, and adult students, among others. As a first-generation college student, immigrant woman, single parent, ESL student, and Latina, Lorena is uniquely positioned to understand and address the diverse needs of today's student body with deep empathy.

Kira Tippins

Kira was born and raised in the Central Valley and has spent over 18 years working in Student Services. Kira grew up in Avenal, California and is the first in her family to graduate high school and go to college. She began her student services career as a Financial Aid Assistant at West Hills College, Coalinga (WHCC) in 2006. There she served in multiple capacities while attending college full-time and raising a young family. In 2011, she became the Director of Financial Aid at Fresno City College where she was responsible for $57 million annually in federal, state, and institutional student aid. After leading significant departmental compliance changes, she guided her department and the College through a Department of Education full scope compliance review and audit. After a successful outcome, Kira was selected by the California Community College Chancellor’s Office to train new financial aid directors. Kira has served a two-year term as a board member for the California Community College Datatel Users Group (3CDUG), and served on several statewide pilot steering committees focused on program development.

In 2016, Kira began serving as the Dean of Student Services for Clovis Community College. In this role, Kira had oversight of Admissions & Records, Counseling, categorical programs, the Veterans Resource Center, Testing Center, Career Resource Center & Clothing Closet, Articulation, Transfer, Instruction for Counseling and DSPS courses, Health Services, Psychological Services, Student Conduct, Behavioral Intervention Team, and Title IX. She led the efforts to build and grow these student services at CCC with a continued focus on compliance and equity. Since January 2024, Kira has served as the Interim Vice President of Student Services where she oversees 125 full-time and part time classified professionals, faculty, and managers. She is responsible for a budget of over $28 million in grants and $4.5 million in general funds. Kira works collaboratively with internal and external partners to ensure holistic safety and support for students. She has served on several campus and district committees, led training and policy improvement efforts across the district, served on multiple labor negotiations teams and ACCJC peer review teams. Kira provides quality service improving equitable access to support the educational goals of students in the Central Valley. Kira and her husband have lived in Clovis for over 12 years and are proud parents of 2 wonderful children.

Dr. Amanda Xu

Innovating educational student support systems and fostering collaborative learning opportunities have been the hallmarks of Dr. Amanda Xu’s career as a seasoned Dean. Growing up in the Central Valley, the prospect of returning to contribute to the educational journey in her home region is both a personal and professional aspiration. She completed her undergraduate degree in Biology at UC Merced and obtained her PhD in Immunology at UC Davis. Education was not easy for her. She did not reach grade level milestones until high school due to struggles with reading and dyslexia. Growing up in a low income home, she would not be here today if it were not for the embedded student supports that made school possible. These experiences drew Dr. Xu to student services and the community college system.

Dr. Xu started as a classified MESA Coordinator and biology instructor at American River College, then transitioned to be the MESA Director at Mendocino College. During her two years leading this program, student participation grew from 30 to over 200 students. Following this success, she became Mendocino College’s Dean of Centers in 2018. In this role, she oversees a broad array of student services, instruction, and administrative services for three instructional centers, and two educational sites. She is also the district lead for dual enrollment, which has seen a 116% percent increase in her tenure, and has purposefully imbedded student services into the dual enrollment experience. Dr. Xu is recognized as a state leader within the dual enrollment space, serving as a founding board member of the California Alliance of Dual Enrollment Partnerships (CADEP) organization and leads the first dual enrollment ambassador program in the state. Through each of these experiences, her, is her ability to interweave student services and instruction knowledge, enabling her to support the student educational journey holistically. This integrated approach, backed by a non-siloed philosophy, is something Dr. Xu is eager to bring to Clovis Community College.