As Dean for the College of Education at the University of Phoenix, Dr. Roggeman works to support new educators on their path to the classroom. She began her tenure as an AEF Board member in January 2018. Before Pam’s second career in teacher preparation began at Arizona State University in 2008, she was a high school English teacher in Pima County for almost two decades. In 1999, she was named an AEF Teacher of the Year Ambassador of Excellence. She is a lifetime supporter of and believer in Arizona public education.

Dr. Marjaneh Gilpatrick has been a member of AEF’s Board since 2012. In addition to being a clinical professor in the College of Education, Dr. Gilpatrick is the Associate Vice Provost of Statewide Initiatives & Alliances in the Academic & Workforce Alliances Division at NAU. She has served in a variety of leadership and teaching roles in higher education as well as PreK-12 grades: elementary ESL teacher, Reading department chair and AVID site leader in a middle school, ESL, Storytelling, and Education instructor at the Maricopa Community Colleges, a professor and the associate dean of Grand Canyon University’s College of Education.

She is passionate about creating culturally inclusive learning experiences that engage students in their own learning, refugee students’ educational experiences who speak English as an additional language, dual language immersion, early childhood education, restorative practices, multicultural books’ relevance on literacy skills, and family and community engagement.

She and her husband of 39 years have three adult children, a son and two daughters. Their weekends are filled with activities in their faith community, gardening, reading, going to the movies and spending time with family and friends.

Deea McBride earned her Bachelor’s degree in Comparative Political Systems from Northern Arizona University and her Master’s degree in International Management from the American Graduate School of International Management (Thunderbird). Deea recently retired from Wells Fargo after 28 years, and has experience in compliance management, finance, communications, program management, and training. Deea comes from a long line of educators and joined the AEF Board of Directors in the summer of 2015. She has served on numerous boards of directors and committees for Arizona’s nonprofit community and enjoys making a difference in Arizona schools through her work with AEF.

David is a licensed patent attorney who handles all types of intellectual property development and protection, including patent, trademark and copyright procurement, registration, and defense.
He has successfully brought to issuance patents in the areas of computer hardware and software, pharmaceuticals, medical devices, and electrical and mechanical technologies. David helps clients with ownership and contract disputes as well as drafting, negotiating, and preparing agreements for partnerships, transfers, assignments, licensing (including software and SaaS services), terms of service and privacy policies, and has successfully asserted and defended infringement claims for patents, trademarks, and copyrights.

Michelle Doherty was a first-grade dual language teacher and mentor coach at Encanto Elementary in the Osborn School District for 25 years. She proudly invested her ENTIRE teaching career for the same district and the same school. Michelle was born and raised in Arizona and is a first-generation college graduate. She is continuing her love for teaching by supporting and mentoring new teachers in the Arizona Teachers Academy and is also an adjunct faculty member for Northern Arizona University. Michelle supports many inspiring programs within AEF, including the selection of Arizona Teacher of the Year, the A+ School of Excellence program, and Our World. Michelle was recognized at the Arizona Educational Foundation 2017 Arizona Teacher of the Year, the 2016-2017 Osborn School District Teacher of the Year, and the 2015 Chicanos Por La Causa Esperanza Latino Teacher of the Year. Michelle received her B.A. in Early Childhood Education and her M.Ed. in Curriculum and Instruction with an emphasis in reading and early childhood education from Arizona State University. She feels it is a privilege and an honor to work in the field of education and is most passionate about providing a quality education for all.

Jodi Chesbro has been teaching Language Arts to seventh and eighth graders in Arizona for over 40 years. An Arizona Teacher of the Year Ambassador for Excellence, Jodi has worked with AEF since she earned the honor in 1996. Not only passionate about students and teaching, Jodi works with the AEF A+ School of Excellence program. “I love visiting fabulous schools across the state and stealing ideas. Observing top-notch teachers in the classroom is the best professional development.” She also worked on the national level with the U.S. Department of Education Blue Ribbon Schools for 4 years. In 2017, she was named the Deer Valley Unified School District’s Teacher of the Year. In her free time, Jodi travels and hikes with her husband John and furry son Buckely.

Dr. Lindy Gaudiano is responsible for the academic programs and outreach efforts for the College of Education at Grand Canyon University. She and her team partner with many educational groups, both internal and external, to ensure standards-based curricula for all academic programs are focused on continuous improvement and aligned to appropriate standards for teacher certification. Dr. Gaudiano is honored to be a GCU employee for over 17 years, and work in the education field for close to 20 years.

Prior to transitioning to higher education and Grand Canyon University, she received her bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education from Arizona State University and her master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction with an Emphasis in Elementary Education Reading from Grand Canyon University before teaching in a first-grade classroom in the public-school environment. She completed her PhD in Industrial and Organizational Psychology in 2023 and loves to collaborate on large projects with her team and other departments, teach education foundations, literacy and honors courses for the university, attend and present at national and local educational conferences, and be involved with all things highlighting the student experience within the college.

After meeting her husband, Jimmy, over 20 years ago at the University of Arizona, they have been married for over 16 years and have two mini GCU fans, their daughters Gigi (13) and Elle (11). On the weekends and in the evenings, they enjoy the outdoors playing golf and attending their girls’ many soccer games as they both play competitively around the southwest area. They enjoy traveling from coast to coast and are always planning a new adventure for their family to explore.

Matt Hesketh is a partner with Taft and represents businesses and public entities in high stakes litigation. Matt comes from a family of teachers, including his mother who taught in public schools for over 30 years. This led to Matt’s passion for promoting and celebrating achievements in public education.

Renee Levin previously served on AEF’s Board of Directors from 2009–2021 and later joined the staff from 2021 until her retirement in April 2025. Prior to her work with AEF, Renee spent 26 years at Intel Corporation, where she led the company’s community affairs strategy and engagement in Arizona. She developed and implemented Intel’s statewide outreach strategy and founded the East Valley STEM Alliance, a partnership between business and education leaders to expand opportunities for K–12 students. In her free time, Renee enjoys traveling, reading, paddleboarding, and scuba diving.

As Chief Marketing Officer for Desert Financial, Jeremy Nelson focuses on building a strong brand that supports financial education and well-being for the Arizona community. A veteran of the Credit Union industry, Jeremy has over 30 years working with credit unions and 20 years working in marketing leadership, building brands, and creating meaningful marketing campaigns to support financial products and services. Prior to moving to Arizona Jeremy received both an Undergraduate degree in Business Management and an MBA from the University of Utah in Salt Lake City Utah.

Jeremy lives in Mesa with his wife Angie and their three daughters. He is passionate about supporting the community, giving back, and supporting educational efforts. He enjoys playing pickle ball, skiing, and traveling with his family.

Colleen L. Sauer is the Director of Accounting at the Phoenix corporate headquarters of Arizona Public Service, where she has devoted 25 years of accounting leadership and practice. She has extensive experience in financial accounting including business operations oversight of Pinnacle West, APS, Pinnacle West Power and other affiliate companies in the utility energy industry. She previously served as Treasurer on the Pinnacle West Political Action Committee Board and is the co-chair of the Employee Engagement Council. Colleen earned her Bachelor of Science in Accountancy at Northern Arizona University, obtained her Master of Science in Accountancy at Southern New Hampshire University and completed her Lean Six Sigma Blackbelt at Purdue University. She is currently pursuing her PhD in business at the University of Arizona. Colleen is an avid sports fan, sharing a love for all Arizona teams, especially the Cardinals, Suns, and Diamondbacks.

Grant Smedley is the Director of Infrastructure Delivery at SRP. In this role, he is leading a company-wide initiative to accelerate the pace at which SRP plans, designs, and constructs new distribution system infrastructure. He previously served in leadership roles in Energy Marketing and Trading, Power Generation Planning and Development, Water Resources, Power Delivery Engineering, Research and Development, and Environmental Policy. Prior to joining SRP, Grant began his career as an environmental consultant with Trinity Consultants. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Mechanical Engineering from McGill University and a Master’s Degree in Mechanical Engineering from Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Grant lives in Phoenix with his wife Janine and their two sons. He is passionate about public education and he, his wife, and children all attended public schools.

Darlene Robinson is the Assistant Superintendent of Educational Services for the Sahuarita Unified School District and a dedicated advocate for Arizona public education. An enthusiastic champion for student achievement and community partnership, Darlene previously served as Principal of the award-winning Anza Trail K-8 School. Her dedication to educational excellence has earned her prominent awards, including the Arizona School Administrators Distinguished Administrator of the Year (2021–2022) and the Rodel Exemplary Teacher award. Darlene has a long history of service with the Arizona Educational Foundation (AEF) as a Lead Judge, a Principal Mentor, and a LEAD Now mentor. She is currently a doctoral student at Northern Arizona University pursuing her Ed.D.

Darlene lives in Vail with her husband, Kyle, of 29 years. They are honored to be parents of three adult children, two sons and a daughter, who have been blessed by absolutely remarkable public education teachers. A BIG THANK YOU to our educational family!

John Dailey is an Executive Director of Origination at NextEra Energy Resources, where he leads a team responsible for the advancement of new clean energy projects in Arizona and New Mexico.

Mr. Dailey joined NextEra in 2008 and previously held positions managing NextEra’s Origination efforts in Colorado, Kansas, South Dakota, and portions of Texas, NextEra’s Regulatory and Political Affairs team, where he implemented NextEra’s policy objectives in MISO and New Mexico, and NextEra’s Business Management group, where he was responsible for NextEra 2.5 GW operating portfolio of wind, solar, and battery storage power plants in Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, Washington, and Oregon.

Mr. Dailey holds a Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance and Anthropology from the University of Notre Dame and he resides in Flagstaff, Arizona.

Dr. Regina Deil-Amen is a Professor of Higher Education and the Dean of University of Arizona’s College of Education. She has been a faculty member at University of Arizona since 2007, and prior to that, an Assistant Professor at Penn State University. With a Ph.D. from Northwestern University, she is a leading scholar of college access and success, with a specialty in community college and transfer students. As a first-generation college student herself, she is committed to opening doors and clearing pathways for others to be successful in higher education. She has driven educational improvement through innovative, evidence-based research and practice that draws on the strengths of students and their families, including her $4.8 million NSF-funded Pima–UAZ STEM Bridge program supporting low-income Pima Community College students transferring to the University of Arizona to complete STEM degrees at a 90% success rate.

As Dean, Regina has demonstrated passion and energy in fulfilling the university’s land-grant mission by helping to address teacher shortages and teacher retention across Arizona and preparing educators, educational leaders and policymakers for positive impact locally, nationally and globally. She has prioritized building a college-wide student success strategy, forging new school partnerships, expanding degree options to add more flexibility and accessibility, strengthening alumni relations, increasing fundraising efforts, and creating new student funding opportunities. She is a dean who also maintains a strong culture of support for faculty and staff, which translates to a culture of caring and belonging for students.

Regina has one daughter, who attended public schools in Tucson, AZ through high school in the Amphitheater Public School District.