Meet Our Team

Andrew Bishop has provided financial, demographic, and cartographic services to a wide variety of Local Education Agencies since 2005. His areas of expertise include: Assessment District administration, enrollment projections, developer fee analyses, Geographic Information Systems, demographic analyses, and redistricting services. Andrew holds a B.A. in Geography from the University of California, Los Angeles. In his free time, Andrew enjoys spending afternoons at the ballpark with his family.

Angela Banuelos has over nine years of professional administrative experience in social services and nonprofit fields. She assists our Community Facilities department with day-to-day operations while ensuring all deliverables continually meet company standards. Angela also manages several of the company`s databases, including contracts administration and taxpayer communication record-keeping. She leads the administrative team by providing technical development and oversight for all administrative personnel. In her free time, Angela enjoys spending time with her family and leading her local Girl Scout Brownie troop.

Ben Clark provides assistance in the School Demographics Department including: Alternative Fee Analysis, Enrollment Projections, Developer Fee Analyses, Geographic Information Systems, Demographic Analysis and Annual Reports. Before Cooperative Strategies, he previously worked in the Management Consulting, Account Management, and Project Management industries. Mr. Clark’s educational background includes a Bachelor of Science degree in Kinesiology, Master of Science Degree in IT Management and pursing Project Management Professional (PMP) Certification. In his spare time, Ben enjoys spending quality time with his family, going to the gym, playing sports, and spending time outside.

Christopher Rashidian assists school districts and public agencies across the state of California with Community Facilities District administration, Special Tax Consulting, CVRA redistricting, and compliance reporting. In addition to providing these services to his clients, Christopher is pursuing his Doctor of Technology at Purdue University where his research focuses on artificial intelligence, machine learning, computational linguistics, and natural language processing. In addition to his enrollment at Purdue University, Christopher is also a Research Fellow at the Purdue University Research Center for Open Digital Innovation, was recognized as one of 2021’s 500 Queer Scientists by the California Academy of Sciences, along with being a member of Project Management Professionals, oSTEM, National Society of Leadership and Success, and Golden Key International. In his free time, you can find Christopher singing karaoke, traveling, cooking, and hanging out with his pets.

Frances Maldonado provides GIS support in various projects in the Assess, Planning, and Demographics departments. Some of the projects that she has worked on include: Redistricting, Enrollment Projections and School Walk-throughs. Ms. Maldonado joined Cooperative Strategies in November 2019 and holds a B. A. in Geography from the University of Puerto Rico. In her free time, she likes to visit farmers’ markets, cook family recipes, and spend time with friends and family.

Galina Lyogky assists with demographic planning for school districts across the country. Using her Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and computing expertise, Galina develops enrollment projections, housing studies, provides advanced Excel data analysis, and develops maps and tables that help school districts plan for the future. She holds a B.S. in Geographic Information Systems with a concentration in Environmental Studies, a minor in Math, and a minor in Computer Applications from the State University of New York at Cortland. Prior to joining Cooperative Strategies in 2018, Galina was a business administrator in the home remodeling industry where she created and maintained inventory and order management systems as well as monitored quality control. In her free time, Galina enjoys fishing with her husband, baking, cross-stitching, and appreciating “dad jokes.”

Gretchen Welch facilitates project management communication between schools, contractors, and consultants as part of the assessment and building processes. With seven years of commercial construction management prior to joining our firm, Gretchen is well-versed in construction practices and procedures, specifically in the Colorado Front Range. She is able to translate this knowledge to real-time savings in regards to scheduling, product selection, and life cycle replacements and costs. With assessments, Gretchen knows what to look for and how to evaluate what she sees. Her versatility and communication style result in informed, transparent management at all levels of a program – from reviewing the initial condition of a building to project conception, through ribbon cutting and even beyond warranty oversight. Gretchen holds OSHA30 certification, a B.S. in Civil Engineering, and a minor in Mathematics from Bradley University in Peoria, Illinois. Outside of the office, Gretchen enjoys playing guitar and singing karaoke with her husband.

Janice Grass assists with a variety of demographics services, providing support for developer and alternative fee analyses, enrollment projections, and annual reports. She also assists with procurement efforts. Prior to joining Cooperative Strategies, Janice worked in public administration, higher education, and business development consulting. She holds a B.S. in Business Administration with an emphasis in Marketing from California State University, Long Beach and is currently working on her Master’s Degree in Data Science. In her free time, Janice enjoys obstacle races, martial arts, traveling, and spending time with friends and family.

Jhonatan Portocarrero provides administration of various Community Facilities Districts (CFDs) throughout California. He oversees more than 40 CFDs, concentrating on compliance reporting. He also researches growth within developing CFDs and calculates Special Tax levies. Mr. Portocarrero joined the company in August 2019 and holds a B.A. in Business Finance from California State University, Fullerton. During his free time, he enjoys attending live sporting events, theatrical shows, and theme parks.

John Beckelheimer assists with the administration of various Community Facilities Districts (CFDs) throughout California. He oversees more than 35 Special Assessment Districts, concentrating on public liaison, compliance reporting, and providing various analyses for our clients. John also researches growth within developing CFDs, calculates Special Tax levies, and provides detailed CFD facilities funding for multiple school districts. He holds a B.S. in Business Finance from California State University, Dominguez Hills. In his free time, John enjoys golfing, travelling, and trying new restaurants.

Karen Daniel-Hamberg is involved in many of the facility planning and demographic services we provide to K-12 school districts. She has experience assisting with facilities master planning, boundary planning, facility assessments, capacity & utilization studies, and educational specifications. In particular, Karen specializes in developing housing studies that help school districts analyze their enrollment, creating maps, charts, and tables that illustrate districts’ needs in concise and meaningful ways. She holds a B.A. in Geography from Wittenberg University. In her free time, Karen enjoys camping and spending time with her family and her dogs Pablo and Luna. She is an avid cow lover and would one day like to live on a farm.

Kayla Hoang supports multiple project teams by interfacing with public agencies and maintaining Cooperative Strategies’ extensive proprietary database resources. She fosters productive relationships with representatives of both county and local governments throughout California. Kayla is bilingual and can conduct business in Vietnamese. In her free time, Kayla enjoys cooking traditional Vietnamese food.

Kerrianne Wolf has served public school districts for close to 30 years; first as a classroom teacher and now as a consultant.  She has been providing facility planning services to school districts throughout the country since 2003, focusing on educational specifications, standards, and adequacy assessments.  Kerrianne holds a B.S. from Kent State University in K-12 Gifted and Talented, Elementary, and Science Education.  She has also been a key team leader when facilitating many of the services Cooperative Strategies offers including Facility Master Planning, Facility Assessments, Capacity & Utilization Analysis, Strategic Planning, and Enrollment Projections.  Kerrianne is a member of A4LE (the Association for Learning Environments) and is a REFP (Recognized Educational Facility Planner) who works closely with several state agencies, most notably, the New Mexico Public School Facilities Authority (NMPSFA).  She has led projects coast to coast and beyond the US borders – from Valdez, Alaska, to Providence, Rhode Island, and from Arlington, Texas, to Grand Rapids, Michigan, and several states in between.  Outside of the US, she has assisted with the Facility Master Plans in Haiti and Honduras.  She is passionate about the role public schools play in educating children and volunteers for those who work to support public schools. Kerrianne also holds certifications in Ayurvedic Medicine and lifestyle counseling. In her free time, she leads yoga classes to benefit local and national charities.  As an avid walker, she has completed over two dozen half marathons.  She enjoys cycling, kayaking, dancing, and cooking with local farmers market ingredients to create delicious allergen-free meals.

Rob Olsen has over 26 years of experience in education. He started his career as a 3rd grade teacher and has served as an elementary school principal, district superintendent, and facilities consultant at the Iowa Department of Education. Rob has experience in developing and implementing long-range facilities plans, serving as the project manager for multi-million dollar projects that range from a track and football field complex project to HVAC and building additions. On each of these projects, Rob was heavily involved in all aspects—from design, planning, and financing, to day-to-day project management, to close-out and project completion. Rob holds a Specialists Degree in Superintendency from the University of Northern Iowa. In his free time, Rob enjoys spending time with his wife and family, spending time outdoors, and attending his children’s activities.

Susan Miller is a registered Financial Advisor and has worked on a variety of financings for charter schools, local and state agencies, and additional projects in the U.S. and internationally. She has extensive experience helping municipal issuers identify and secure financial structures that align with their capital needs. Her real estate, credit, and financial expertise complement her comprehensive understanding of federal, state, and local education funding issues and their relationship to student academic outcomes. Prior to joining Cooperative Strategies, Susan worked for Education Facility Solutions, a company focused on identifying and securing facilities for charter schools. She has significant experience with investment fund development, project finance, and investment banking, and has also served as a credit rating officer at Standard and Poor’s Corporation. Susan is very active in K-12 at the state, district, and local school levels, serving on accountability teams at both charter and district schools. She is an active board member for a number of Colorado non-profit education organizations and advocates for legislative issues that impact K-12 funding and facilities. Susan holds a B.A. in Political Science from Northwestern University. In her free time, Susan enjoys skiing and hiking with her husband, children, and their Rhodesian Ridgeback.

Steven Mumblo provides project management services for owner’s representative, grant funding assistance, and facilities master planning projects. Prior to joining our firm, he specialized in overseeing renovations for full-service hospitality brands at properties around the country. His expertise in budget management provides school districts with the insight and analysis needed to make informed decisions, and his tenacity ensures that our clients receive prompt and reliable updates throughout a project cycle. He is an innovative team player and always willing to lend his support to guarantee a successful project for all parties involved. Steven holds a B.A. in Environmental Studies, with an emphasis on Policy and Justice and a minor in Anthropology, from the University of Montana. In his free time, Steven enjoys camping under the stars while exploring the backcountry, and dancing under the stars at his favorite concert venue, Red Rocks Amphitheatre, just outside Denver.

Tam Dinh specializes in developing customized applications, including all aspects of database designing, graphics designing, programming, and maintenance. Tam has developed many of Cooperative Strategies proprietary applications, including the interactive web-based platforms DisclosureCompliance, PayReqs, CerTracs, MySchoolLOCATION, and Facility101. He is also responsible for integrating data between various counties and Community Facilities Districts for analysis and reporting. Tam uses his experience and skills to improve efficiencies within existing processes and move our company forward using the latest technologies. He holds a B.S. in Computer Science from California State University, Pomona. In his free time, Tam enjoys sports, painting, and traveling around the world.