University of the PACIFIC

Staff Learning & Development Facilitators

Your team of workplace learning and development professionals are expert facilitators who stand ready to help you learn, develop, and grow in your current position or on your journey to new career opportunities at Pacific. Their enthusiasm, style, and experience will inspire and engage you to unleash your potential for continued success. Learn more about them and their background!

Hector Escalante, MAEd/MFA

Staff Learning & Development Program Manager

Hector Escalante comes from an experienced management and supervising background, and has been a trainer and educator at Pacific for the Center for Professional & Continuing Education (CPCE) for two years. He was responsible for managing an academic department of approximately 100 people at Heald College where he provided staff development and training for directors and faculty in student services. Hector has been an educator since 1999 and was awarded Teacher of the Year in 2010 for his instruction excellence and effectiveness.
Hector received his Master of Arts at Pacific with an emphasis in curriculum development and his Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing from National University. He is a United States Marine Corps veteran who enjoys sailing and competing in triathlons and marathons.

David Diskin

Microsoft Certified Professional

David Diskin is a certified Microsoft Office "Master", and works with organizations state-wide by helping them become more efficient with software. He has been using Microsoft Office since 1995, honing his skills in each application for "real world" use through training, consulting, and development.
A faculty member of Pacific's Center for Professional and Continuing Education, David has been involved with staff and faculty development - on all three campuses - since 2007, and taught for the School of Engineering for five semesters. His off-campus clients include Teichert Construction, Diamond Foods, Comcast, and a variety of agencies within the State of California. He is also a featured author of the lynda.com online video training library.
Living in Lodi, CA, David spends much of his free time assisting non-profit organizations and is the board president of a children's summer camp. Follow him on Twitter, Facebook, or visit his website.

Zachary Spurlin, MBA

Business Analyst

Zac Spurlin is currently the Business Analyst for the Department of Business and Finance where he collaborates on multiple projects with staff members, business units, partners, and vendors. A strong believer in data and metric analysis, Zachary develops and implements projects that leverage technology, best practices, and innovation to improve Pacific's organizational performance.
Prior to joining the Business and Finance Division, Zac started his career at Pacific in 2004 working in the Housing and Greek Life Office in facilities operations. From 2006-2011 he served as the Assistant Director for Facilities Operations and has served on the Staff Advisory Council, Veterans Advisory Committee, and various departmental and division committees. Before joining Pacific he was Director of Operations and Education for the Stockton Symphony and continues to serve as the Technical Director to this day.
Zac received both his Master in Business Administration in 2010 and Bachelor of Arts degree in Music from California State University, Stanislaus. He received the Outstanding M.B.A. Student College of Business Administration Award for his academic excellence. 

John McClimans

Electronic Communication Specialist

John McClimans is the Electronic Communication Specialist in the Office of Communications. Joining the University in 2011, he helps oversee the content and direction of the Stockton Campus website, manages projects related to the website and electronic media and supports users interacting with the website. As part of his position, John leads the University's Content Management System (CMS) training courses, teaching employees and students how to create and update content within their respective areas. An integral part of the Pacific.edu Redesign Team, serving as Interim Project Manager from May-August, 2011, John is an expert on the University's CMS and is always looking at how he can help users get the most out of it. John earned his Bachelor of Arts in Communications (B.A.C.) in Journalism and B.A. in French from Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, Wash. After graduation, he worked as the Communication Coordinator in the PLU Office of Admission. While in this position, John oversaw a website redesign and managed the production of a campus virtual tour.

Margaret Caldwell, MBA

Associate University Budget Director

Margaret Caldwell is currently Associate University Budget Director and has been with the Budget Office since 2004.  In that time, she has worked with various units in the Stockton, Sacramento and San Francisco campuses to proactively identify issues and resolve often complex or long-standing inefficiencies in the system.  In addition to her regular duties, she has been designing and teaching Budget related courses focusing on efficient and effective budgeting methodology and good stewardship.
Before coming to Pacific, Margaret worked as a logistics engineer on the U.S. Navy's AEGIS Shipbuilding program, both for new ship construction and in-service weapons upgrades; and as the program planner for the Federal Aviation Administration's Oceanic Air Traffic Control System acquisition from needs identification, vendor evaluation and system implementation.
Margaret received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics, cum laude from Wells College (Aurora, NY) in 1990 and her Masters of Business Administration from The Johns Hopkins University (Baltimore, MD) in 2000.  She also participated in the Economic Policy semester at American University (Washington, DC) in her junior year.

Jessica Melchor

University Budget Analyst

Jessica Melchor has been with Pacific since 2011 as a University Budget Analyst for Budget & Risk Management. She studied Business Administration with a concentration in Finance and Human Resources at the University of the Pacific and received her Bachelor's Degree in 2010. During her time as a student she worked for the Latino Community Outreach office as a Latino Student Coordinator, then as a Business Manager. Her other work experiences include roles as Lead Supervisor, Program Assistant, Office Assistant, and In-Home Tutor. Under her current role as University Budget Analyst, Jessica's primary responsibility is to assist in developing, monitoring, and analyzing budgets and costs of the University. In addition, Jessica has recently started teaching budget courses such as Budget Essentials I and Budget Essentials II.

Corrie Martin

Director of Women's Resource Center

Corrie Martin is the Director of the Women's Resource Center at Pacific. She teaches in the Gender Studies Program, develops and coordinates programming pertaining to women's and multicultural issues, and collaborates with local and regional community partners and policy groups surrounding women's rights. Corrie has been a leader in developing critical programs such as Pacific Women Connect, Women's History Month, and the Women of Distinction Awards Luncheon. Her involvement at Pacific has provided support for important issues such as sexual assault awareness, sexual harassment, Safe Zone (LGBTQIA issues), peer education, and women's leadership and mentorship. An active leader at Pacific, she has been awarded both the honor of being Pacific's Woman of Distinction in 2009 and the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Peace and Social Justice Award in 2011for her commitment to social justice and women's rights.
Aside from her active leadership on campus, Corrie extends her knowledge and experience with the local Stockton community as well. She was former Stockton Arts Commission Member and currently a volunteer coordinator for the First Stockton Word Feast and a board member for With Our Words, Inc.
Prior to joining the Pacific community, Corrie was the Development Director of Domestic Violence Services Agency and taught and developed courses for universities in California, Connecticut and Rhode Island. She was also a coordinator for service-learning programs and educational outreach programs in diverse communities.
Corrie received her Masters in English and Comparative Literature at UC Irvine and her certification in Non-Profit Management from the Trinity College Neighborhood Partnership Program.

Sean McNally, MA

Environmental Health & Safety Specialist

Sean McNally works in the Office of Budget and Risk Management. He earned his Master of Arts degree in Organizational Communication, COP '06. As an alumni of Pacific, Sean has had an opportunity to see the truly amazing things Pacific has to offer through first hand educational experiences here. Through his graduate studies he was able to develop skills in research and evaluation through extensive study in the area of best practices in employee/employer communication within nationally recognized top performing organizations. His published papers include, "Best Practices in Supervisor/Employee Communication" published in the Competition Forum (United States). Another paper focused on experiential learning in education, and was accepted at the annual meeting of the California Sociological Association; titled "The Voluntary Response of Undergraduates to Youth Issues: An Informal Experiment in Service Learning Pedagogy". Sean has been with the University since 2002, his first job at Pacific was as a receptionist in the College of the Pacific. From there he was promoted to Student Records Coordinator (COP), and then was called upon to work in the Budget Office for the University. This then led to his role as Risk Technician and from there to his current role as Budget & Risk Analyst; specializing in safety and compliance regulation as well as budget analysis. Prior to coming to Pacific, his broad scope of experience goes from having the honor to serve as Public Information Officer intern for the City of Stockton, teaching high school freshman English, and as a Placement Coordinator for San Joaquin County WorkNet. Having had a wide variety of life experiences gives Sean a sense of perspective when it comes to not only shared objectives in the workplace, but of people in general.
He is a new father and shares his new love and responsibility with his wife Nicole McNally. They are both longtime residents of Stockton, but do enjoy getting away, especially to the beach at Capitola. When home they enjoy gardening and taking walks as a family. 

Serjio Acevedo

Director of Multicultural Affairs

Serjio Acevedo is the Director of Multicultural Affairs at Pacific. His central duty as Director is to create and sustain a culturally inclusive community across and within the boundaries of culture, sexual orientation, gender, and other social identities. In service to and in partnership with students, faculty, staff, alumni, and other friends, Serjio offers programs, services, and sponsorships such as cultural heritage month observances, diversity leadership retreats, and intercultural trainings that meet the educational and cultural needs of all members of the Pacific community.
A leader within the Pacific community, Serjio was awarded the Martin Luther King, Jr. Peace and Justice Award in 2010 for his social activism on campus to promote diversity and support student leadership. He is also a recipient of the National Association of Student Personnel Administrators (NASPA) Region VI Mid-Level Professional Award for his effective leadership in higher education. He is an active member NASPA and the California Council of Cross Cultural Centers in Higher Education (CaCCCHE) where he continues to actively support efforts to promote diversity and inclusion.
Serjio received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from Oberlin College in 1997 and his Master of Arts in Higher Education Administration degree from the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor in 2001. He received his certification as an Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI) Qualified Administrator from IDI, LLC in 2010. 

Danny Nuss

Director of Office of Service for Students with Disabilities

Danny Nuss is the Director of Services for Students with Disabilities in Pacific's Student Life Division. Danny ensures that all students with disabilities in the Pacific community have the resources they need to be successful. He is an expert in his field and has spoken both nationally and internationally both on issues related to disabilities and also communication strategies. As a student at University of the Pacific, Danny obtained his Bachelors in Communication and is completing his Masters in Communication with an emphasis in Education. Along with speaking engagements, Danny is passionate about serving the community. He served as Co-Chair for the Mayor's Taskforce for Persons with Disabilities and remains active in endeavors to bring awareness and education to the public. He was recently nominated for the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Award here at Pacific and is frequently recognized as a leader on campus. In his free time, Danny enjoys fishing and cheering on the Pacific Tigers sports teams.