2026 NOW Conference Presenter

Laura Hassner

Laura Hassner is the Strategic Advisor to the Chancellor of UC Berkeley. She is also the Executive Director of Innovation & Entrepreneurship at UC Berkeley and the Berkeley Changemaker academic program. Hassner co-created and co-leads the Berkeley Changemaker® academic program. Berkeley Changemaker’s identity-making curriculum activates students’ passions and helps them develop a sharper sense of who they want to be and how to make that happen. She holds a BA, with honors, from Stanford University and an MBA,...

Liliana (Lili) Iglesias

Liliana (Lili) Iglesias has been working at UC Berkeley for over 11 years and has held roles in the Undocumented Student Program (USP) and the Latinx Thriving Initiatives. In her current role as Director for USP, Lili supports USP staff and students, and works with student leaders and partners on and off campus to develop strategies to further meet the needs of undocumented students and their families. Lili approaches her work through multicultural, student/person-centered, and strengths-based frameworks. She loves spending quality time with her son,...

Lita Abella

Lita Abella, JD, BCC, ACC, is a public speaker, author, and board-certified coach specializing in trauma-informed leadership and professional resilience. Drawing on decades in high-stress legal and investigative roles, including the LAPD, State Bar of California, and as a licensed private investigator, she illuminates the human impact of systems, burnout, and change. A certified mediator and college professor, Lita teaches business law, ethics, and conflict resolution while coaching mission-driven professionals to thrive. Her work translates complex legal and wellness concepts...

Lorraine Armijos

LAR Insights, Executive Coach

Lorraine Armijos helps leaders stop firefighting and start leading. A U.S. Air Force veteran, her coaching journey began in the military, where she discovered a principle that still guides her work today: real growth happens when leaders feel both supported and challenged.

With 20 years of experience leading operations and developing leaders in complex organizations - including Fortune 500 healthcare systems - Lorraine transforms reactive operations into high-performing organizations by strengthening management infrastructure and growing the leaders who run it. She has coached and...

Luz Contreras

Luz graduated from UC Berkeley in 2021 with a degree in Ethnic Studies and a double minor in Spanish and Race & Law studies. Luz has been working with the STEP program since its inception in the Spring of 2020 and transitioned from student employee to full time staff member. The STEP program serves students across campus by providing essential technology resources, with an emphasis on those with financial need. Luz is the oldest out of 5 siblings, so her home is always busy! Luz enjoy live music, traveling and exploring

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Mary O. Andrews

Mary O. Andrews, M.A., PCC. is passionate about performance! She first experienced high performance as an Olympic athlete, while studying at Stanford. Coupled with her life-long work on performance, she’s the perfect coach for people wanting to embody excellence.

Knowing human beings are complex, she helps clients harness the power of partnering, producing results beyond one individual. Mary’s superpower is synthesizing what’s being said into team thinking. Her commitment to organizational clients is to provide the thinking space to play big as leaders in the face of daily fire-...

Mary Tettenhorst

As the Founder of Impact Talent Strategies, Mary partners with leaders and organizations to develop people, strengthen teams, and align talent strategy with business goals. With more than 20 years of experience across all facets of talent development, she brings a practical, people-first approach to the
employee lifecycle - from recruiting and onboarding to leadership development, performance management, and succession planning.

Her experience spans both corporate and higher education settings. Mary has served as...

Mayra Hernandez

Mayra Hernandez Coaching, Founder & Leadership coach

Mayra Alexandra Hernandez is an ICF-certified coach (ACC, CPCC) and bilingual facilitator specializing in leadership and mindset development. She helps professionals build emotional intelligence and self-awareness so they can lead with confidence, clarity, and impact.

With over 15 years of experience leading diverse, multilingual operations teams as a chemical engineer, Mayra brings deep, real-world insight into the challenges working professionals face. Born in Venezuela and fluent in English and Spanish, she creates inclusive and supportive coaching environments...

Megan Olivera

Megan Olivera (she/her) is the Manager of Community Partnerships with RISE (Careers and Leadership Office) at Berkeley Public Health. She has worked at Berkeley for 4.5 years and has supervised student employees since 2023, currently supporting a team of two undergraduates. Deeply committed to student development, Megan believes that effective student supervision—when done intentionally—supports both office goals and students’ long-term professional success. Having been a student employee throughout her own education, experiences that helped shape...

Michael Thompson

Building Operations Manager, UC Berkeley, Office of the Chancellor

Michael is a longtime member of the campus community who wholeheartedly embraces and encourages physical movement as a way to support the often tedious and stressful work we encounter in our workday. For more than nine years, he has led spin class, jump rope, and bootcamp at private gyms in Berkeley and Oakland. He believes that you have to spend energy to generate energy in creative ways that are fun, convenient, and nonjudgmental.