Our dedicated team of workforce development specialists have a wealth of expertise in public human services training and development. We look forward to serving as the primary contact for your county’s professional development needs.
Colleen Gordon is a workforce development specialist serving 25 contracts across 14 California counties. She has a decade of experience in human services, including serving as a CalFresh and Medi-Cal Eligibility worker and as a staff development instructor for Fresno County and UC Davis Human Services. She is lead specialist for the Public Assistance Professionals Institute which invites helping professionals across the country to learn and grow together. Her passion is seeing communities thrive through the support of Human Services Staff receiving the training they need.
Otilia Johnson is a workforce development specialist serving human services agencies in the San Francisco Bay Area and southern California regions, as well as over 40 Tribal TANF agencies. She also manages specialized leadership development programs for the California Department of Social Services. She utilizes her expertise in education management and her UC Davis education in Sociology, Psychology, Chicano Studies and Native American Studies to create meaningful and fulfilling learning environments for human services professionals, inspiring community-building and positive change for the well-being of families, youth and children.
Christine Ly is the workforce coordinator with almost 20 years of experience in health and human services—working in Adult Services, Child Welfare, Eligibility and Welfare to Work. Prior to this role, she spent six years training human services staff on a variety of strength-based, solution-focused topics. Christine uses her lived experience, organizational leadership education and coaching skills to support our instructors and staff. Her mission is to empower people so they can, in turn, empower their people to help families rise from their circumstances and thrive in their communities.
Georgina Milam is a workforce development specialist who has been working in continuing and professional education for over 20 years. She serves adult learners and manages UC Davis Human Services’ Open Enrollment courses. Georgina is passionate about the creation and evolution of programs to ensure they continue to serve our clients. She uses her strong institutional knowledge to make meaningful contributions for our department’s internal processes, as well as to provide knowledgeable support to adult learners in the pursuit of their personal and professional educational goals.
Amy Spakosky, M.A., is a workforce development specialist with over 15 years of experience in human services. She specializes in bringing professional development offerings to multiple human services departments, including Child Welfare, Eligibility, Employment Services, and Adult and Aging Services. Amy prioritizes customer and instructor relationships by providing tailored trainings to meet the needs of over two dozen contracts for agencies across California. She is passionate about improving the lives of those most in need by promoting a variety of wellness practices.
Olga Vizir, MBA, is a workforce development specialist serving human services agencies in Northern and Central California. Olga is experienced in Lean Six Sigma process improvement and change management. She is passionate about organizational development, continuous quality improvement and building meaningful relationships with business partners to impact sustainable positive change.
Katie P Yang is a work force development specialist who joined UC Davis Human Services in 2017. She works in partnership with human services agencies across California to provide helping professionals with trainings to meet the goal of improving service delivery for families and children. Her passion for human services stems from her family’s own personal experience with social services, as well as the opportunities it has provided and continues to provide to her community.