Board Member Profiles
Catherine Condon, MPH, is a Resource Development Administrator with the Marin County Department of Health and Human Services, Division of Alcohol, Drug & Tobacco Programs. In this capacity, she is responsible for developing and facilitating alcohol and other drug prevention and treatment service delivery programs and the related funding strategies. Ms. Condon has served as a Board member of the California Prevention Collaborative since June 2005, and has served as the Board’s Vice-President since December 2006. In her spare time, she is a travel enthusiast.
Yolanda Cordero is the Prevention Coordinator for the County of Los Angeles Alcohol and Drug Program Administration (ADPA). She has over 25 years of experience working in the alcohol and drug (AOD) prevention field. She currently serves as the Section Head for the Prevention Section. Ms. Cordero assist the Division Chief with addressing issues related to preventing AOD problems in local communities. She oversees 69 contracted agencies and is responsible for aligning the programs to comply with State funding requirements. In addition she provides training and technical assistance to providers and other community-based organization. Ms. Cordero earned a Bachelors of Science in Public Administration from the University of La Verne.
Ruben Imperial coordinates the Education and Prevention Services for Stanislaus County’s Behavioral Health and Recovery Services (BHRS), the County’s administrator and service provider of mental health and alcohol and other drug services. With years of experience in community-based youth development, marketing, and as an analyst in substance abuse treatment programs, Ruben leads the County’s efforts in implementing its five-year alcohol and other drug prevention plan. In addition to his role in prevention, Ruben is the Public Information Officer for BHRS, responsible for media relations and marketing efforts.
Sharon O'Hara has worked in the Prevention field in California since 1990, and is currently the Director of the Center for Community Action & Training (CCAT) at Fighting Back Partnership. Previously, she served as the founding Executive Director of Community Action Resource Exchange, a community based nonprofit organization in Oxnard, California, and as an Associate Director for the Marin Institute. Sharon lives with her family in the San Francisco Bay area, and loves to kayak every chance she gets.
Sergio Paz is a long time Youth Advocate and Community Activist. With15 years of experience, Sergio works in the drug and violence prevention field by providing technical assistance and awareness trainings, workshops and presentations to individuals, parents groups, professionals and agencies. Sergio is directly involved and provides gang prevention and intervention activities for youth at the Teen Center he founded in his community of Lennox.
Jeanne Shimatsu is the Prevention Coordinator for the Asian American Drug Abuse Program, Inc. (AADAP, Inc.) in Los Angeles. With over 20 years of experience in the substance abuse prevention field, Ms. Shimatsu is responsible for a team of community organizers in the South Bay region of Los Angeles County who focus on Asian and Pacific Islander (API) Alcohol, Tobacco and Other Drugs (ATOD) specific mobilization and youth and communities of color ATOD mobilization. Under the guidance of Ms, Shimatsu, the prevention team has successfully worked with local cities to pass over 7 ordinances related to limiting youth access to tobacco, along with ATOD based resolutions. In addition, Ms. Shimatsu is coordinating efforts to collect and analyze data specific to select Asian and Pacific Islander and youth populations on ATOD patterns and perceptions of substance use.
Chris J. Villa is the Regional Director of Family Outreach & Community Intervention Services, F.O.C.I.S. in Montebello, CA. In this capacity, Chris has developed prevention and intervention programs including Project A.B.L.E. (Ability to Build a Life of Excellence), a prevention program utilized countywide with components including substance abuse education, anger management and HIV prevention. He is also involved in public policy on the local, county and statewide levels including being appointed Commissioner on the Los Angeles County Commission on HIV Health Services. He was elected to the California Prevention Collaborative Board in December 2007.
Judy Walsh-Jackson has been working in the drug/alcohol treatment and prevention field since 1984. Her educational background, both undergraduate and graduate, is in the field of Social Work with a concentration in Policy and Administration. In addition to being on the Board of the CPC, she is also the Immediate Past President of the California Council on Alcohol Policy (Cal Council) and is currently the Chair of the California Coalition on Alcopops and Youth, a diverse, broad-based coalition of individuals and community-based organizations who have joined together to help contain the growing problem of underage drinking, in general and specifically “alcopops” ---- flavored alcoholic beverages that are marketed to and popular with underage drinkers, particularly girls.