Alumni Senate

The PA Alumni Senate is the governance body established to support and promote the advancement of the PA Program and the continued development of the Pacific PA Alumni Association.


Current Officers

  • Makenzie Saxe, PA-C, Class of ’19, Immediate past president
  • Chelsea Brekke, PA-C, Class of ’20, President
  • Jena McCall, PA-C, Class of ’21, Vice President & President-elect
  • Chelsea Payne, PA-C, Class of ’20, Secretary
  • Iris Orion, Class of ’22, Treasurer
  • Todd Budenz, PA-C, Class of ’19, Member at large
  • Val McGee, PA-C, Class of ’19, Member at large
  • Rosie Pauli Bains, PA-C, Class of ’19, Member at large
  • Cierra Quick, PA-C, Class of ’19, Member at large
  • Janet Lechuga, PA-C, Class of ’20, Member at large
  • Tori Maynard, PA-C, Class of ’21, Member at large
  • Jessica Upton, PA-C, Class of ’21, Member at large
  • Morgan Hurley, PA-C, Class of ’21, Member at large
  • Brittany Anghel, PA-C, Class of ’21, Member at large
  • Kristin Woodworth, PA-C, Class of ’21, Member at large
  • Kendall Gamche, PA-C, Class of ’21, Member at large


PA Alumni Association Facebook Page

The Pacific PA Alumni Association invites all PA alumni to join their Facebook page for the most up-to-date information:

Honors & Awards

Certificates, Awards, and Honors

Certificate for Excellence in Academic Achievement

This certificate is awarded to students in the top 25% of the class who maintained a cumulative GPA greater than 3.75 in the first six trimesters and were never placed on academic probation at the programmatic or university level.

  • 2019 — Breann Kinsey, Roseanna Pauli, Nicola Juri, Jennifer Dang, Lorissa Lorenzo-Trujillo, Lyndsay Garner, Blake Beck, Pooja Kachhia, Jack Jones III, Jordan Jepson, Kirsten Shimizu
  • 2020 — Emily Scroggs, Chelsea Payne, Donald Vertrees, Emily Smith, Nicole Briggs, Angela Stroman, Brandon Wong, Jessi Riel, Cayla Clark, Megan Culberson
  • 2021 — Elizabeth Kepley, Jena McCall, Joshua Murrett, Sarah Riesinger, Victoria Hobel, Emily Chalfant, Megan McManigal, Courtney Grayson, Christine Sung, Katrina Pfannenstiel
  • 2022 – Lauren Wirdzek, Stevie Lamb, Cassandra Annunziata, Garrett Austin, Brooke O’Neill, Alec Larson, Cara Peters, Haylie Szabo, Tu Do, Terasina Zaragoza, Steven Andrews
  • 2023 - Mya Alves, Natalie Brewer, Angela Briones, Jessica Burgess, Emma Edmond, Hannah Goodale, Irina Kilyushik, Madeline Lyman, Amanda Navarro, Kelsey Thayer
Certificate for Best Overall Capstone Project

This certificate is awarded to the student who was voted on by the faculty as having the best overall Capstone Project.

  • 2019 — Alison Dutton, “The Consequences of Adverse Childhood Experiences on Health and Implications for the Future.”
  • 2020 — Leslie Hohenbrink, “The Provider’s Approach to Addressing Vaccine Hesitancy.”
  • 2021 — Megan McManigal, “Is the Complementary Alternative Medicine, Mucuna Pruriens, an Admissible Contender in the Treatment of Parkinson’s Disease?”
  • 2022 – Taylor Kane, “Efficacy of Fish Skin Grafts in Managing Complicated Wounds Compared to Standard Grafts; a Review.”
  • 2023 – Ira Santos, “Probiotics and Maternal Health Outcomes in Females with Gestational Diabetes”

Certificate for Best Capstone Oral Presentation

This certificate is awarded to the student who was voted on by the faculty as giving the best Capstone Presentation.

  • 2019 — Jack Jones III, “Pre-exposure prophylaxis as a prevention strategy for HIV seroconversion in the men who have sex with men population with comparison of its effectiveness in other at-risk groups”
  • 2020 — Josephine Appeng, “Human Trafficking in Healthcare and the Efforts to Identify and Rescue”
  • 2021 — Lauren Bennett, “A New Paradigm for Antimicrobial Therapy”
  • 2022 – Lauren Wirdzek, “The effects of COVID-19 infections during pregnancy on maternal, fetal, and neonatal outcomes.”
  • 2023 – Jennifer Miller, “Conventional versus Robot-Assisted Total Knee Arthroplasties in Patients with Knee Osteoarthritis”
Award for Exceptional Leadership

This award is presented to a student in recognition of their demonstrated ability throughout their PA student experience to lead. Exceptional leadership is characterized by significance, effectiveness, innovation, and inclusiveness.

  • 2019 — Nicola Juri
  • 2020 — Jordan Hernandez
  • 2021 — James Grant Fahey
  • 2022 – Haylee Tracy
  • 2023 – Amanda Navarro
Spirit of Pacific Award

This award recognizes a student who has, throughout the program, embodied the Program’s mission and values by demonstrating their commitment to treating others with respect and dignity, commitment to community, compassion through service, integrity and character, strong leadership skills, and excellence in academic achievement.

  • 2019 — R. Todd Budenz
  • 2020 — Chelsea Payne
  • 2021 — Victoria Maynard
  • 2022 – Iris Orion
  • 2023 – Anabel Ingwerson
Clinical Excellence Award

This award recognizes a graduating PA student who demonstrated clinical excellence during clinical rotations.

  • 2019 — Lyndsay Garner
  • 2020 — Jill Nowicki
  • 2021 — Zachary Reese
  • 2022 – Stevie Lamb
  • 2023 – Emma Edmond
Award for Resilience

This award recognizes a deserving student who overcame significant obstacles during their student experience, demonstrating resilience and strength of character through intentional perseverance.

  • 2019 — Marissa Cadena
  • 2020 — Jamie Romero
  • 2021 — Jose Barros
  • 2022 – Tu Do
  • 2023 – Joanna Martinez
Preceptor of the Year Award

This award recognizes a preceptor for their significant contributions in clinical education during clinical rotations. Students nominate and vote for this award.

  • 2018 - 2019 — Robert Ginther, PA-C, Modern Urgent Care
  • 2019 - 2020 — Matthew Kurowski, PA-C, Kaiser Roseville – General Surgery
  • 2020 - 2021 — Naoki Miyakawa, PA-C, Kaiser Modesto
  • 2021 - 2022 – Star Hildabrand, PA-C, James Dalton Medical Office at Angels Camp
  • 2022 - 2023 – Dr. Robert Assibey
Inductees to The Honor Society Phi Kappa Phi
  • 2019 — Jennifer Dang, Nicola Juri, Breann Kinsey, Roseanna Pauli
  • 2020 — Cayla Clark, Jessie Riel, Emily Clyma, Chelsea Payne, Emily Smith, Angela Stroman and Brandon Wong
  • 2021 — Katrina Pfannenstiel, Elizabeth Kepley, Joshua Murrett, Sarah Riesinger
  • 2022 – Steven Andrews, Cassandra Annunziata, Garret Austin, To Do, Alexandra French, Stevie Lamb, Alec Larson, Kory Lord, Brooke O’Neill, Haylie Szabo, Lauren Wirdzek, Terasina Zaragoza
  • 2023 – Hannah Davis, Alexandra Martin, Amanda Navarro
Inductees to Pi Alpha — The National Honor Society for Physician Assistants
  • 2019 — Blake Beck, Amanda Diep, Alison Dutton, Nicola Juri, Makenzie Saxe, Liane Tongol
  • 2020 — Emily Clyma, Megan Culberson, Donald Vertrees, Chelsea Payne, Angela Stroman, Brandon Wong
  • 2021 — Michael Benaron, Kendall Daasnes, Courtney Grayson, Jena McCall, Zachary Reese, Kristin Woodworth
  • 2022 – Julia Beck, May Chhun, Garrett Couchman, Shelby Greenelsh, Alec Larson, Jenna Leech
  • Faculty — Tracey DelNero, PA-C, Jed Grant, PA-C, Jessica Garner, PA-C, Jacie Touart, PA-C, Curtis Fowler, PA-C
  • 2023 – Anabel Ingwerson, Paige Maberry, Jennifer Miller, Connor O’Keefe, Emily Orwig, Kelsey Thayer
  • Faculty – Nancy Hamler, PA-C
Alumni of the Year Award

This award recognizes a graduate of the MPAS program at the University of the Pacific for their significant contributions to the PA Program and the PA profession.

  • 2020 — Makenzie Saxe, PA-C, Class of '19
  • 2021 — Nicola Juri, PA-C, Class of '19
  • 2022 – Brendan Lucas, PA-C, Class of ‘19
  • 2023 – Jordan LeMasters, PA-C, Class of ‘20