General Sessions

	David Bergeron is currently the Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for Policy, Planning and Innovation and Director of the Policy and Budget Development Staff for the Office of Postsecondary Education in the United States Department of Education. In this position, David is responsible for the program budget for the Federal postsecondary education programs administered by the Office of Postsecondary Education and Federal Student Aid which exceed $42 billion in fiscal year 2009 and generates more than $118 billion in student financial aid. David is also responsible for legislative, regulatory and other policies affecting the Department's postsecondary education programs including Federal Student Aid. In this capacity he has led key policy groups working on the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act, researched market-based approaches to loan subsidies under the guaranteed loan programs, and approving program regulations and other policy guidelines. Prior to joining the Department, David received his bachelor's of arts in political science and sociology from the University of Rhode Island and worked for a bank in consumer loans.
	Dina Cipollaro, MA, LPC, is a trainer, consultant, and adjunct faculty member in the areas of hospitality and the art and science of work styles and leadership. Well known for her innovative approach to training, Dina has a Masters degree in Counseling and Educational Psychology and was the Internship & Outreach Coordinator at Lake Tahoe Community College. Dina brings fifteen years of human resources experience and a fresh approach to all her training sessions. A certified "True Colors" facilitator, Dina excels at creating energetic training workshops that both inspire and entertain.
	Dr. Carlos E. Cortés is Professor Emeritus of History at the University of California, Riverside. Since 1990 he has served on the summer faculty of the Harvard Institutes for Higher Education, since 1995 has served on the faculty of the Summer Institute for Intercultural Communication, and since 1999 has been an adjunct faculty member of the Federal Executive Institute. His recent books include The Children Are Watching: How the Media Teach about Diversity and The Making - and Remaking - of a Multiculturalist, published by Teachers College Press. He is co-author of the Houghton Mifflin Social Studies series, senior consultant for the McDougal Littell World History series, and Creative/Cultural Advisor for Nickelodeon's Peabody-award-winning children's television series, "Dora the Explorer," and its sequel, "Go, Diego, Go!," for which he received the 2009 NAACP Image Award. He also performs his one-person autobiographical play, A Conversation with Alana: One Boy's Multicultural Rite of Passage. A consultant to many government agencies, school systems, universities, mass media, private businesses, and other organizations, Cortés has lectured widely throughout the United States, Latin America, Europe, Asia, and Australia on the implications of diversity for education, government, private business, and the mass media.
	In August 2009, Dr. Elsa M. Núñez started her fourth year as president of Eastern Connecticut State University. She came to Eastern with more than 20 years of previous experience as a senior administrator at such institutions as the University of Maine System and City University of New York. Dr. Núñez also has held positions as a tenured faculty member at Ramapo State College, the College of Staten Island of the City University of New York, and Lehman College of the City University of New York. She is the author of "Pursuing Diversity" (1992) and has published numerous articles in the areas of language acquisition, diversity, academic attainment in higher education, cultural differences in education and retention. Dr. Núñez received her B.A. from Montclair State College, an M.A. from Fairleigh Dickinson University and a doctorate in linguistics from Rutgers University. In addition to serving on the American Council on Education’s Commission on Women in Higher Education, Dr. Núñez also serves on the boards of such organizations as the Girl Scouts of Connecticut, the Mark Twain House and Museum, and the New England Association of Schools and Colleges, for which she also serves as chair of the Commission on Institutions of Higher Education. Dr. Núñez was born and raised in Puerto Rico, is married to Richard Freeland, who was president of Northeastern University and is the Commissioner of Higher Education for Massachusetts. They have two children, Maria, an anesthesiologist in Miami, Florida, and Antony, a college counselor for the University of Connecticut who lives in Manchester, CT.
	Jeff Baker has been a student aid professional for more than 35 years, starting at the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee and including almost 20 years at San Francisco State University. Prior to entering the field of financial aid, Jeff was a high school teacher in Port Washington Wisconsin. For the past 15 years Jeff has been at the Department of Education where he is currently the Director of the Policy Liaison and Implementation Staff for the Department’s Federal Student Aid office. In that capacity he advises senior FSA management on all statutory, regulatory, and policy matters that relate to the Title IV Federal student aid programs. Jeff holds a B.S. in Management from Northeastern University, an M.S. in Education from the University of Wisconsin and has done postgraduate work in higher education administration at the University of Southern California. Throughout his financial aid career, Jeff has been an active member of NASFAA serving as a committee chair, trainer and twice as a Commission Director. He is a past member of the WASFAA Executive Council and a Past President of the California association. Jeff is the recipient of numerous awards, including NASFAA’s Meritorious Achievement Award and Regional and State Leadership Award. He has been honored by WASFAA with their Creative Leadership Award and Lifetime Membership Award and is the recipient of a Distinguished Service Award, President’s Award and Lifetime Membership Award from the California association. Jeff is also the recipient of a Distinguished Service Award from The College Board.