SPA Advisory Board
School Mission Statement
The School of Public Affairs lives the ASU Charter by preparing students and professionals for ethical, inclusive, and effective public service; conducting cutting-edge research of public value; and engaging locally, nationally, and internationally with the communities we serve.
CHAIR: Kelly Leid
Director, Lifestyle Operations of Oakwood Homes; Alumni Representative
MPA Advisory Board Member
With twenty-five years of broad-based, results-oriented leadership experience, Mr. Leid’s professional journey has included executive-level strategic planning, implementation and oversight of highly complex community development initiatives across a range of public, private and nonprofit organizations. Some examples include – Empower Field at Mile High (Denver Broncos, 1998-2001), State Farm Stadium (Arizona Cardinals/Fiesta Bowl, 2001-02), Omar D. Blair School/Green Valley Ranch Shared Use Complex (2003-04), Evie Dennis Campus (2008-10), and the National Wester Center Campus (2013-17). Collectively these projects total in excess of $2 billion.
Michael Anderson
Assistant Vice President of Risk and Resilience, ASU
Michael J. Anderson has been named Arizona State University’s assistant vice president of Risk and Resilience. Anderson assumed his role in early January 2023 and reports to Nichol Luoma, vice president of University Business Services. Anderson will oversee operational, reputational and strategic risk areas across ASU to support physical security, emergency preparedness and risk management initiatives, among other duties.
Evelyn Casuga
Director of Community & Economic Prosperity, Center for the Future of Arizona
Evelyn is currently serving several roles in part time employment and as a volunteer in the areas of economic and community development, education, and civic engagement.
She is Director of Community & Economic Prosperity at the Center for the Future of Arizona and serves as a Governing Board member and chair for Central Arizona College where she previously worked for 5 years as community relations advisor in the President’s office. After 25 years, Evelyn retired in December 2014 as General Manager of Community Affairs at APS. Her area encompassed community relations, corporate contributions and volunteer programs, economic development, and strategic partnerships. She served in numerous leadership roles during her tenure at APS including Southeast Arizona Division Manager with operations, maintenance, construction and community interface responsibilities.
Mary Denigan-Macauley
Director of Public Health in the Health Care team for the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO)
Mary Denigan-Macauley is a Director of Public Health in the Health Care team for the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO)—a nonpartisan and independent investigative arm of the U.S. Congress. She joined GAO in 2001, managing a diverse portfolio related to science and infectious zoonotic diseases. Her current work evaluates the effectiveness of federal programs to promote and ensure public health. Areas of focus under her leadership include leadership and coordination of public health emergencies, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, surveillance of infectious diseases, and the medical response to disasters; biodefense; oversight of drug, biologic and device manufacturing and safety; antimicrobial resistance; and biosafety and security of select agents and other high-risk pathogens. Her work has resulted in numerous congressional reports, testimonies, and legislation. It has also been highlighted in print and broadcast media, such as the Washington Post, NY Times, and national TV stations. Before joining GAO, Mary Denigan-Macauley taught public policy for Sam Houston State University in Texas and Troy University in Japan. She was also a visiting professor at the Georgian Institute of Public Affairs in Tbilisi, Georgia, to promote sound and ethical governance. She graduated from the University of Delaware with a Bachelor of Science, attained a Master of Science from the University of Arizona, and earned a Ph.D. in Public Administration from Arizona State University.
Andrew Gorgey
Founder, Columbia Ltd.
Andrew (Drew) Gorgey is one of the premiere executive recruiters in the United States. He founded Columbia Ltd, a well-regarded executive recruiting firm, in 2016, registered with the Arizona Corporation Commission as Columbia, Ltd. of Arizona, LLC. Recruiting actively in Arizona since 2017, Mr. Gorgey brings a local government executive recruiter’s perspective to the advisory board. His interests include the Marvin Andrews Fellowship and the Jane Morris Fellowship, among others.
Mr. Gorgey has served as a local government attorney, manager, and recruiter for nearly 25 years. He holds an undergraduate degree in English from the University of Colorado, as well as a Juris Doctor from the University of South Carolina School of Law.
Gabe Lavine
Director, Arizona Division of Emergency Management
Gabe Lavine serves as the director of the Arizona Division of Emergency Management, one of five divisions in the Arizona Department of Emergency and Military Affairs. In this role, he manages the state’s emergency preparedness, response, recovery, and mitigation efforts, and supports county and tribal emergency managers.
Gina Ramos Montes
Deputy City Manager, City of Phoenix
MPA Advisory Board Member
Gina Montes has spent her career of 28 years in local government. She is the Deputy City Manager for the City of Phoenix currently overseeing the Neighborhood Services, Housing, Human Services, Homeless Solutions and Heat Response and Mitigation departments. Gina also served as Assistant City Manager for the City of Avondale, Arizona, overseeing operations for the organization and a diverse range of city services including police, fire, public works and finance, among other functions. She began her career at the City of Phoenix as an internal auditor and was promoted to a variety of positions including deputy city auditor and deputy director of the Human Services Department before being named founding director of Avondale’s Neighborhood and Family Services Department.
Jen Pokorski
County Manager, Maricopa County
MPA Advisory Board Member
Jen Pokorski has been part of the Maricopa County family since 2005 and was appointed County Manager in April 2023. As she said after her appointment, Jen believes "in the power of government to do good because I’ve seen firsthand the impact our services and programs have. I also believe government must be responsive and accountable to residents because I’ve worked directly with folks whose lives are impacted by our action or inaction. Those things will never be far from my mind as I work to carry out the Board’s vision for Maricopa County.”
Jeremy Rodrigues
Senior Director of Enterprise Security, Excelerate Energy
Jeremy Rodrigues is the Senior Director of Enterprise Security at Excelerate Energy, a leader in the floating liquified natural gas (LNG) industry. In this role, he is responsible for the security of the company's global operations and assets. In addition to his work at Excelerate Energy, Jeremy serves as a faculty associate at Arizona State University's School of Public Affairs, where he teaches courses in homeland security studies.
Rick Shangraw
President, Cintana Education
Dr. Shangraw has spent most of his career scaling organizations while at the same time improving the quality of organizational outcomes. Currently, he serves as president of Cintana Education. Cintana Education is Arizona State University’s global implementation partner. He is the executive sponsor for partnerships in Eastern Europe, Central Asia, and India. He also oversees Cintana’s professional services teams. From November 2021 to May 2023, he also served as the founding president of American University Kyiv.
Judith Leonard
General Counsel, Emerita, Smithsonian Institution
Judith Leonard served as General Counsel of the Smithsonian Institution from 2009 – 2023, advising and representing the Board of Regents, the Secretary, and management and leading the Office of the General Counsel. In that role she coordinated and oversaw all legal matters for the institution, including issues of public and non-profit law. She also served as the Smithsonian Secretary’s designee to the Board of Trustees of the Woodrow Wilson Center for International Scholars. Prior to the Smithsonian, she served as Vice President and General Counsel of the University of Arizona from 1998 to 2009 and as General Counsel of the Office of National Drug Control Policy in the Executive Office of the President from 1997 to 1998. Ms. Leonard was also an attorney for the U.S. Department of Education, an Assistant Attorney General in Arizona and an Associate University Counsel for the University of North Carolina.
Mary Foote
Director, Greater Arizona Development Authority
Mary Foote is the Director of the Greater Arizona Development Authority where she oversees financing for public infrastructure statewide. Within the Arizona Finance Authority, Mary works to grow public financing for housing and other important initiatives. Mary is the former CEO of Pipeline AZ, a non-profit organization that supports statewide workforce development efforts through custom software solutions.