A Role Model for Others
The backbone of every organization involved in administering pension benefits remains its people. For every event or training, every member question answered, every retirement planned, there are people behind the scenes working tirelessly to ensure that California public servants receive the benefits they earned.
Perhaps no one knows this better than the California School Employees Association’s (CSEA) Member Benefits Coordinator Debb Jachens.
With nearly 250,000 school support staff, CSEA is the largest classified school employee union in the United States and continues a tradition of member-focused service that started in 1927. Across California, CSEA ensures that discussions around retirement, legislation, contracts, and employee rights reflects the interests of its members.
Driving Change
Jachens’ public service began long before working with members on behalf of CSEA. As a classified school employee, she began as a school bus driver, where she worked alongside other support staff serving students and families.
The same steady hand that guided students safely to school currently guides members to a secure retirement, as she delivers workshops and resources to CSEA’s nearly 800 chapters across the state. It’s this member service that drives her. “Where do I find my satisfaction?” she asked. “Most of the time, it’s with our members.”
As a guide for these members, Jachens possesses an almost encyclopedic knowledge of CalPERS rules and tools and helps connect CSEA members with the pension and retirement benefits that work best for them. Also, if an issue arises, she’s only a phone call away.
“You want to talk to a peer that understands what buying service credit means. And at the end, that person says, ‘I got a lot out of that. I know where I’m going. I understand what I’m doing,’ she said. “So, helping someone with something that impacts them for the rest of their life, that’s what this pension does. What could be more satisfying?”
This commitment comes across to her colleagues as well. “She’s just always been positive,” said CSEA Travel Event Coordinator Rosalinda Cardenas-Vega. “She’s kind of like the mother hen. She keeps us all together. She teaches us through her actions: how to treat our members, how to go that extra mile, how to be there for them when they need you.”
“She comes from the membership, and she gets it,” said CSEA Director of Member Benefits Jessica Albert. “She knows how hard they work to make the schools run. And they [CSEA members] really are the heart and soul and the backbone of the schools.”
Despite being acknowledged with this award, for Jachens the real recognition belongs to those in public service. “I think that to our members and those of us that serve the public, there’s nothing more important than making sure this great state and the schools we have are successful,” she said. “And the people that are serving the kids in that system have everything they need as they go through their career and into retirement.”
Raising the Bar of Public Service Leadership for the Grossmont Healthcare District
What makes an effective public service leader? Each agency or district comes with its own opportunities for leadership as well as headwinds to navigate. For the Grossmont Healthcare District (GHD), Chief Executive Officer Christian Wallis demonstrates daily what it takes to lead a team and ensure the health and wellness of the communities it serves.
GHD is a public agency that supports more than 500,000 residents across 750 square miles of San Diego County. As CEO, Wallis provides vision and direction to the team that works daily to improve community health in this area.
Steering the Ship
Perhaps it’s his Navy background, but since joining the district in May 2021, Wallis has successfully steered the ship of GHD by reorganizing key staff positions and launching groundbreaking initiatives to improve community health in San Diego’s East County. He accomplished this, all while fostering a culture of respect, accountability, integrity, service, and empathy among the team he leads.
“He keeps a North Star in front of the group,” said GHD Director of Emergency Services Paul Larimore. “And it’s clear, it’s transparent. While everyone does not always agree, and sometimes tensions run high, we’re able to agree to disagree [and] always come back to the table and bring back solutions. And Christian is really able to drive that.”
“He is available for everybody,” said Grossmont Medical District Accountant Justine McQuade. “He doesn’t care what level you are. He is not up on a pedestal when you work with him. You’re working arm-in-arm with him, and he’s focused on the betterment of the people around him.”
Making an Impact
With these same values guiding his leadership, Wallis embarked early to carry out an ambitious plan initiated by the GHD Board of Directors. Some highlights of these efforts include:
- Expanding a nurse triage program that connects emergency callers to appropriate services that improve patient care and reduce emergency care wait times.
- Launching a Rural Health Discharge Program to reduce hospital readmissions.
- Successfully rerouting rural public transportation to increase access to the region’s only health clinic.
In addition, Wallis also restructured internal performance and compensation approaches to allow for greater emphasis on goal achievement and professional development. For those he works with, this means being recognized for career achievements and remaining connected to the work they do.
Lessons in Leadership
For Wallis, a big part of public service leadership comes down to decision making. “Early on in my career when I was an ensign in the Navy…there was a standing order, standing order number 10. And 10 was ‘the only bad decision is the one not made.’ That one as a leader really stuck with me.”
And if his impact since joining GHD is any indication, it’s this willingness to make a decision that has led to much of what he and his team has accomplished. “Whether it’s protecting the nation, or whether it’s…trying to make people’s lives better and healthier, I’ve always been more about advancing other peoples’ lives than myself. And that’s probably the epitome of public service.”
We’re Proud to Serve Those Who Serve California
Both Jachens and Wallis were recognized during the Spotlight on Excellence Award presentation at the 25th CalPERS Educational Forum. We applaud their achievements and celebrate the power of public service to transform lives and organizations. Thank you to all those who’ve dedicated their careers to serving California.