Merrick Nguyen, President - Merrick Nguyen (’06) is currently a Financial Advisor for Wells Fargo Advisors in Irvine. In 2012 he partnered with Jason Sherr (OC Cal Alumni Club’s President Emeritus) and together they have a practice that specializes in building financial and retirement plans for their clients which includes helping them manage and protect their assets. Prior to partnering with Jason, Merrick held his practice with Signature Resources in Irvine.
Merrick graduated from UC Berkeley in May 2006 with a Bachelor of Arts in American Studies with a Concentration on American Business and Organizational Behavior. There he had the privilege of playing football for Cal as a linebacker in his first two seasons in 2001 and 2002 before a heart ailment forced him to retire and support the football team off the field as a Student Equipment Manager. He became a member of the OC Cal Alumni Club in 2010 and was named the club’s President in November 2011.
Merrick grew up in Anaheim, CA where he attended Loara High School. He currently resides in Anaheim with his Fiancée Niza and their daughter Arielle. In his spare time he enjoys spending it with Niza and Arielle or playing flag football. If you wish to contact Merrick you may do so by emailing him at merrick.nguyen@wellsfargoadvisors.com.
Jason Sherr, Presidet Emeritus - Jason Sherr ('92) served as President from 2001-2009. He is currently VP-Finance for the Cal Alumni Association. Jason also received an Excellence in Service Award from the Cal Alumni Association in 2009. In his professional life, Jason is a First Vice President-Investments at Wells Fargo Advisors, LLC. He started in the industry in 1992 and has been with his current firm since 2010 and with Smith Barney before that from 1997-2010. Jason is an active member of his community and coached baseball at Corona Del Mar High School. He also chairs the Distinguished Speaker Lecture Series at the Newport Beach Public Library. When not in the office, he enjoys sports, reading, and spending time with friends. A Southern California native, Jason now makes his home in Irvine with his wife, Donna, and their daughter, Savannah.
Greg Haack, Prospective Student Outreach - Greg Haack ('99 Haas School of Business) is CEO of Pacific Group, a full-service national Employee Benefits Brokerage. He joined Pacific Group in 2002 and was promoted from Regional Manager of the San Francisco office to Director of Group Sales. In 2007 he was promoted again to CEO after acquiring an equity position within the company. Along the way, Greg furthered the growth of Pacific Group’s client base in both Northern and Southern California. He was also responsible for the successful opening of the Portland office and expanding the Arizona client base shortly thereafter. Greg has also completed the required courses and examinations to earn his RHU® (Registered Health Underwriter) designation. Before joining Pacific Group, Greg worked for Wells Fargo’s Private Client Services and NetCurrents in the San Francisco Bay Area. While at NetCurrents, Greg was the Controller during NetCurrents’ reverse IPO.
Greg is an Advisory Board Member with National Teen Leadership Program. Born in Portland, Oregon, Greg now makes his home in Irvine with his wife, Thu, and their daughter, Elizabeth. Greg moved to Orange County in 2004 and joined the OC Cal Alumni organization shortly thereafter.
Christopher Page, Website, Alumni Outreach - Christopher Page ('08) graduated from Cal with a B.A. in Physics and Classical Civilizations. Chris moved around a lot growing up. He lived in Washington, Kansas, and Ohio before settling into Orange County. Since graduation, Chris has decided to apply his physics knowledge to engineering. He is currently taking classes for a Masters in Electrical Engineering program. He is also a volunteer worker for the city of Los Angeles in the Information Technology Agency.
Chris has been an active member of the OC Cal Alumni since 2010 and enjoys representing Cal to prospective students at college fairs. He can be found at the club's football viewing parties if he is not at the game itself. He enjoys reading, hiking, and traveling around the country. Chris currently lives in Huntington Beach.
Janette Havens, Membership and Fundraising - Janette Havens ('09) graduated from Cal with a B.S. in Conservation and Resource Studies. While attending Cal she worked for the Museum of Vertebrate Zoology in the Integrative Biology Department. Her studies and work experience reinforced her love of nature, conservation and wildlife. After graduating Janette returned home to Orange County and currently resides in Laguna Beach with her fiance. In her free time Janette enjoys traveling, rock climbing, paddle boarding, practicing yoga, baking, reading, arts and crafts and learning to SCUBA dive. Janette is currently studying to become a high school math teacher but hopes to one day return to Cal for a graduate program.
William Hsiang, Alumni Scholarship Chair - Dr. Hsiang ('68) is a dentist in Irvine. He received his BA from Cal and a dental degree from U. Penn. Born in Shanghai, he has also lived in Thailand, Hong Kong, & all 4 corners of the US. He speaks Mandarin, Shanghainese, Cantonese, Thai, und ein bischen Deutsch. He met his wife in the International House in Philadelphia; and both daughters are CAL grads. He loves to garden and write. The tranquil garden ambiance in his office, Gardenview Dentistry, is his gift to patients. He writes extensively, especially on ethical issues in dentistry. His blog, ethicsinwonderland.com, invites everyone to engage in a difficult discussion on this essential topic. He also initiated the CAL Conversation and Cuisine Circle (C-4), where friends can share conversations on timely topics over fine foods and wines.
Jon Alban, Advisory Board - Jon Alban ('92) graduated from Cal with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration. He then attended Arizona State University College of Law, where he graduated in 1995. Jon has been in Orange County for most of his life, having graduated from Marina High School in Huntington Beach in 1988. Jon currently resides in Huntington Beach with his wife Marcela and their son Noah. Jon is an estate planning attorney at Alban & Alban, A Law Corporation, in Seal Beach. He spends his free time playing sports with Noah, at the beach, on the slopes, and at the Pacific Sands Cabana Club. Jon enjoys traveling, assisting his clients with estates, trusts, and probates, and contributing time to charitable organizations.
Mark Giordano, Advisory Board - Mark Giordano ('99) was part of the first class in the newly formed School of Information at UCB and graduated with a Masters degree in 1999. Before that he attended the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, where he studied electrical engineering and foreign languages. He later relocated to Orange County where he studied law at Whittier and then project management at UC Irvine. He grew up in New York and still visits there occasionally, but likes California much better, although the jury is still out on northern v. southern Cal.
Mark is currently working in the legal department of Skyworks Solutions, a semiconductor design and manufacturing firm. He manages the databases for all legal documents for the company and assists with patent portfolio acquisitions and sales. His great love of books and music resulted in his first few jobs reshelving at the library and selling CDs at an independent music store. Other previous jobs have included helping run a perfume company, making donuts, and washing dishes in a seafood restaurant. Those gigs were sometimes more fun, but his current position is a better fit.
Eugene Gordin, Advisory Board - Eugene Gordin ('06, '07, '10) is a managing partner at SGE Consulting Engineers, a family structural engineering firm with offices in Irvine, CA and Las Vegas, Nevada.
Eugene graduated from UC Berkeley in 2006 with a Bachelors of Science in Civil Engineering with an emphasis in Structural Engineering. In 2007, Eugene received his Masters of Science in Civil Engineering with an emphasis in Engineering & Project Management. Rounding off a grand total of 8 years at Cal, Eugene received his Ph.D. in Civil Engineering in 2010, writing his dissertation on the intersection of structural engineering and public policy as they relate to highway bridges after earthquakes.
After growing up in Irvine, Eugene currently lives with his wife Dina in Aliso Viejo.
Stephen Stafford, Advisory Board - Stephen Stafford ('93) was a four-year varsity letterman for Cal's football team and graduated from Cal with a B.A. in Political Economies of Industrial Societies and later went on to obtain his Juris Doctor from the University of San Francisco School of Law in 2002 and his Master of Law in Taxation (LL.M.) from Chapman University School of Law in 2009. Steve is an attorney at Brown & Streza LLP in Irvine, which provides Estate Planning, Business Planning, Mergers & Acquisitions, Income Tax Planning and Charitable Sector Planning. In his practice Steve counsels closely held businesses, entrepreneurs and real estate investors on business, tax and asset protection planning.
Steve grew up in Fountain Valley and has been an active member of the OC Cal Alumni organization since moving back to OC in 2005. Steve and his wife, Kirsten (Cal '91) have four children.
