C.L. Lopez

C.L. Lopez is the Human Services Communications Officer, County of San Bernardino, the largest geographic county in the United States. She oversees communication for ten human services departments (including Aging and Adult Services, Behavioral Health, Child Support Services, Children and Family Services, Children's Network, Preschool Services, Public Health, Transitional Assistance and Veterans Affairs).

Lopez has focused on advancing her county's use of technology, social media presence and media outreach. She is currently a CAPIO member, enrolled in the J. Lindsey Wolf PIO Institute and will be presenting at the annual conference. She joined the County of San Bernardino in 2008 as the media specialist for the Department of Child Support Services. She was a scholarship chair, vice president and two-term President of the Inland Southern California Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists. Her work garnered accolades from the Associated Press News Executive Council and Society of Professional Journalists. During her journalism career, she interned for the Press-Enterprise and Los Angeles Times Community newspapers, worked at the Redlands Daily Facts and Desert Sun newspapers and was a 2005 California Endowment Health Journalism Fellow.

Rachel McGuire

As a senior member of Western Municipal Water District’s community affairs team, Rachel’s responsibilities include assisting with Western’s comprehensive communications program, including community engagement, strategic planning and emergency/crisis communications.

Prior to working at Western, she served as the communications coordinator for the City of Carlsbad where she assisted with developing the city’s new website and social media efforts as well as the award-winning Carlsbad Currents newsletter. Rachel has also has worked for the cities of Palmdale and Lancaster’s communication departments.

Rachel enjoys giving back to her profession and has been part of the CAPIO Board of Directors for the past four years, currently serving as CAPIO’s president. She has also served as the first vice president and awards chair and conference chair. Rachel holds an MBA from the University of Redlands and a B.A. in Communication Studies from UCLA.

Krista Noonan

Krista Noonan has over 20 years of experience in the public relations, communications, and marketing industries. Currently, she is the Director of Communications for the California State Teachers’ Retirement System (CalSTRS), the largest educator‐only pension fund in the world. In her position, she is responsible for state, national and international strategic communications, media relations, internal communications and multi‐media efforts for the second largest pension fund in the U.S., serving over 850,000 members. Prior to joining CalSTRS, Krista served as the Director of Communications for the California Redevelopment Association, the Public Information Officer for the City of Citrus Heights, the Public Relations Director for KB Home’s Northern California Region, and the Public Relations and Marketing Director for The Salvation Army’s Northern California and Nevada divisions. She has a breadth of public relations and marketing experience with for‐profit and non‐profit/public service organizations. Krista is an active volunteer in the local community, lending a helping hand to organizations such as The Salvation Army (Women’s Auxiliary), the Sacramento Public Relations Association (SPRA), the California Association of Public Information Officials (CAPIO), and Rebuilding Together (PR and Media Board Chair). Krista is a graduate of UC Davis with a degree in Rhetoric and Communications, and a minor in Sociology.