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Board and Staff

The mission of Employment & Community Options is to seeks to create and support opportunities for adults with disabilities and disadvantaged seniors in making choices to live, work and enjoy life in their community with dignity and respect. Our goal is to enhance the quality of life of each individual we support.  Employment & Community Options cannot fulfill this mission alone.  It is only through a close and continuing interaction with the community that we can be sure of having the necessary guidance and support to appropriately respond to the needs of our constituencies.

The Board of Directors takes the lead in promoting the mission and services of Employment & Community Options.  This volunteer board is led by Michel Anderson, the Chairman of the Board of Employment & Community Options.

Michel Anderson is the proprietor and the owner of Michel Anderson & Associates, as well as a board member of The San Diego Foundation and the Foundation for Educational Achievement.  He is also a member of the City of San Diego Real Estate Advisory Committee. He holds a Bachelor's degree in Political Science from the University of Cincinnati and an MBA from the University of San Diego.

Other Board members are: 

Steve Cassarino and his partner Lee N. Gerovitz are the Clever Cleaver Brothers, professional chefs who have turned their love for food and laughter into a unique career as media personalities, cookbook authors, magazine columnists and “stand-up chef’s”.  Steve has been involved with Employment & Community Options special events starting with our golf tournament.  He has been our master of ceremonies at several of our events.  Steve and his wife Janice have two children; Riana, (who has a developmental disability) and Giovanni. 

Ken Kisbert has been in commercial real estate for 19 years, and is currently working for Colliers International. Most of his business is office leasing and sales in Kearny Mesa and Mission Valley. Ken's experience with Employment & Community Options relates primarily with helping locate or relocate many of the Employment & Community Options offices in the San Diego area.  Ken has been on the Employment & Community Options Leadership Council since its inception in 2003.  Ken lives in Scripps Ranch with his wife Michele and two boys, Ian 10 and Craig 7.  Ken is on the Board of Directors of the San Diego Advertising Golf Association where he has been serving as a member since 2001 and President in 2004. 

Stephanie Murphy, a native San Diegan has over ten years experience working in the non-profit sector. Since 2007 she has worked at Consumer Credit Counseling Services as the Regional Director of Education, Development & Community Relations for Southern California. In addition to running a successful program that provides financial literacy, first time homebuyer and bankruptcy classes to individuals, businesses and non-profit organizations, she also is responsible for creating collaborative relationships through out the community. Stephanie is currently an instructor for UCSD Extension teaching workforce development and financial literacy classes. Prior to working for Consumer Credit Counseling Services, she worked for National University, ACCESS Inc. and San Diego Career Opportunities Partners providing workforce development services to over 300 local businesses. She is a 2007 LEAD graduate and the recipient of San Diego Workforce Partnership’s Workforce Development Professional of the Year in 2007. She is a graduate from San Diego State University with a BA in Communicative Disorders.

Marjorie Olney, Ph.D. Dr. Marjorie F. Olney is an Associate Professor in the Department of Administration, Rehabilitation, & Postsecondary Education at San Diego State University where she teaches in the graduate program in Rehabilitation Counseling and directs several projects including the Certificate program and Specialization in Psychiatric Rehabilitation and the Center for Emerging Leadership. Dr. Olney conducts research on issues in disability including barriers to employment with a specific focus on cognitive and psychiatric disabilities. She has published 30 articles, chapters, books and reports, presented papers at numerous state and national conferences, and provided training to rehabilitation professionals across the country. Dr. Olney is Principal Investigator on three federal grant projects and Co-Principal Investigator on a fourth. She also serves the community and profession on various local, state and national committees and boards. Dr. Olney was recently named chair of the Program and Service committee of the Employment and Community Options Board of Directors.

Andris Ramans spent 25 years as a senior executive working in the semiconductor manufacturing industry in Santa Clara County.  Andris is a graduate of UC Berkeley.  He and his wife Betty have four adult children Ed, Mark, Andy and Eriks.  Eriks has been receiving services from Employment & Community Options’ Independent Living Skills program for the past 5 years.  Andris and his wife Betty have been members of the San Jose Leadership Council for the past two years.

Frank Whelan, CPA is the Assistant Controller at the Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies (TPIMS), a 501(c)(3) biotech research center dedicated to conducting fundamental research to advance the understanding of human disease and the improvement of human health. At TPIMS, he heads up the Finance and Accounting department for the company's California division. Prior to working at TPIMS, he was a Senior Auditor with the CPA firm of Sonneberg & Company, specializing in audits of nonprofit organizations. He is a Certified Public Accountant with a Bachelors degree in Economics from the University of California, San Diego, and an accounting certificate from UCSD Extension. He has also worked in accounting for a property management company and understands accounting and financial reporting for large apartment complexes including tax credits properties.

Randy Yee is a commercial insurance professional.  He started his practice by developing and marketing  alternative risk solutions to service providers for individuals with developmental disabilities.  Prior to establishing himself in the insurance industry, Randy spent over 15 years with Xerox Corporation in various management positions in sales, marketing and human resources.  He recently held the position of Vice President, Business Development at a large insurance brokerage company.  A graduate of San Diego State University, Randy earned his degree in Business Administration and currently resides in San Diego's north county with his wife and two daughters.

William Van Cleave is a Public Defender Investigator in San Jose, California. He received his Master’s Degree from San Jose State University and is a Veteran of the United States Marine Corps. William previously served on the Board of Directors of Children and Family Services, a program that provides low income single parents with childcare for their children. William enjoys being involved in the community and volunteers for 2nd Harvest Food Bank and the Marine Corps Toys for Tots programs. For the past three years, William has volunteered with Employment and Community Options in Northern California and previously served on their San Jose Leadership Council.  William lives in Morgan Hill, California with his wife, Sydnie.

Key Staff 

President/CEO – Nancy Batterman
Nancy Batterman has been with Employment & Community Options for its entire 21 year history.  She has been the President since 1992.  Nancy has her Master in Education with in emphasis in Special Education and a Masters of Business Administration both from San Diego State University.  Nancy is recognized throughout the state for her leadership in the area of vocational rehabilitation and is the President of the California Rehabilitation Association, the state trade association for programs like Employment & Community Options.

Working for over 20 years to create opportunities for individuals with developmental disabilities to grow through day programs, supported employment, mobility training, and independent-living services, Nancy Batterman has accrued knowledge and experience. As Executive Director of Community Options Division of the Foundation for Educational Achievement, she has demonstrated management and operations expertise that supports her educational foundation in Special Education/Mental Retardation. Also, Ms Batterman drove the origination of various programs in conjunction with other organizations such as Independent Living Services, San Diego Regional Center, San Andreas Regional Center, the Foundation College, and the State of California Employment Training Panel. Through such projects, Ms. Batterman gained and demonstrated substantial skills in coordinating the efforts of participating organizations and in managing large projects.

Well known throughout California through her extensive work in several professional associations, Ms. Batterman gained valuable experience in dealing with issues related to services for individuals with developmental disabilities in California. Dealing with the Department of Developmental Services and the Department of Rehabilitation, she worked extensively in the areas of rates and consumer rights legislation.

Nancy can be reached at nbatman@communityoptions.org

Chief Financial Officer – Bryan Ducote
Bryan Ducote has been with Employment & Community Options since May 2004. Bryan obtained an undergraduate degree with a double major in History and Religion from Claremont McKenna College.  He went onto receive his Masters in Public Administration (MPA) degree from USC.  While there he concentrated his studies in financial management of nonprofit and public sector organizations.  He is also a proud graduate of LEAD San Diego.

Bryan has 10 years experience serving as a business and fiscal manager for non profit and public sector entities.  In his current role, he is responsible for the budgetary, administrative, and fiscal operations of the organization.  He has performed similar fiscal, budgetary, business development and business operations responsibilities in his previous positions with the City of Chula Vista, City of Paramount, and the State of California. 

Bryan can be reached at bducote@communityoptions.org

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