Jessica Pacheco: Three Decades Of Experience
A respected strategist and advisor, Jessica Pacheco has spent more than 35 years guiding Arizona’s most influential leaders across business, energy, and public policy. With 25 years at a Fortune 500 energy company, she built a record of driving innovation and forging uncommon partnerships. Jessica is widely recognized for her ability to identify opportunity, overcome complex challenges, and advance shared goals.
A trusted political and civic leader, she has led major statewide initiatives and served as a senior advisor on multiple state and federal campaigns. As Vice Chairwoman of the Arizona Board of Regents, she oversees one of the nation’s largest university systems and will assume the Chairwoman position in 2027, continuing her lifelong commitment to advancing Arizona’s future.
Appointed by the Governor and confirmed by the Arizona Senate, Jessica currently serves an eight-year term as Vice Chairwoman of the Arizona Board of Regents, overseeing the state’s public universities—including the nation’s largest. She is slated to become Chairwoman in 2027.
Jessica is also deeply engaged in the state’s philanthropic and civic communities. She serves on the board Phoenix Thunderbirds, organizers of the world’s largest annual golf tournament, the Phoenix Open. Her philanthropic work includes expanding opportunities for justice-impacted individuals and supporting energy-saving initiatives for data centers. She has held leadership roles with the Arizona–Mexico Commission and the Arizona Chamber of Commerce. A sought-after speaker, she regularly addresses topics ranging from higher education to politics and major state policy initiatives.
Pacheco, is a mother of three and a graduate of the University of Arizona, the Stanford University Executive Program and the MIT Nuclear Reactor Technology course.
Michael Vargas
For 14 years, Michael Vargas represented the state’s largest investor-owned electric utility, Arizona Public Service (APS) at the state Capitol. His primary responsibilities included managing the company’s state government affairs strategy, relationships with third-party organizations, and ensuring company priorities were understood and supported throughout the state. In this position, he worked extensively on public affairs issues encompassing Arizona utility regulation, state legislative procedures and political strategy, and stakeholder management across diverse constituencies. Michael also served as U.S. Sen. Jeff Flake’s State Director, leading the senator’s statewide outreach to constituents and key stakeholder groups. He is widely regarded as a trusted source for political strategy and counsel. A respected voice in Arizona politics, he has guided multiple campaigns and is frequently called upon to provide insights to boards and executive audiences on the state’s political and policy landscape
Away from his professional career, Michael’s passion lies in the outdoors and wide-open spaces, chasing his bird dog around the desert or with a fly rod in hand. An ardent conservationist, he is a board member of the Valley of the Sun Chapter of Quail Forever, a non-profit dedicated to the conservation of quail and other wildlife. He also serves on the board of Conserve and Protect Arizona, an organization that supports the science-based management of wildlife resources and the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation. Michael enjoys taking new hunters and anglers afield to build awareness around the wild places and habitat where these pursuits occur.
Michael graduated from Arizona State University and is a veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps and Army National Guard. He currently resides in Phoenix with his wife Holly, their son River, and daughter Remington.
Grant Packwood: Senior Consultant
Grant Packwood is a community leader and policy professional dedicated to workforce development and coalition building in Arizona. In his previous role as the Director of Community Affairs at Arouet, a Phoenix-based nonprofit, he led initiatives to empower justice-impacted women through education, employment training, and reintegration support. He is a trusted advocate for social justice reform in Arizona.
Grant bridged the gap between the nonprofit sector, local businesses, and the broader community. He has successfully developed and launched strategic partnerships and programs—such as a Storytelling campaign where he trained and deployed over 100 justice-impaired individuals on how to communicate to different audiences or a more recent collaboration with the Refrigeration School Inc. (RSI)—that provides tangible skills and career pathways for formerly incarcerated individuals. A strong advocate for systemic change, Grant has spearheaded immersive “Reentry Simulation” events designed to expose community stakeholders to the structural barriers faced by those re-entering society.
Prior to his work in the nonprofit sector, Grant served in the Arizona State Legislature as a Legislative Aide to then-Senator Robert Meza. In this capacity, he gained deep insight into the state’s legislative processes, government relations, public policy formation, and communications strategies, experiences that now inform his advocacy work.
Grant is known for his ability to streamline complex operations and his commitment to building supportive community networks that reduce recidivism and increase opportunity. He remains an active voice in the Phoenix area, working to standardize best practices for reintegration and community support.
Born and raised in Phoenix, Grant attended Horizon High School in and went on to graduate with a B.A. in International Relations from the University of Southern California. He now makes his home in Central Phoenix. An avid adventurer: Grant enjoys travel, scuba diving, or hitting trails with his border collie, Lily.