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Statewide Team
Leah Goold-Haws
Statewide Director - Global Trade
Leah Goold-Haws is an innovator and pioneer in ecommerce and global entrepreneurship. She brings decades of experience from the business world to higher education as Statewide Director of Global Trade for the California Community Colleges Workforce and Economic Development Division. In that role, she oversees a team that works with California’s 115 community colleges to build a globally-competent workforce. Additionally, she is the Executive Director for the California International Trade Center (CITC) powered by the California Community College Chancellor’s Office in partnership with the Small Business Development Center, where she manages the development of trade service programs, including global ecommerce training, to assist small to midsize companies in growing their export sales.
Prior to becoming Statewide Director, Leah served as Deputy Sector Navigator of Global Trade and Logistics in both Northern California and the Los Angeles County region. She’s been a consultant for the Small Business Development Centers and as a trade consultant for the Centers for International Trade Development. As Los Angeles Regional Director, she managed and operated a federal Market Development Cooperator Program (MDCP) under the International Trade Administration, which provided training in ecommerce for cross-border trade to companies throughout Southern California.
Over the course of her career, Leah has launched three successful businesses and is a tireless advocate for women in business. She was the executive director of Working Strategies for Women, an initiative built on the Know Opportunity curriculum she designed to teach global entrepreneurship. She created a board game based on the Know Opportunity framework that was featured in Forbes and Inc. magazines. She is a published contributing author and active public speaker, including a TEDx talk titled “You Are Here.”
Leah is also active in several civic and community organizations. She is the economic commissioner for international trade on behalf of the City of Long Beach, the chamber president for the International Business Association in Long Beach, board member for the Los Angeles World Trade Center, and an advisory board member for the Get Global International Conference
Alicia Rios
Regional Director - Central and Mother Lode
Alicia Rios started her career in global trade as an intern in the Center for International Trade Development and eventually became the organization’s director. She’s now bringing that professional experience and personal passion to her role as Regional Director for Global Trade in the Central Valley Region.
Rios was born and raised in Hanford and earned her Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration with an emphasis on International Business from California State University, Fresno.
“As a Valley resident, I am very familiar with the many agricultural assets located within the Central Valley, and as such, I look forward to working in my new role to involve and engage the colleges and industry within the Central/Mother Lode region as it relates to global trade,” Rios said.
Before becoming Regional Director, Rios directed the Center for International Trade Development. She spent 15 years at the organization and assisted more than 5,500 companies — including 150 women and minority-owned agriculture and food businesses — with export expansion and foreign market development.
“I was able to drive more economic development activities to the Central Valley by encouraging foreign buying groups to visit the Valley to meet with the many agricultural producers that have made California the number one agricultural exporting region in the country,” Rios said.
Rios also has extensive experience building partnerships across industry, government, education, and other sectors, particularly related to global trade and economic development. She’s participated in three California Governor’s Trade Missions and secured funding for more than 100 internships and study abroad programs.
She looks forward to bringing all of that experience to her role as regional director. Her goals include strengthening collaborations between education and industry and creating career pathways that include global trade certificate programs.
Ruth Amanuel
Regional Director - Los Angeles
Ruth Amanuel brings years International Trade and community outreach experience to the California Community Colleges. Prior to serving in this role, she was part of Los Angeles Mayor Garcetti’s International Trade team. As an International Trade Specialist responsible for executing the Mayor’s Export Program, Ruth worked closely with the Ports, Airports and across diverse industries. Ruth also consulted for the Center for International Trade Development where she led the BEAM e-commerce program designed to help businesses increase online sales. Ruth holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Toronto and graduate certificate in International Trade from UCLA. A true global citizen, she has lived and worked in seven countries and speaks four languages and is proud to call Los Angeles her home.
Gordon Hinkle
Regional Director - North and Far North
Gordon Hinkle is an established global business professional with high-level working proficiency in private, public and non-profit industry sectors. He has over 20 years of experience in business and economic development, and know-how in building customized programs in both government and non-government roles. Gordon served in appointed Presidential, Gubernatorial, Congressional, and local government positions of leadership (federal, state, county, and city levels) as well as an elected position in Placer County. He was most recently serving as Vice President for a global business platform focused on promotion of education, sports, entertainment, food and agriculture, and commercial goods and services in Asia. He now joins the California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office as the newly appointed Deputy Sector Navigator Global Trade and Regional CITD Representative.
Adilene Polis
Regional Director - South Central Coast
Adilene has more than 15 years of experience working in the Global Trade sector helping U.S. companies build their brands outside of the United States. Polis was the Senior International Business Development Manager for Paris Presents, which has brands such as Real Technique, Eco Tools, and Freeman. There, she built a solid global business to the brands, growing the international division over 85% in two years. She has extensive experience in logistics, regulatory, global business development, and international market. Polis is a native of Brazil where she earned her bachelor’s degree from Pontifícia Universidade Católica de Campinas. And in Los Angeles, she completed the extension program at UCLA in Marketing and International Business.
Nicole Kelly
Regional Director - Bay Area
We are virtual due to the Covid-19 Pandemic and will update our hours in the future. Please reach out via email directly to your Regional Director.
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4900 E. Conant Street,
Long Beach, CA 90808
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