Staff & Board

Laura Marcus | Chief Executive Officer

Laura Marcus, MPH started her career in nonprofits in 1997 as part of an HIV/AIDS prevention project in South Africa. Laura joined Dientes Community Dental Care in 2004 and served as Executive Director from 2006 through 2008. After a brief hiatus as the Vice President of risk at Nonprofits Insurance Alliance Group in Santa Cruz, Laura rejoined Dientes as Chief Executive Officer in 2011 and has led the organization through a period of tremendous growth. As the first in her family to go to college, Laura earned a bachelor’s degree from San Jose State University, a Master of Public Health from UC Berkeley, and is a fellow of Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business, Leadership Institute for Nonprofit Executives. Laura currently serves on the board of Housing Matters, the Health Improvement Partnership and the Santa Cruz County Chamber of Commerce. She is a graduate of Focus Agriculture and Leadership Santa Cruz County and a 2015 recipient of the Community Assessment Project Community Hero Award. In 2023 she accepted the National Network for Oral Health’s Leadership Award on behalf of Dientes' outstanding work in the community.

Dr. Sepi Taghvaei | Executive Vice President of Operations

Dr. Sepi Taghvaei attended San Jose State University for her undergraduate studies and obtained her Doctor of Dental Surgery degree from New York University College of Dentistry in 2009. She completed a one-year General Practice Residency at Community Regional Medical Center in Fresno, CA, where she learned the importance of access to care and providing underserved patients with compassionate and high-quality dental care. In 2014, after spending several years in a corporate dentistry environment in a leadership role, Dr. Sepi was excited to return to her passion for community dentistry at Dientes. During her time at Dientes, Dr. Sepi has implemented many new programs including the first-ever residency program in Santa Cruz County. As the inaugural co-chair of Oral Health Access Santa Cruz County (OHA), Dr. Sepi has found immense pleasure in leading a multi-partnership effort to improve the oral health of Santa Cruz County residents. The American Association of Public Health Dentistry awarded Dr. Sepi the inaugural Richard Ferrero Award for her clinical leadership and innovative work leading OHA in 2022.

Sheree Storm | Chief Strategy Officer

Sheree leverages her experience in marketing, project management, and partnering to bring a business perspective to her position as Chief Strategy Officer. With a focus on expanding access to dental care for all, her work includes Dientes’ growth to now four clinics and she is co-Chair of Oral Health Access Santa Cruz County, a 24-member coalition. Her non-profit experience also includes ReSurge International and Second Harvest Food Bank. Prior to joining Dientes, she focused on international new business development with work at Oracle, Marine Terminals Corporation, and Global Business Access. Sheree also worked in Japan promoting U.S. agricultural products to the Japanese market. She holds a Master’s of Business Administration in International Business from The George Washington University and a Bachelor’s of Science in Marketing from California State University, Fresno. She is a 2007 graduate of Focus Ag and a 2018 graduate of Leadership for Community Transformation and currently co-chairs Oral Health Access Santa Cruz County (OHA).

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Jesse Navarro | Chief Financial Officer

Jesse is a seasoned accounting and financial leader that has worked in the non-profit sector since 2004. Prior to joining Dientes, Jesse was Controller at Salud Para La Gente, an FQHC in Watsonville. He has served in key finance leadership roles including CFO at Janus of Santa Cruz and Director of Finance at Community Action Board of Santa Cruz County.

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Kristyn Glenn | Development Director

Kristyn’s commitment to the well-being and full potential of all helps fuel investment to increase access to oral health care. First joining Dientes in 2013, Kristyn has grown her career here and is a product of Dientes’ ethos of promoting from within the organization. Previously she worked in New Zealand at a large international, child-focused nonprofit called Barnardos, where she led grant-writing, fundraising, and marketing efforts. Kristyn holds a Bachelor of Arts from UC Santa Cruz. She is a 2019 graduate of CPCA’s Health Management+ program and a 2015 graduate of Leadership for Community Transformation.

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Angela Council | Associate Director of Human Resources

Angela joined Dientes in 2016 and has exemplified the organization’s commitment to fostering internal growth and development by growing her career here. With over seven years of comprehensive experience in human resources, Angela has established a proven track record in employee engagement, talent acquisition, payroll management, and the implementation of strategic HR initiatives. Before joining Dientes, Angela served in the military, where she developed strong leadership skills, and later worked as a payroll specialist. A proud Watsonville native, Angela remains deeply committed to serving her local community through her work at Dientes. Angela is currently pursuing a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from the University of Maryland. She is also a graduate of the California Primary Care Association’s Health Management+ program, which has equipped her with advanced leadership skills tailored to the healthcare sector.

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