Each individual has a right to equitable access to pursue higher education.

This is our belief, and this belief fuels our pursuits as a contributing member of the higher education community. Next Gen Web Solutions’ mission is to create and manage applications and services which allow individuals to more easily access their goal of a higher education.

To do this, Next Gen collaborates with industry participants to design award-winning software and web services designed to solve problems in creative ways. By listening to our customers and watching for emerging trends, we strive to deliver ever-increasing value to each client. With a dedicated staff that adheres to strong moral and ethical principles, Next Gen recognizes the importance of customer satisfaction and operates with high standards of achievement.

Founded in 2008, Next Gen is an employee-owned Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) corporation that develops, owns and exclusively distributes higher education efficiency solutions. Serving more than 600 colleges and universities across the country, our product suites are designed to provide access to information and opportunities for students while enhancing the experience and value they see from our client institutions.

Our Location

6821 Southpoint Drive North
Jacksonville, FL 32216
Phone: 904-332-9001
Web: nextgenwebsolutions.com

Team

Taige Haines
Taige HainesCEO
Taige has served the higher education technology market for 30+ years. Her specific areas of concentration include Student Employment, Title IV Student Loan Origination, Centralized Disbursement Clearinghouse Services, and Guarantor Services. Taige graduated summa cum laude from Jacksonville University with a BS in business administration.

Outside of work, Taige plays tennis, rides her beloved horse Millie, has an immense passion for dog and farm animal rescue initiatives, and cherishes any moments she can spend with her family.

Jim Grace
Jim GraceCOO
Jim has 30+ years of experience in technology, with industry expertise in higher education, as well as a background in financial services and telecommunications through earlier roles at Bank of America and MCI. He earned an MBA from the University of Notre Dame and a BS from Manhattan College.

Jim’s entrepreneurial spirit is inspired by his family’s long line of entrepreneurs. When not at Next Gen, he enjoys spending time with his son.

Chris Rivera
Chris RiveraDirector, Product Installation
Chris joined Next Gen in 2008. She has over two decades of experience collaborating with clients and developers to deliver business applications to the higher education and financial services markets. Chris has a passion for project management, training, and technical writing. She graduated from St. Olaf College with a BA in history and German.

Chris lives in Colorado with her husband, young son, and their rescue dogs, Roxey and Gunnar.

Freshonda Alston
Freshonda AlstonProduct Manager
Freshonda has 15+ years of experience in the field of Higher Education with a passion for Student Services, and is knowledgeable in the areas of Admissions, Financial Aid and Scholarships, Academic Advising, and Student Employment. As a Jacksonville native, she received a B.S. in Health Administration from the University of North Florida and an M.Ed. in Instructional Leadership and Organizational Development from Jacksonville University.

When not serving members of the Higher Education community, Freshonda enjoys spending time with family and friends, couponing, and engaging in extracurricular sports and activities with her daughter.

Sharon Gessner
Sharon GessnerDirector, IT Product Support
Sharon has been with Next Gen since its inception in 2008. With nearly 25 years in the higher education financial services industry, she has held positions ranging from loan maintenance specialist to technical support analyst. Her current responsibilities include working with Next Gen’s IT staff to ensure the company’s products are meeting clients’ needs. Sharon attended Florida State College, Jacksonville.

Sharon is the proud mom of twins, and shelter rescue dogs Scout and Skip. She enjoys taking family vacations with her husband and kids.

Dianne Fanning
Dianne FanningVP, Software Solution Sales
Dianne has 25+ years of experience helping grow technology businesses in the higher education, K-12, and federal government markets. Her wide-spectrum of business development responsibilities have included product definition, system implementation, user training and customer support. She graduated from Trinity University in Washington, D.C. with a BA in business administration.

Outside of work, family is #1 in Dianne’s life. Her daschund Rocky often takes center stage. Kansas City is a great place to call home and she loves the passion around sports teams in her home town, especially the University of Kansas basketball. “Rock Chalk, Jayhawk!”

Lynne Garcia
Lynne GarciaVP, Software Solution Sales
With over 25 years of experience in higher education, Lynne has been on both sides of the desk, as financial aid administrator and business development/client relations manager alike. Lynne graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of California, Riverside and has her Master’s in Organizational Leadership from Claremont Lincoln University.

Lynne is a native Southern Californian and resides in Los Angeles with her husband Doug, daughter Avelina and two retired racing Greyhounds, George and Ellie. She can often be found pursuing one of her favorite activities – running 10k’s and half marathons – in an attempt to counteract her love of food festivals!

Deb Baker-Garcia
Deb Baker-GarciaVP, Software Solution Sales
Deb joined the Next Gen team in 2023, bringing with her over 25 years of experience in higher education. Deb began her career in financial aid and has worked in public, private and non-profit organizations in California focusing on student financial assistance, university operations and business development. Most recently Deb has focused on educational technology and how it supports efficiencies in college operational processes.

Deb graduated from San Francisco State University and lives in Southern California with her husband Joe, son Sam and Wuggly, a rescued Chihuahua. In her free time, you will find Deb working as a musical director and keyboardist for theatrical productions throughout Southern California in addition to volunteer work for the Opera Theater program at California Baptist University.

Tara Clendenen
Tara ClendenenCustomer Support Manager
Tara has been a member of the Next Gen team since April 2012. She has over 20+ years of experience in delivering exceptional customer service to clients. Prior to joining Next Gen, Tara worked for Prudential Financial as an associate manager within their Customer Contact Center. She attended the University of North Florida.

When not busy assisting clients and leading our talented support team, Tara enjoys raising her four beautiful children. Her outside passions include various musical projects, as well as fitness and running. Tara is a marathon finisher and continues to train for future races.

Tim Adkison
Tim AdkisonSenior Software Engineer
Tim joined Next Gen in 2010. He is responsible for development and support of Next Gen software solutions, with a focus on JobX and TimesheetX. Tim has 20 years of experience as a software engineer in higher education and financial services. He earned an AS in network technology and in CIS analysis/integrated systems from Florida State College, Jacksonville.

Tim enjoys spending time with his wife and 2 sons, is an avid runner an enjoys playing tennis. He coaches youth baseball and sits on the board of the Middleburg Athletic Association.

Reed Clendenen
Reed ClendenenSenior Software Engineer
Reed has over 20 years of experience in design, development, deployment, implementation and maintenance of multi-tier internet software focused primarily in the higher education space. His professional passion lies in creating web applications which are easy to use, fast and reliable. Reed graduated from Florida State University with a degree in computer science.

Reed spends most of free time expanding his photography knowledge, creating original music and spending time with his family and friends.

Jonathan Makofske
Jonathan MakofskeSenior Software Engineer
Jonathan (or “Mako” as he is known around the office), joined the Next Gen family in 2010. He brings with him nearly 15 years of experience in technology, ten of which are focused in the higher education market. Mako works primarily with the Dynamic Forms and TimesheetX products. He strives to create reliable and efficient software, with a focus on performance.

Mako graduated from McGill University with a degree in Computer Science. Outside of work, he enjoys spending time with his wife and two children, getting out on the golf course and staying active. During lunch he can be seen running the side streets of Jacksonville.

Tim Mann
Tim MannSenior Software Engineer
Tim joined Next Gen in 2015 with over 15 years of software development experience in the higher education finance, banking, and health care industries in companies ranging from small startups to large corporations.Tim holds several Microsoft certifications in development, networking and training.

Tim spends most of his free time going on adventures with his 5 year old son.

Martin Witters
Martin WittersSenior Software Engineer
Martin leads the development of real-time API integration across Next Gen’s suite of education technology solutions. He joined Next Gen in 2014 with over 15 years of software development experience in the higher education finance, banking, and health care industries in companies ranging from small startups to large corporations.

Martin attended Florida State College, Jacksonville. When he is not working, he enjoys spending time at the beach with his wife and three children, and teaching people about the Bible.

Steve Rochford
Steve RochfordSenior Software Engineer
Steve has over 30 years of experience in designing, developing and managing Information Technology solutions for small and large companies in a wide variety of industries including aerospace, digital mapping, publishing, shipping logistics and non-profit community services. Steve specializes in analyzing business processes and designing software solutions that increase productivity and lower costs.

Steve has a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles and a Master of Science in Management from Colorado Technical University in Colorado Springs. Besides technology Steve’s other passions include exploring new international locations with his family and taking in musical performances of his favorite bands.

Pedro Duarte
Pedro DuarteSenior Software Engineer
Pedro joined the Next Gen family working primarily within Dynamic Forms. With over 14 years of experience in software development, he has worked in a wide variety of industries including health care, logistics, transportation, insurance, banking, and automation.

Pedro has a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering (Computer Design) from the University of North Florida and a degree of Computer Programming and Analysis Client/Server Programming from Florida State College. He also enjoys spending time with his family, friends, and playing soccer.

Jonathan Phillipps
Jonathan PhillippsSenior Software Engineer
Jonathan joined Next Gen in March 2020. Developing software has been his passion from a very young age. He brings with him many years of full stack N-tier web application development experience. He strives to create simple solutions to complex problems, and write high quality and maintainable code.

Jonathan has a Bachelor of Science in Computer Science from the University of North Florida. When not at work, he enjoys going to the driving range, fishing, and watching movies.

Micael Gidron
Micael GidronSenior Software Engineer
Michael Gidron is a software engineer at Next Gen, with over 20 years of software engineering experience in the finance and loan industries. As a software engineer, Michael is dedicated to creating software solution’s that help people work more efficiently with computers. Prior to joining Next Gen, Michael worked at Black Knight Financial Services, as well many other financial focused companies.

Michael majored in Music and Computer Science at Howard University, where he played drums for the Showtime marching band. In his free time Michael enjoys being a sports fan, a foodie, playing chess, and spending time with his family.

Brett Fishel
Brett FishelJunior Software Engineer
Brett joined the Next Gen family in January 2021. He is responsible for development of Next Gen Web Solutions API integration and maintenance. He brings with him experience in C#/ASP.NET full stack development and several years experience in customer service.

Brett graduated from the University of North Florida, Jacksonville. Outside of work he enjoys spending his free time rock climbing, cycling, and writing/composing music.

Baker Griffith
Baker GriffithSoftware Engineer
Baker is a software engineer who joined Next Gen in June 2021. He brings with him 2 years of experience developing data visualization weather software for clients including the US Navy.

Baker is attending the University of Florida, pursuing a BS of Computer Science. In his free time, he enjoys creating music, fishing, and spending time with his son.

Becca Spiller
Becca SpillerInstallation Project Manager
Becca joined Next Gen in March of 2015. She previously worked with the team when they were a part of Nelnet. With her time at Next Gen and Nelnet, she has over 10 years of experience as an Installation/Support Analyst and in the higher education market. Before returning to Next Gen, Becca spent 8 years as a System Administrator and Customer Support Analyst for a global learning management system. Becca graduated with a BS in business management from the University of Phoenix.

Outside of work, you will likely find Becca gardening or working her way through all the antique shops in western Nebraska for ‘projects’ to work on.

Justin Keach
Justin KeachInstallation Project Manager
Justin originally joined the Next Gen family in June 2009 as an intern working as an Installation/Support Analyst primarily within Dynamic Forms. Since then, he has built experience working as an Installation/Support Analyst with other products including JobX and TimesheetX. Currently, he is working as an IT Project Manager within Dynamic Forms and Scholarship Manager. He brings several years of experience in system analysis/support, customer service, training, testing, and system enhancements/implementation. Justin graduated from the University of North Florida with a Bachelor’s degree in Information Technology.

Outside of work, Justin enjoys exercising, being outdoors, and spending quality time with his family, friends, and his pug named Lily.

Julie Veselka
Julie VeselkaInstallation & Support Project Manager
Julie joined Next Gen in September of 2019. Julie has over 15 years of experience in higher education with considerable experience in project management, customer service, human resources, career services, student employment, and technology. Julie also served many years as an adjunct faculty member. She graduated with a BBA in Human Resources and MS in Information Systems from Tarleton State University, a part of the Texas A&M University System.

In Julie’s free time, she enjoys spending time with her daughter, family, and friends. Julie also enjoys traveling, running, and is passionate about serving others.

Fernando “Tito” Sosa
Fernando “Tito” SosaInstallation & Support Project Manager
Tito joined the Next Gen family in December 2022. Tito began his journey as an instructor in the U.S. Army during Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi freedom as a Combat Medic, teaching U.S and coalition forces Basic Combat Life Saving skills. He most recently served as an instructor for a web-based medical portal, facilitating the training of new associates with troubleshooting potential scenarios clients could face. Experience obtained ranges from Tech Support, Management, Training, and Customer Service.

Outside of work, Tito spends most of his time enjoying life in Jacksonville, Florida with his wife, Elishia, 3 young boys, Asher, Oren, and Ronen, and their rescued black lab, Stella. When he’s not spending time with the family or working on his never-ending honey-do list, Tito enjoys cooking, watching YouTube videos on cooking, and reading classic fiction stories like Journey To the Center of the Earth, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, From the Earth To The Moon…his favorite author is Jules Verne.

Amy Bondegard
Amy BondegardSupport Representative
Amy started with Next Gen in April 2018. Her previous career was spent with Cabela’s Inc. in various roles, the latest as a System Administrator. She brings several years of experience in system support, training, testing, and system enhancements/implementation. In 2016, Amy earned her Master of Science in Leadership & Executive Coaching. She also holds a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology.

Amy enjoys spending her free time with her family and friends. She stays busy playing billiards, golf and traveling when she can. Amy and her husband are proud parents of their 4-legged children: 2 dogs and 3 cats.

Ryan Silva
Ryan SilvaSupport Representative
Ryan joined the Next Gen family in June 2015 as a Support Representative working primarily within Dynamic Forms, with some experience in Scholarship Manager. He is attending the University of North Florida, planning to graduate Spring 2017 with a BS in computing and information sciences, concentrating in information technology.

Outside of work and school, Ryan enjoys playing volleyball, basketball, exercising, traveling and spending quality time with friends and family.

Sarah Makofske
Sarah MakofskeSupport Representative
Sarah is a Support Representative working on Dynamic Forms and Scholarship Manager. She joined the Next Gen team in February 2016. Sarah graduated cum laude from the University of North Florida where she earned a BA in Communications with a minor in English, and brings with her several years of experience in Product Development/ Design.

When Sarah is not at work, she loves spending time with her family and friends, traveling, is an avid runner and is enjoying learning to cook.

Josh Kelley
Josh KelleySupport Representative
Josh is a Support Representative, working mostly with Dynamic Forms and Scholarship Manger. Josh came to Next Gen in March 2020, bringing a wealth of skills & experience that include customer service management, vendor management and website design to just name a few. Josh earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Digital Media from the University of North Florida.

When he is not working, Josh enjoys spending time at the park with his wife and daughter. He also enjoys fishing, and playing paintball.

Shannon Spinner
Shannon SpinnerSupport Representative
Shannon is a Support Representative, working primarily on Dynamic Forms. Prior to joining Next Gen in September 2020, Shannon was with Prudential Financial for 12 years and has a wealth of experience in customer service, training facilitation, curriculum development and team management.

Shannon has a passion for fostering shelter dogs, playing video games, watching movies and NFL football. But his greatest loves are his two children. He loves taking them on adventures and staying active.

Misty Valentin
Misty ValentinSupport Representative
Misty came to Next Gen Web Solutions in 2023 with nineteen years of Higher Education experience delivering a broad range of educational guidance and support services to college students and administrators. She has strong expertise in student financial aid, academic advising, and event management. She is a double graduate from Northern Arizona University, obtaining a B.A. in Business and a M. Ed. in Career and Technical Education.

Misty makes her home in Las Vegas, NV where she was born. She loves to spend time with her family, especially taking her two young children on adventures. You can also find her trying out new restaurants (especially steakhouses) and keeping a ranked list with her boyfriend, Devan. She is also an avid fan of the Vegas Golden Knights hockey team.

Caitlin Browand
Caitlin BrowandAccounting Manager
Cait joined Next Gen in December of 2021. She brings 10+ years of accounting experience and an MBA and BBA in Accounting. Her background is in transportation and fleet management, but she is very excited to learn about the Higher Education industry. Cait has two children that keep her young and always running. When she is not attending her children’s sporting events, you will find her cooking and entertaining for her family and friends. Her absolute favorite thing to do is visit Disneyland.

Interns

Next Gen is dedicated to student success and supporting the next generation of software developers, entrepreneurs and business leaders. These are the young professionals working with us, while pursuing their educational goals!

Evan Gessner
Evan GessnerProduct Analyst
Evan joined Next Gen in July 2018 as an intern in support of Dynamic Forms. He is a sophomore at Mandarin High School. Evan is on the tennis team there as well. He loves to hang out with his two dogs and in his free time likes to bike.
Justin Adkison
Justin AdkisonProduct Analyst
Justin joined Nex Gen as an intern in July 2018 working in Dynamic Forms. He is currently attending Saint John’s River State College for an associate’s degree in computer science. He has achieved his CompTIA A+, MTA OS Fundamentals, and MTA Mobility and Devices certification. He loves to workout and play video games in his free time.
Lyric Golden
Lyric GoldenProduct Analyst
Lyric joined Next Gen in June 2019 as a Product Analyst, working primarily within Scholarship Manager and Dynamic Forms. She is currently attending Douglas Anderson School Of The Arts in Jacksonville Florida.

Outside of work, Lyric is heavily involved with dancing. She loves her dog Louie and enjoys spending time with family and friends.

Justin Clendenen
Justin ClendenenProduct Analyst
Justin joined Next Gen in June 2019 as a Product Analyst. He helps support the Dynamic Forms team as well as other areas. Justin attends Franklin County High School in Georgia.

Besides work, Justin enjoys playing soccer and is a part of the Franklin County Marching Band. He also likes to play video games and hanging out with friends.

Abby Clendenen
Abby ClendenenProduct Analyst

Abby joined the NextGen team in April 2020 as a Product Analyst. She is a Senior at University of North Georgia pursuing a bachelor’s degree in biology as well as a minor in Criminal Forensics. She hopes to obtain a career in a research lab post-graduation. 

When Abby is not in class or working, she enjoys lifting weights and being outside with her friends. She also enjoys music, video games, and reading in her free time. 

Ethan Haines
Ethan HainesProduct Analyst
Ethan joined Next Gen in June 2020 as a Product Analyst. He primarily supports the Dynamic Forms team, as well as, other areas, as needed. He is currently attending West Nassau High School located in Callahan, Florida. When Ethan is not working, he spends time Motocross racing, playing tennis, hunting and fishing.
Sebastian Keller
Sebastian KellerProduct Analyst
Sebastian joined Next Gen in April 2021 as a Product Analyst. He graduated from Douglas Anderson School of the Arts in Jacksonville Florida, with the class of 2020. He is currently attending University of Central Florida as a student in the Nicholson School of Communication and Media.

Outside of school, Sebastian is an avid skateboarder as well as a surfer and the seasonal snowboarder. He hopes to align his passion for board sports with his goal of becoming a professional cinematographer.