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Aquilina Soriano Versoza is the Executive Director of the Pilipino Workers Center of Southern California, a resource and advocacy organization that empowers the Filipino community in Southern California to improve their quality of life. The Center works to protect domestic workers and caregivers from wage theft, overtime violations, and human trafficking.
Cynthia Sanchez served as Executive Director of Proyecto Pastoral for 16 years. Proyecto is a community-building organization that empowers the Boyle Heights community through education, leadership, and service. Under Cynthia’s leadership, a team of 70 staff implemented early education and youth development programs, homeless shelters, community organizing efforts, and the Promesa Boyle Heights collaborative. The [...]
Gloria Walton is the President and CEO of Strategic Concepts in Organizing and Policy Education (SCOPE), which focuses on social and economic justice for low-income communities of color. The organization aims to tackle the root causes of injustice by increasing civic engagement, developing strategic alliances, and empowering community leaders. Under Gloria’s leadership, SCOPE has organized [...]
Benjamin Torres is the President and CEO of the Community Development Technologies Center (CDTech), a community development research, training, and technical assistance organization that seeks to build livable and economically viable communities in low-income areas of Los Angeles. Benjamin has also overseen the Community Planning and Economic Development program at Los Angeles Trade-Technical College, where [...]
Barbara Kappos is the Executive Director of East Los Angeles Women’s Center (ELAWC), which provides culturally competent, bilingual sexual assault services to tens of thousands of individuals each year. ELAWC works closely with its community partners to provide a comprehensive range of services to help women attain a safe and healthy quality of life. Barbara [...]
Kathay Feng is the former Executive Director of California Common Cause (CCC), an organization that is dedicated to creating a more participatory and inclusive democracy. The largest state organization under Common Cause, a national organization, CCC has over 100,000 members and a track record for achieving reforms at both the state and local levels. During [...]
Raul Estrada is the Executive Director and CEO of El Centro de Ayuda (ECDA), which provides a comprehensive range of services to promote social, emotional, academic, and financial self-sufficiency for low-income families in East and Northeast Los Angeles. As the lead and partner agency of the Boyle Heights Family Source Center, United Way of Greater [...]
Elizabeth Forer is the former CEO of the Venice Family Clinic (VFC), an organization that serves tens of thousands of low-income, uninsured and homeless families and individuals from over a dozen locations. VFC’s partnerships with many Westside health systems and clinics, such as UCLA’s Geffen School of Medicine, ensure the delivery of high-quality care to [...]
Michelle Christie founded No Limits for Deaf Children in 1996. What started as a theater program for deaf children has evolved into an organization that provides intensive educational therapy for low-income deaf children and their families, as well as audiology services, public speaking and leadership training, and college preparation. The organization’s transformative theater productions have [...]
Kay Buck joined the Coalition to Abolish Slavery & Trafficking (CAST) as its CEO in 2003, bringing with her 25 years of experience leading anti-trafficking initiatives. Kay leads one of the longest-running anti-slavery organizations in the nation, serving thousands of survivors and their families with a continuum of services to help them rebuild their lives. [...]
