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Melanie Stephens co-founded Centro Latino for Literacy with Marcos Cajina and served on its Board of Directors before becoming Executive Director in 2003. The organization taught literacy and offered other educational opportunities to those who had not had access to formal education, particularly Latino immigrants. Melanie developed Centro Latino’s Spanish literacy campaign model to mobilize, [...]
Joel Jacinto is the former Executive Director of SIPA (Search to Involve Pilipino Americans), which he led to becoming the largest organization in the United States dedicated primarily to Pilipino American youth and families. SIPA offers an array of health and human services as well as community economic development programs, including counseling and case management, [...]
Tim Dang is the former Artistic Director of East West Players, a prominent Asian American theater company that produces a full season of plays each year. The organization also offers programs to nurture Asian American theater artists, including Theater for Youth, the David Henry Hwang Writers Institute, and training in stage and film techniques. An [...]
Dorothy Thompson is the former Executive Director of Streetlights, an organization she founded in 1992 to promote ethnic diversity within the entertainment industry. Streetlights provides job training and placement for economically and socially at-risk men and women, preparing them for entry-level roles as production assistants in film and television. Before founding Streetlights, Dorothy had a [...]
Deborah Ching served as Director of the Chinatown Service Center (CSC) beginning in 1980. CSC provides health care, job training, and social services to immigrant and refugee communities throughout the greater Los Angeles area. Deborah was named 1997 Woman of the Year for State Assembly District 45 and is the recipient of a Eureka Fellowship. [...]
Pete White is the Founder and Co-Director of Los Angeles Community Action Network (LA CAN), an organization that cultivates grassroots leadership within the Central City East community to address issues facing its extremely low-income, predominantly African American residents. LA CAN focuses on housing and civil rights, access to healthy food, women’s rights, and violence prevention.
Lynn Kersey is the founding and former Executive Director of Maternal and Child Health Access (MCHA), established in 1996 following her long career in health services. The organization ensures access to health and social services for low-income women and their families through education, support, training, case management, and policy advocacy. In addition to leading MCHA’s [...]
Esther Feldman founded Community Conservancy International in 1997 and served as its President following a long career dedicated to expanding parkland, recreational areas, and open space throughout Los Angeles. Under her leadership, the organization focused primarily on the development of Baldwin Hills Park—a 1,400-acre expanse that now provides much-needed green space in a city second [...]
Rev. Eugene Williams III was the Founder and Executive Director of Los Angeles Metropolitan Churches (LAM), a network of small to midsize African American congregations across Los Angeles County. Founded in 1994, the organization was established to build the capacity of these churches to meet the needs of their communities. Its mission is to address [...]
Steve LePore left a career as Human Resources Director at Landmark Entertainment Group to become the Founder and Executive Director of My Friend’s Place, an organization that serves at-risk youth in Hollywood. The organization offers free meals, HIV testing, health care, housing referrals, job training, and counseling to thousands of young Angelenos each year. * [...]
