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Arturo Ybarra founded the Watts/Century Latino Organization (WCLO) in 1990 and served as its Executive Director for 32 years. WCLO is the only Latino multicultural nonprofit organization specifically serving Latinos and African-Americans in South LA, despite Latinos making up more than half of the residents in the area. Long known for his ability to work [...]
Bob Erlenbusch is the former Executive Director of the Los Angeles Coalition to End Hunger & Homelessness, which used organizing, education, advocacy, and lobbying in its efforts. The Coalition gained recognition for its Bring Los Angeles Home! partnership to develop a comprehensive plan to end homelessness in the next decade in Los Angeles City and [...]
Michael Held is the founding Executive Director of the Etta Israel Center, which has served children and adults in the Jewish community with special needs since 1993. Today, it is the largest agency of its kind on the West Coast. Michael has led Etta Israel to become a leading voice in inclusive education, partnering with [...]
Forescee Hogan-Rowles is the former President & CEO of Los Angeles’s first public-private economic development partnership, RISE Financial Pathways (formerly the Community Financial Resource Center). A native Californian, Forescee has decades of community economic development experience. Beginning with her appointment in 1995, the organization served tens of thousands of low-income individuals, provided tens of millions [...]
Dr. Elisa Nicholas is CEO of The Children’s Clinic, “Serving Children and Their Families” (TCC), a system of community health clinics in Long Beach providing care to low-income families. Elisa has led TCC’s growth from a single-site clinic into a network of health centers, all providing tens of thousands of visits annually to low-income families. [...]
Bruce Saito is the former Executive Director of the Los Angeles Conservation Corps (LACC), the largest nonprofit youth corps in the nation. LACC provides young adults and school-aged youth with job training, education, and work experience in conservation and community service projects such as tree planting, trail restoration, and graffiti removal. Bruce has also served [...]
Leonardo Vilchis is the Executive Director of Union de Vecinos, a nonprofit based in East Los Angeles that builds community power through organizing, leadership development, coalition building, and creating models for dialogue and democratic engagement. A working artist who amplifies his activism with videography and sound installations, Leonardo has collaborated with thousands of volunteers and [...]
Peter Braun is the former Executive Director of the Alzheimer’s Association, California Southland Chapter, which provides support to people with Alzheimer’s disease and their families while advancing research toward prevention, treatment, and a cure. Under Peter’s leadership, the Chapter grew from a two-person office into a multi-site operation that employs dozens and serves thousands across [...]
Leigh Curran founded the Virginia Avenue Project in 1991 and served as its Artistic Director for 11 years. The Project was a free after-school program based in Santa Monica’s Pico Corridor that combined the performing arts with one-on-one mentoring to help at-risk youth realize their full potential. Children typically joined the program in elementary grades [...]
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 [...]
