CLP 2015 SPEAKERS
Week 8 Non-Profit Leadership & Governance
Michele Lew, M.P.P.
Chief Executive Officer
President and CEO Under the general direction of the Board of Directors, Michele serves as leader of the agency, providing administrative direction and oversight for all agency programs. Michele formerly worked for California State Senator Joe Simitian, the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, and Joint Venture: Silicon Valley Network. She currently serves as the community member on the San Jose Mercury News editorial board.
Dolores Alvarado, MSW, MPH
Chief Executive Officer
Ms. Alvarado is an experienced healthcare executive, whose diverse career in health spans over 30 years, including working in a community health center, family planning clinic, county hospital, and university-affiliated adolescent clinic. Most recently, she served as Executive Manager in the Santa Clara County Public Health Department. Ms. Alvarado received a Master’s in Public Health in Maternal and Child Health and a Master’s in Social Work with an emphasis in Community Health from the University of California, Berkeley and a California Teaching Credential from the University of San Francisco. Originally from Mexico, Ms. Alvarado has lived in the Bay Area for over 50 years and now lives in Morgan Hill. She is married and has two adult children.
Week 7 Advocacy and Organizing
The Honorable Nicky González Yuen, PCC Board Trustee & De Anza College Professor
email: [email protected]
Nicky González Yuen is the Chair of the Political Science Department at De Anza College where he has taught courses in U.S. politics, grassroots political activism, and race and gender for 25 years. Nicky is active in local and state Democratic Party politics and directs the student internship project for the FHDA Faculty Association Political Action Committee. In 2001, he was a Congressional Fellow in the office of the late U.S. Senator Paul Wellstone. Nicky has served as a trustee on the Peralta Community College Board of Trustees since 2004. He earned both Ph.D. and JD degrees from the UC Berkeley.
Wamuyu (“Moyo”) Kaigwa, Film Maker
Wamuyu (“Moyo”) Kaigwa, is working towards becoming a documentary filmmaker with a focus on social justice, education, and gender. Her work aims to help tell the stories of and give voice to those people who do not usually get covered in the mainstream media. One of her greatest desires is to tell stories that inspire, provoke, and help people see they have the power to make a difference. Moyo was born and raised in Kenya where she studied television and broadcast production and for three years produced and edited short project driven pieces for various non-profit agencies in East Africa focusing primarily on women and children. In 2011 she began studies at De Anza College to push further than her technical background allowed, and to gain a more holistic understanding of documentary filmmaking by studying different aspects of film, as well as to learn theory, history, politics and aesthetics. She says of her education at De Anza, “It has been a life changing experience for me and has given me many opportunities to grow as an individual while pursuing my dream.” She plans to transfer to film school in the fall.
Rabiah Khalid, ACCI Advocacy Manager
Email: [email protected]
Rabiah Khalid works for AACI as the Advocacy Manager, where she fosters relations with the individuals and families served by the agency, facilitates conversation and education on policy and issues impacting communities and assist in providing resources that better the health and well-being of individuals. She serves on KQED's Community Advisory Panel and was selected by the Silicon Valley Business Journal as one of the 100 most influential women in Silicon Valley for 2014.
Karla Reyes, Business Advisor, SBDC-Silicon Valley and MBA Candidate, Mills College
Email: [email protected]
Karla C. Reyes is passionate about social justice in the areas of education access for immigrant youth, social entrepreneurship, Disruptive Innovation, and the advancement of women in every business sector. In 2007, advocated for the creation of the OASSSIS Program at Evergreen Valley College, which provided outreach, advocacy, and services to AB540/undocumented students. She developed curriculum to teach undocumented college graduates how to become consultants to find work in their fields of study. Karla is a second-year MBA student at Mills College. She is currently a Certified Business Advisor with the Small Business Development Center – Silicon Valley Chapter.
Week 6 Economic Inclusion
Charisse Ma Lebron, Director of health policy and community development, Working Partnerships USA
[email protected]
Charisse Ma Lebron joined Working Partnerships USA in the summer of 2014. She leads campaigns to expand access to high-quality public transportation, increase affordable housing and ensure equity as our communities grow. Previously, she served as District Director for the California State Assembly Speaker pro Tempore. Before that, as Chief of Staff for San Mateo County Supervisor Rose Jacobs Gibson, she secured key partnerships of elected officials, federal agencies and regulators, top banking corporations and community-based stakeholders to address the housing crisis, resulting in assistance for 800 families; she also led the execution of the County's first job fair for formerly incarcerated residents, with over 30 major employers participating. Prior to her service to elected officials, Charisse was the Director of Advocacy and Corporate Responsibility at Marin Institute, advocating for youth and people of color. At the California Reinvestment Coalition, she partnered with stakeholders to engage Fortune 500 banks and military leadership to end predatory lending. She sits on the Santa Clara County Housing and Community Development Advisory Commission and the Board of Directors of Pathways to Safety, an organization dedicated to helping victims of human trafficking. Lebron holds a B.A. in political science and international relations from the University of Rochester.
Dr. Tony Roshan Samara, Senior Program Manager, Land Use and Housing, Urban Habitat
email:[email protected]
Tony Samara has conducted extensive research focused on the politics of development and the marginalization of low-income communities, with an emphasis on housing, gentrification, and displacement. Since 2007 he has worked with the Right to the City Alliance as a resource ally, and currently serves on the Alliance’s national steering committee. Tony has a PHD in Sociology from the University of California, Santa Barbara and an MA from the City University of New York. Before joining Urban Habitat he was an associate professor of sociology at George Mason University. He runs the Cities and Globalization Twitter account at https://twitter.com/CGWG2 and most of his publications are available at http://independent.academia.edu/TonyRoshanSamara.
Michele Lew, M.P.P.
Chief Executive Officer
President and CEO Under the general direction of the Board of Directors, Michele serves as leader of the agency, providing administrative direction and oversight for all agency programs. Michele formerly worked for California State Senator Joe Simitian, the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, and Joint Venture: Silicon Valley Network. She currently serves as the community member on the San Jose Mercury News editorial board.
Dolores Alvarado, MSW, MPH
Chief Executive Officer
Ms. Alvarado is an experienced healthcare executive, whose diverse career in health spans over 30 years, including working in a community health center, family planning clinic, county hospital, and university-affiliated adolescent clinic. Most recently, she served as Executive Manager in the Santa Clara County Public Health Department. Ms. Alvarado received a Master’s in Public Health in Maternal and Child Health and a Master’s in Social Work with an emphasis in Community Health from the University of California, Berkeley and a California Teaching Credential from the University of San Francisco. Originally from Mexico, Ms. Alvarado has lived in the Bay Area for over 50 years and now lives in Morgan Hill. She is married and has two adult children.
Week 7 Advocacy and Organizing
The Honorable Nicky González Yuen, PCC Board Trustee & De Anza College Professor
email: [email protected]
Nicky González Yuen is the Chair of the Political Science Department at De Anza College where he has taught courses in U.S. politics, grassroots political activism, and race and gender for 25 years. Nicky is active in local and state Democratic Party politics and directs the student internship project for the FHDA Faculty Association Political Action Committee. In 2001, he was a Congressional Fellow in the office of the late U.S. Senator Paul Wellstone. Nicky has served as a trustee on the Peralta Community College Board of Trustees since 2004. He earned both Ph.D. and JD degrees from the UC Berkeley.
Wamuyu (“Moyo”) Kaigwa, Film Maker
Wamuyu (“Moyo”) Kaigwa, is working towards becoming a documentary filmmaker with a focus on social justice, education, and gender. Her work aims to help tell the stories of and give voice to those people who do not usually get covered in the mainstream media. One of her greatest desires is to tell stories that inspire, provoke, and help people see they have the power to make a difference. Moyo was born and raised in Kenya where she studied television and broadcast production and for three years produced and edited short project driven pieces for various non-profit agencies in East Africa focusing primarily on women and children. In 2011 she began studies at De Anza College to push further than her technical background allowed, and to gain a more holistic understanding of documentary filmmaking by studying different aspects of film, as well as to learn theory, history, politics and aesthetics. She says of her education at De Anza, “It has been a life changing experience for me and has given me many opportunities to grow as an individual while pursuing my dream.” She plans to transfer to film school in the fall.
Rabiah Khalid, ACCI Advocacy Manager
Email: [email protected]
Rabiah Khalid works for AACI as the Advocacy Manager, where she fosters relations with the individuals and families served by the agency, facilitates conversation and education on policy and issues impacting communities and assist in providing resources that better the health and well-being of individuals. She serves on KQED's Community Advisory Panel and was selected by the Silicon Valley Business Journal as one of the 100 most influential women in Silicon Valley for 2014.
Karla Reyes, Business Advisor, SBDC-Silicon Valley and MBA Candidate, Mills College
Email: [email protected]
Karla C. Reyes is passionate about social justice in the areas of education access for immigrant youth, social entrepreneurship, Disruptive Innovation, and the advancement of women in every business sector. In 2007, advocated for the creation of the OASSSIS Program at Evergreen Valley College, which provided outreach, advocacy, and services to AB540/undocumented students. She developed curriculum to teach undocumented college graduates how to become consultants to find work in their fields of study. Karla is a second-year MBA student at Mills College. She is currently a Certified Business Advisor with the Small Business Development Center – Silicon Valley Chapter.
Week 6 Economic Inclusion
Charisse Ma Lebron, Director of health policy and community development, Working Partnerships USA
[email protected]
Charisse Ma Lebron joined Working Partnerships USA in the summer of 2014. She leads campaigns to expand access to high-quality public transportation, increase affordable housing and ensure equity as our communities grow. Previously, she served as District Director for the California State Assembly Speaker pro Tempore. Before that, as Chief of Staff for San Mateo County Supervisor Rose Jacobs Gibson, she secured key partnerships of elected officials, federal agencies and regulators, top banking corporations and community-based stakeholders to address the housing crisis, resulting in assistance for 800 families; she also led the execution of the County's first job fair for formerly incarcerated residents, with over 30 major employers participating. Prior to her service to elected officials, Charisse was the Director of Advocacy and Corporate Responsibility at Marin Institute, advocating for youth and people of color. At the California Reinvestment Coalition, she partnered with stakeholders to engage Fortune 500 banks and military leadership to end predatory lending. She sits on the Santa Clara County Housing and Community Development Advisory Commission and the Board of Directors of Pathways to Safety, an organization dedicated to helping victims of human trafficking. Lebron holds a B.A. in political science and international relations from the University of Rochester.
Dr. Tony Roshan Samara, Senior Program Manager, Land Use and Housing, Urban Habitat
email:[email protected]
Tony Samara has conducted extensive research focused on the politics of development and the marginalization of low-income communities, with an emphasis on housing, gentrification, and displacement. Since 2007 he has worked with the Right to the City Alliance as a resource ally, and currently serves on the Alliance’s national steering committee. Tony has a PHD in Sociology from the University of California, Santa Barbara and an MA from the City University of New York. Before joining Urban Habitat he was an associate professor of sociology at George Mason University. He runs the Cities and Globalization Twitter account at https://twitter.com/CGWG2 and most of his publications are available at http://independent.academia.edu/TonyRoshanSamara.
