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SESSION 2

10:50 am – 12:05 pm

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FUNDING MECHANICS, NEW NC FUNDING PORTAL & SPECIAL FUNDS
Coordinator: EmpowerLA
Speaker(s): Mario Hernandez, EmpowerLA & Mr. Chavez, Office of the City Clerk

Mario Hernandez, Neighborhood Council Advocate
Mario is responsible for supporting Neighborhood Council Boards with capacity building, training, and organizing skills that Empower LA and engage the community.

Mr. Chavez, Office of the City Clerk

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ORGANIZING DIVERSITY OUTREACH THROUGH THE ARTS
Coordinator: Dorsay Dujon, Make MusicLA
Panelists: Karen Louis, Deputy Director, Arts for LA; Karen Mack, Founder & Executive Director, LA Commons; Leticia Rhi Buckley, Director of Communications and Marketing, Los Angeles County Arts Commission; Trevor Davis, Co-Chair of the Arts and Culture Committee for the Empowerment Congress and is on Hon. Mark Ridley-Thomas’s team who worked on the County Cultural plan; Danielle Brazell, General Manager, City of Los Angles Department of Cultural Affairs

Dorsay Dujon, Make MusicLA
Dorsay is currently Vice President of the Silver Lake Improvement Association and on the Advisory Board of the iMusic Foundation. Dorsay produced articles for Gentlemen’s Quarterly Magazine and was a featured presenter/author of education modules Communicating with Exhibitors, Project Management for the Exhibition Industry, and Cultural Diversity – Organizational Learning for the Tradeshow Industry.

Karen Louis, Deputy Director, Arts for LA
With a strong background in fundraising and development in the arts, advocacy and education, Karen recognizes that art, education and communication are integral to a civil and constructive culture and possess the tools to unlock a greater conversation within the larger architecture of our society. Through first-hand experience in the classroom, community and arts landscape, Karen understands the critical need and advocates for accessible arts education and experiences for all communities and considers it her great privilege to work to help identify, guide and create access for the artists’ voices in every community to be heard, amplified and woven into the fabric of our society. 

Karen Mack, Founder & Executive Director, LA Commons
Karen Mack is the founder of LA Commons. LA Commons engages communities in the creation of art for public spaces that tells their unique stories and serves as the basis for dialogue, interaction, and a better understanding of Los Angeles. LA Commons is a project of Community Partners, works in neighborhoods throughout Los Angeles, facilitating artistic processes open to all, that result in highly visible public art projects that tell dynamic neighborhood stories. LA Commons builds community by validating the importance of local narratives, enhancing the sense of belonging felt by a broad range of stakeholders and encouraging stronger ties between the people and places of Los Angeles.

Leticia Rhi Buckley, Director of Communications and Marketing, Los Angeles County Arts Commission
The Arts Commission provides leadership in cultural services for Los Angeles County, encompassing 88 municipalities, and nearly 140 unincorporated areas. The Arts Commission funds 400 nonprofit arts organization through a two-year $9 million grant program, runs the largest arts internship program in the country, coordinates the LA County Arts Education Collective, and manages the County civic art policy.  The benefits of the arts are many, and everyone deserves to have equal access to them. From arts education for young people to arts programming for senior citizens, the arts have been proven to make individual lives better and to strengthen communities. Executive Summary, LA County Arts Report Cultural Equity & Inclusion Initiative.

Trevor Davis, Co-Chair, Empowerment Congress Arts & Culture Committee
Trevor is an arts advocate and civic leader dedicated to using arts and culture to catalyze social and economic renaissance. He serves as Co-Chair for Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas’ Empowerment Congress Arts & Culture Committee, and on the Leadership Council for that body. He is currently on the Program Advisory Board for Arts for LA, the premiere arts advocacy organization in LA County, which is using his “REACH for Community” advocacy framework as the theme for their 2017 Convergence. Trevor is also on the Advisory Board for the Ate9 Dance Company, having previous served as Chairman of the Board of Directors for the company. He previously served as Executive Director for Imaginese Productions, where he co-founded an arts education program to develop civic leadership with at-risk youth in LA County. Trevor was recently recognized as one of “40 Under 40” Emerging Civic Leaders by L.A. County, the CA State Assembly and the Empowerment Congress. He has been involved in his Echo Park Neighborhood Council and is passionate about helping provide resources for grassroots leadership as exemplified in the NC system.

Danielle Brazell, General Manager, City of Los Angles Department of Cultural Affairs
Danielle is the General Manager of the City of Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs; she is a Strategic Partner of the Los Angeles County Arts Commission.  Danielle is a keen strategist and an exemplary arts leader, of one of the most vibrant, growing arts communities in the world. With a budget of approximately $9.5 million the DCA oversees the city’s grants to artist, art groups and cultural festivals, and operates such landmark sites as the Watts Towers, Frank Lloyd Wright’s Hollyhock House, and the neighboring Municipal Art Gallery, Vision Theater in Leimert Park and Warner Grand Theater in San Pedro.  The DCA oversees the commissions of public artworks funded by real estate development fees and an array of city-owned arts centers and theaters, including the downtown Los Angeles Theater Center, whose operations are often contracted to nonprofit operators.

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HOW TO RUN A SUCCESSFUL MEETING
Coordinator/Speaker: Ivan Spiegel, Parliamentarian

Ivan Spiegel, Parliamentarian
Ivan currently serves as a bi-coastal Parliamentarian working for both the Venice and Downtown LA Neighborhood Councils and he has extensive experience in parliamentary procedure as it applies to Neighborhood Councils. His years of experience in creating organizational bylaws led him to join the BONC/DONE Bylaws Task Force. He was co-chair of the DONE Bylaws Resource Team, which worked with NCs to help revise their bylaws into the new Table Of Contents format. A designer of the Councils 4 Councils Peer Mentoring program, he trains NC participants in a wide range of topics. Ivan became involved in the L.A school system as a parent/volunteer with a focus on putting technology into classrooms. He chaired several school and district councils, and was chosen as a member of the Superintendent’s Focus on Achievement Council, which advised the Superintendent on setting LAUSD policy.

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LEGAL ISSUES AFFECTING NEIGHBORHOOD COUNCILS
Coordinator/Speaker: Carmen Hawkins, Deputy City Attorney

Carmen Hawkins, Deputy City Attorney
 

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LEADERSHIP SKILLS
Coordinator/Speaker: Jill Banks Barad, Founder and Chair Valley Alliance of Neighborhood Councils, Past President Sherman Oaks NC (SONC), Commissioner LADWP

Jill Banks Barad, Founder and Chair Valley Alliance of Neighborhood Councils, Past President Sherman Oaks NC (SONC), Commissioner LADWP
 

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HOW TO WORK WITH CITY DEPARTMENTS
Coordinator/Moderator: Marlene Savage, NC Congress Planning Committee / Former Board Member, Del Rey, Mid City West NCs
Speakers:  Daniel Hackney, Environmental Affairs Officer, Clean Up Green Up Omsbudsman, NC Liaison, LA Sanitation; Khalil Garios, P.E., Manager, Solid Resources Processing & Construction Division, LA Santitation; Greg Spotts, M.P.P., Assistant Director, Chief Sustainability Officer, LA Bureau of Street Services

Marlene Savage, NC Congress Planning Committee / Former Board Member, Del Rey, Mid City West NCs

Daniel Hackney, Environmental Affairs Officer, Clean Up Green Up Omsbudsman, NC Liaison, LA Sanitation

Khalil Gharios, P.E., Manager, Solid Resources Processing & Construction Division, LA Sanitation
 

Greg Spotts, M.P.P., Assistant Director, Chief Sustainability Officer, LA Bureau of Street Services

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WHO LIVES HERE? FINDING OUR UNDERREPRESENTED STAKEHOLDERS
Coordinator/Speaker: Jay Handal, Treasurer, West Los Angeles NC
Speakers: Luz Castillo, Data Dissemination Specialist, Office of the U.S. Census; Jeronimo Garcia, Oazacan Federation of Indigenous Communities in California; Milagros Lizarraga, Peru Village Representative and former chair of Central Hollywood NC; General Jeff, Skid Row Advocate; Rosa Max, Urban Sustainability Urban Farms

Jay Handal, Treasurer, West Los Angeles NC

Luz Castillo, Data Dissemination Specialist, Office of the U.S. Census

Jeronimo Garcia, Oazacan Federation of Indigenous Communities in California

Milagros Lizarraga, Former president of Peru Village LA & Former Chair of CHNC

General Jeff, Skid Row Advocate; Rosa Max, Urban Sustainability Urban Farms

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NO MORE STUPID BOXES: HOW TO BUILD GOOD APARTMENTS IN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD
Coordinator/Moderator: Jay Ross, Stakeholder/Real Estate Developer
Panelists: Martin Leitner, AIA, Perkins+Will; Tom Steidl, AIA, Gensler

Jay Ross, Stakeholder/Real Estate Developer

Martin Leitner, AIA, Perkins+Will
Martin Leitner is an architect who cares deeply about how we live, in our homes and in our communities. He has been involved in innovative design projects for public and private clients nationally and internationally. He has led large, complex assignments such as a master plan for a new downtown on a former mall site in Westminster, Colorado, and urban design guidelines for Los Angeles’ iconic Hollywood Boulevard District. In his work, Martin believes that community involvement enriches the design process and leads to better outcomes. Martin Leitner is a senior associate and practice leader at Perkins+Will.  He is a member of the American Institute of Architects where he chairs the Urban Design Committee of the Los Angeles Chapter. He is licensed as an architect in California. Martin holds a master’s degree in architecture from Bauhaus University Weimar, Germany. He studied Economics at University College London.

Tom Steidl, AIA, Gensler

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THE CIVICS OF WATER AND POWER
Coordinator: Tony Wilkinson
Speakers: Jack Humphreville, President DWP Advocacy Committee, 2017 Budget Advocate, DWP and Budget Representative, Greater Wilshire Neighborhood Council, Columnist for CityWatch

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Tony Wilkinson

Jack Humphreville, President DWP Advocacy Committee, 2017 Budget Advocate, DWP and Budget Representative, Greater Wilshire Neighborhood Council, Columnist for CityWatch

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YOUR DREAMS FOR A LIVABLE LA: THE GENERAL PLAN
Coordinator: Cindy Cleghorn, Chair of the Congress of Neighborhoods
Panelists: Jill Stewart, Coalition to Preserve LA; Ileana Wachtel, Coalition to Preserve LA; Dick Platkin, City Watch LA columnist; David Wolf, MyCity.Is planning organization

Cindy Cleghorn, Chair of the Congress of Neighborhoods
Cindy has served two terms as President of the Sunland-Tujunga NC, current Land Use Committee chair, Executive Board for the Valley Alliance of Neighborhood Councils and Chair of PlanCheckNC — an alliance of Neighborhood Councils dedicated to education in planning and land use. She served on the Neighborhood Council Review Commission representing the North Valley. Cindy is a small business owner in Tujunga and serves on the boards of the Sunland-Tujunga and United Chambers of Commerce and executive board of the California Small Business Association (CSBA).

Jill Stewart, Coalition to Preserve LA

Ileana Wachtel, Coalition to Preserve LA

Dick Platkin, City Watch LA columnist

David Wolf, MyCity.Is planning organization

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