Abbie Langston, Director, Equitable Economy, leads efforts to redesign our economy on the principles of equity, sustainability, and shared prosperity, developing partnerships and systems-change efforts focused on power building, narrative change, and policy advocacy. Through the National Equity Atlas partnership between PolicyLink and the USC Equity Research Institute, she produces tailored research to support grassroots campaigns and cross-sector …
Bianca directs California’s policy and government affairs operations in California. She also directs outreach for the Northern California region, including the Bay Area and Silicon Valley. She leverages the collective voices of California stakeholders and small business owners to compete on a level playing field and to provide quality jobs for themselves and for California …
Bob Lanter is currently the Executive Director of the California Workforce Association leading the way in workforce strategy and the implementation of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunities Act for the state of California. Bob has worked almost two decades in the public sector and non-profit industry, with experience in the field of workforce development and …
Lawrence Gayden is Policy Director for the Sacramento-based California Manufacturers & Technology Association (CMTA). CMTA is the sole statewide trade association for manufacturers, representing more than 400 manufacturers on various competitiveness issues and programs. Born and raised in Oakland, Lawrence received his Bachelor of Arts in English at California State University, Sacramento. After a stint …
Marinez has a passion for helping underserved communities. She has worked with the Black, Indigenous and People of color (BIPOC) community by providing resources, creating connections, delivering support, and engaging in advocacy. Marinez is committed to helping others receive the adequate education, knowledge, and support necessary to thrive in today’s economy. Prior to joining the …
Sebastien is a Program Manager with the CA EDGE Coalition. He is responsible for timely completion of contract deliverables, reporting, and producing awareness events focused on closing California’s education and workforce skills gap to achieve greater equity, a broadly shared prosperity, and economic mobility for all Californians. Sebastien has spent the last six years of …
Lexi Lopez is the CA EDGE Coalition’s Program Director. Lexi has a passion for advocacy and spent four years working to eliminate educational inequities for K-12 students as the Director of Communications and Advocacy at EdVoice where she led the development and implementation of strategic statewide and local communications and advocacy to advance policies in California …
Anna Alvarado is the Policy Director for the California EDGE Coalition. Her work involves policy development and legislative advocacy focused on advancing EDGE’s policy priorities that aim to achieve greater equity and economic mobility for all Californians. Anna brings with her over ten years of experience in legislative and advocacy work in and around the …
Zima Creason is the Executive Director of the California EDGE Coalition and the Vice President of the San Juan Unified Board of Education. At EDGE, her work seeks to address workforce shortages in high road industries, create pathways to the middle class, and to advance shared prosperity for all Californians. She is committed to stakeholder empowerment …
Jeremy Smith has been the Deputy Legislative Director of the State Building and Construction Trades Council since 2010. Before that he was a Legislative Advocate at the California Labor Federation from 2004 to 2010. He started his career in organized labor as the Legislative Director of the Illinois AFL-CIO in 2001 after working for the Illinois State …