RDA Strategies

In January 2019, Los Angeles leaders and community members convened around the Prison to Employment (P2E) initiative, focused on improving workforce outcomes for formerly incarcerated and justice-involved individuals.

The California program was designed to strengthen pathways to employment by supporting career coaching, interview preparation, on-the-job training, and wraparound services that address barriers such as housing instability, educational gaps, substance use, and mental health needs.

The conversations centered on regional planning, implementation strategies, supportive services, and earn-and-learn opportunities identified as priorities by workforce providers and communities.

Reentry is rarely shaped solely by employment. Long-term stability often depends on whether systems coordinate around the broader conditions influencing opportunity.

Much of this work happens outside public recognition, through planning sessions, partnerships, and conversations that eventually shape programs reaching communities.

On December 12, 2018, Winter Homeless Connect Day brought together the City of Los Angeles, LA:RISE, nonprofit organizations, WorkSource Centers, and government agencies to provide complimentary services, resources, and employment connections for more than 500 people experiencing homelessness.

Designed as a one-stop shop to reduce barriers, the event offered resource navigation, assistance with securing identification documents, healthcare screenings, employment services, transitional job opportunities, hygiene resources, meals, and other direct supports.

The coordinated effort reflected a broader recognition that housing instability is often connected to employment, healthcare access, disability, documentation, transportation, and other systems influencing long-term stability.

The day also created opportunities to connect with leaders working across these issues, including Jaime Pacheco-Orozco, then Assistant Executive Director for the City of Los Angeles Department on Disability, Christina Miller, who served as the City’s first Deputy Mayor for Homelessness, and leaders within Mayor Eric Garcetti’s administration advancing coordinated responses to homelessness.

Events like these demonstrate what becomes possible when public agencies, workforce systems, disability leaders, and community organizations align around practical support while working toward longer-term solutions.

Connection to resources can influence whether barriers remain barriers or become pathways forward.

On October 4, 2018, more than 200 workforce leaders, policymakers, service providers, researchers, and community stakeholders gathered at Los Angeles City Hall for From Homelessness to Employment, a convening designed to examine lessons from LA:RISE and to explore strategies to expand employment opportunities for people navigating significant barriers to work.

As the lead coordinating the event in partnership with the Mayor’s Office and regional workforce leaders, my role included agenda development, speaker coordination, logistics, participant engagement, and the creation of opportunities for dialogue across sectors.

The gathering centered on preliminary findings from an independent evaluation of LA:RISE, an initiative uniting City and County workforce systems with employment social enterprises to support individuals experiencing homelessness, reentry populations, opportunity youth, and others facing employment barriers.

Speakers and panelists represented organizations including REDF, LAHSA, supportive housing leaders, workforce agencies, and local government, exploring questions still relevant today: How do communities strengthen pathways to employment while addressing housing instability, reentry, and long-term economic mobility?

The room was full because the conversation extended beyond one program. It reflected growing recognition that sustainable solutions require collaboration among workforce systems, housing providers, employers, philanthropy, government agencies, and community organizations.

One of the most meaningful parts of the event came through participant stories, reminders that data matters, but lived outcomes matter too.

From June 12 to 15, 2018, employment social enterprise leaders from across the country gathered in Seattle for the REDF Partner Retreat, exchanging ideas on leadership, workforce development, and approaches to expanding employment opportunities for people navigating barriers to work.

The retreat created space for continued learning, honest conversations, and relationship building among social entrepreneurs working toward stronger communities through employment. REDF’s convenings emphasize an important point: progress accelerates when leaders share challenges, exchange ideas, and learn from one another rather than working in isolation.

The experience reflected a growing national movement recognizing that businesses can create both economic opportunity and social impact.

The gathering concluded at Maslow’s by FareStart, a social enterprise addressing homelessness, poverty, hunger, and unemployment through workforce training and employment opportunities. Organizations like FareStart demonstrate how investing in people through employment, skill building, and support can influence long-term outcomes.

The retreat reinforced an ongoing reminder: Community is not only built through shared purpose. It is strengthened through relationships, vulnerability, and willingness to learn together.

On June 5, 2018, leaders gathered at the CSH Summit in Los Angeles to exchange strategies focused on supportive housing, homelessness, healthcare access, and long term community outcomes.

The summit brought together practitioners, policymakers, researchers, and service providers exploring how supportive housing intersects with improved healthcare outcomes, substance use treatment, transitions from institutions and hospitals, family stability, and support for veterans. Sessions examined approaches to equity, systems transformation, research, and strengthening coordinated responses to complex community challenges.

As part of the summit, I joined an employment focused panel discussion at MADE by DWC, the social enterprise of the Downtown Women’s Center, sharing perspectives on employment social enterprises and the role workforce pathways can play alongside housing and supportive services.

The visit highlighted how MADE by DWC creates employment opportunities, skill building experiences, and pathways toward economic stability for women navigating homelessness.

Another meaningful component of the broader summit elevated the voices of people with direct experience of homelessness, reinforcing the importance of including community perspectives in conversations shaping policy and practice.

The gathering underscored something that continues to resonate: Housing stability is often influenced by more than housing alone. Employment, healthcare, supportive services, and coordinated systems all contribute to long term opportunity.

In March 2018, I attended SXSW Social Impact in Austin, Texas, where activists, nonprofits, foundations, social enterprises, technologists, and storytellers explored how communities respond to complex social challenges.

Often recognized for technology, music, and startup culture, SXSW also convenes conversations centered on equity, advocacy, innovation, and community change. The 2018 Social Impact programming examined topics including LGBTQ+ advocacy, women’s rights, ethical design, inclusive technology, migration, human rights, gun violence prevention, and how cities respond to systemic challenges.

The experience highlighted how storytelling, policy, business, technology, and grassroots movements increasingly intersect when addressing issues affecting communities.

One takeaway remained relevant: Solutions often emerge when ideas move beyond sectors and people who are willing to approach challenges differently.

The conference reinforced the growing recognition that social impact work is not confined to nonprofit organizations. Creatives, entrepreneurs, technologists, advocates, and community leaders all have roles in shaping more equitable futures.

On November 18, 2017, I joined the Leadership Empowerment Panel: Leadership Wisdom for Future Community and Social Responsible Leaders at the 8th Annual Circle of Change Leadership Conference held at California State University, Dominguez Hills.

The discussion brought together leaders across communications, corporate social responsibility, community relations, and nonprofit sectors, including Michelynn Woodard, Co-Founder of Artemis Agency; R. Christine Hershey, Founder of Hershey Cause Communications; Luis Gonzalez, Community Relations Senior Consultant at Wells Fargo; and Gwendolyn Young, President and CEO of Young Communications Group.

The panel focused on sharing lessons around leadership, career growth, community impact, and the role social responsibility can play across industries.

Circle of Change is an award-winning, three-day leadership experience designed to support emerging leaders through professional development, leadership training, reflection, and connection with professionals from across sectors. The conference attracted 200-300 diverse student leaders representing more than 40 colleges nationwide, with sessions featuring executives from 50+ Fortune 500 companies.

One statistic stood out: 94% of participants reported the conference helped them better understand the value of diversity and treating people with respect regardless of differences.

The experience reinforced something I continue to believe: Leadership is not only measured by titles or accomplishments. It is reflected in how people create opportunities, invest in others, and encourage future leaders to see possibilities within themselves.

On September 11, 2017, I participated in the 9/11 Day of Service with the Taproot Foundation at The California Endowment in Los Angeles, as part of a nationwide initiative that connects business professionals with nonprofit organizations through pro bono consulting and skills-based volunteering.

Created in remembrance of September 11, the initiative expanded beyond traditional volunteering by encouraging professionals to contribute their expertise in strategy, marketing, operations, human resources, and technology, recognizing that strengthening nonprofit capacity can influence long-term community impact.

Through organized Speed Consulting sessions held across cities, including Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco, volunteers and nonprofit leaders exchanged ideas to help organizations address challenges and strengthen their missions.

The following day, Southern California Grantmakers and community leaders gathered to recognize contributions from individuals and organizations advancing impact across the region.

The week reinforced something that remains relevant: Expertise can be a resource. Sharing knowledge, time, and lived experience can strengthen organizations serving communities.

On May 13, 2017, the 11th Annual West Hollywood Women’s Leadership Conference brought together more than 300 attendees, advocacy organizations, civic leaders, media partners, and speakers for a day focused on activism, leadership, gender equity, and community engagement to create change.

Serving as Lead Conference Coordinator and Marketing Strategist, I supported conference programming, speaker engagement, partnerships, communications strategy, and efforts to increase community participation around themes of advocacy and women’s leadership. The event featured sessions on workplace gender equity, women in technology, reproductive justice, coalition building, media, civic engagement, and social entrepreneurship.

I was also interviewed by WeHoTV, sharing the goals behind the conference and conversations centered on economic empowerment, education, income mobility, and expanding opportunities for women to lead and thrive.

The day concluded with Amplify for Good, an art and music reception inspired by the We the People campaign, exploring how creativity, storytelling, and public art can influence civic participation and collective action.

The experience reinforced something I continue to see: Lasting change often happens when strategy, culture, advocacy, and community engagement intersect.