Board of Governors
Board of Governors
Member’s play a vital role in LAEDC’s mission and governance.
The LAEDC Board of Governors comprises Los Angeles County businesses, government, and education leaders. Our Meetings feature keynote speakers who present critical organizational issues and regional information.
To learn more about membership, visit our Membership page or contact Vice President of Strategic Relations Melissa Kham.
LAEDC Chair & Vice Chair

Halé Behzadi, North America Head of Citi Private Bank
Halé Behzadi is the North America Head of Citi Private Bank and a member of the Private Banking Global Leadership Team. Halé has more than three decades of experience working with ultra-high net worth families and their closely held business and philanthropic ventures and leads the Private Banking activities in 25 offices across the United States and Canada. Read More »
HALÉ BEHZADI, North America Head of Citi Private Bank
Halé Behzadi is the North America Head of Citi Private Bank and a member of the Private Banking Global Leadership Team. Halé has more than three decades of experience working with ultra-high net worth families and their closely held business and philanthropic ventures and leads the Private Banking activities in 25 offices across the United States and Canada.
Most recently, Halé was the Global Market Manager of the Western Region at Citi Private Bank and directly responsible for leading the ultra-high net worth private banking practices in seven offices in California, Arizona and Washington. Halé co-chairs Citi’s California Leadership Council and is the Executive Sponsor of Citi’s North America Diversity Committee. Previously, Halé chaired the Mentoring Committee at Citi Private Bank and served as the Business Sponsor of Citi’s Pride Network for Southern California and the Women’s Network for Northern California.
Prior to joining Citigroup and establishing the Private Bank office in Beverly Hills in 2002, Halé enjoyed a long and distinguished career with Bank of America, where she was a Senior Vice President directing a team of private banking professionals in Beverly Hills.
Halé holds a BA in Economics from Georgetown University, where she is an active member of the Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security. Throughout her career she has played an active role in numerous civic and charitable organizations that provide social services, education and health care in the local community. Currently, Halé serves on the Board of Trustees for Viewpoint School as a member of the Executive Committee, in addition to chairing the Advancement Committee. She has previously held a number of leadership roles including Vice Chair and Chair of Committee on Trustees where she was focused on recruiting more diverse board members, especially women. She is also a member of the Executive Committee and Board of Governors of the Los Angeles Economic Development Corporation. Halé was recently recognized as a Deborah Award recipient by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) for her leadership and civic contributions exemplifying the qualities and ideals of ADL. She holds Series 7, 24, 63 and 65 FINRA licenses.

Efrain Escobedo, President & CEO of The Center for Nonprofit Management
Efrain Escobedo is a leading executive and dynamic strategist dedicated to increasing the civic engagement of historically underserved and marginalized communities and transforming systems through more human-centered approaches. For nearly two decades, he has worked within the philanthropic, government, and nonprofit sectors to advance his professional mission. This cross-sectoral experience – paired with Efrain’s commitment to empowering local communities – allows him to bring partners together and make a meaningful impact in his work across California. Read More »
Efrain Escobedo, President & CEO of The Center for Nonprofit Management
Efrain Escobedo is a leading executive and dynamic strategist dedicated to increasing the civic engagement of historically underserved and marginalized communities and transforming systems through more human-centered approaches. For nearly two decades, he has worked within the philanthropic, government, and nonprofit sectors to advance his professional mission. This cross-sectoral experience – paired with Efrain’s commitment to empowering local communities – allows him to bring partners together and make a meaningful impact in his work across California.
Efrain previously served as Vice President of Public Policy and Civic Engagement at The California Community Foundation (CCF), one of the state’s leading philanthropies with more than $1.8 billion in assets. Efrain manages senior staff, develops cross-sector partnerships, has helped revamp several multimillion-dollar grantmaking portfolios, and leads the design and implementation of innovative public-private partnerships with Los Angeles County and the State of California. Efrain has played a key role in CCF’s impactful philanthropy, which disbursed more than $100 million in grants and administered multiple public-private partnerships with the County and State.
Efrain’s work is informed by his deep-rooted experience crafting effective human-centered engagement strategies in government. For nearly seven years, Efrain worked at the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk, first as an Executive Liaison, managing the Department’s Multilingual Services and Community Outreach teams, and then as the Division Manager of Governmental & Legislative Affairs. As Division Manager, Efrain led three divisions – Public Information Office, Legislative Affairs, and Community Outreach – where he spearheaded historic projects like the Voting Systems Assessment Project, which modernized the County’s voting systems through an innovative community-centered process and public-private partnership.
Efrain additionally draws on his experience in the nonprofit sector, as he worked at the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials Educational Fund for half a decade, first as Director of Voter Engagement and then as Senior Director of Civic Engagement. Efrain led a national $2.5 million voter education initiative across seven states and played a key leadership role in the historic Ya Es Hora campaign, which helped to naturalize more than one million immigrants in the U.S. and contributed to historic Latino voter turnout in 2008.
Efrain holds leadership positions on committees across the philanthropic, government, and nonprofit sectors. He is Chair of the Board of Directors for Hispanics in Philanthropy, past member of the Grantmakers Concerned with Immigrants and Refugees Board of Directors, a Member of the Board of Directors for Mi Familia Vota Education Fund, a Member of the Policy Advisory Committee for Southern California Grantmakers, and Speaker Appointee of the CA Census Complete Count Committee in 2020.
Efrain earned his bachelor’s degree in American Studies and Ethnicity from the University of Southern California and his Master of Business Administration from the University of La Verne. He is a graduate of the Los Angeles County Executive Leadership Program, a partnership with USC Sol Price School of Public Policy.

Ron Frierson, Director of Economic Development, U.S. West Region of Amazon
Ron Frierson serves as Director of Economic Development of the U.S. West Region at Amazon. In his role, Ron leads the team that supports and champions Amazon investment projects across various Amazon business lines in areas of market-entry, strategy, site selection, entitlements, operations, and partnerships. Read More »
Ron Frierson, Director of Economic Development, U.S. West Region of Amazon
Ron Frierson serves as Director of Economic Development of the U.S. West Region at Amazon. In his role, Ron leads the team that supports and champions Amazon investment projects across various Amazon business lines in areas of market-entry, strategy, site selection, entitlements, operations, and partnerships.
Before joining Amazon, Ron served as Director of Economic Policy for former Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti. Ron led the Business Team for the Mayor’s Office, which developed business policy affecting the world’s 3rd largest metropolitan economy. Ron’s portfolio included Commercial Real Estate Development, Technology, Sports & Entertainment, Manufacturing, Taxation, Healthcare, and Tourism & Hospitality. He also oversaw the Convention & Tourism Department, Department of Cannabis Regulation and the Economic Workforce & Development Department on behalf of the Mayor’s Office.
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Executive Committee
LAEDC Executive Committee members also serve on the Board of Governors
- ABL Inc.
David Abel, Founder - ACT-1 Group
Brett Howroyd, President - Alston & Bird LLP
Tom Wingard, Partner-in-Charge - Amazon
Ron Frierson, Director of Economic Development, U.S. West Region - Amazon Web Services Educate
Mariana Holliday, Global Program Lead, Education to Workforce Solutions - Bank of America
Merrill Lynch, SVP/Head of Global Commercial Banking - California Community Foundation
Jarret Barrios, SVP of Strategic Community and Programmatic Initiatives - California State Polytechnic University, Pomona
Frances Teves, Interim Vice President for University Advancement - California State University, Dominguez Hills
Dr. Thomas A. Parham, President - California State University, Long Beach
Dr. Jane Conoley, President - California State University, Los Angeles
TBD - California State University, Northridge
Erika Beck, President - Capital Group Companies
David Foley, Quantitative Analyst - Caruso
Luciralia Ibarra, Vice President of Planning, Land Use, and Government Affairs - Cedars-Sinai Medical Center
Thomas M. Priselac, President + CEO - Center for Nonprofit Management
Efrain Escobedo, President & CEO - Chevron
Jeff Wilson, Manager, Corporate Affairs - Citibank N.A
Halé Behzadi, Managing Director, Global Market Manager - City National Bank
Aaron Cohen, Executive Vice President - Comcast NBCUniversal
Yvette Estrada Senior Manager, Government Affairs - County of Los Angeles
Fesia Davenport, Chief Executive Officer - Deloitte
Jodie Lesh, Managing Director, Former LAEDC Chair - Dentons US LLP
Tom Vandiver, Partner - DLA Piper
John Loftus, Partner - East West Bank
Travis Kiyota, Senior Vice President, Head of Global Corporate Affairs - Eli and Edythe Broad Foundation
Porsha Cropper, Senior Program Officer - EPIC Insurance Brokers & Consultants
Rose Nordbrock, Principal and Practice Group Leader - Ernst & Young LLP
TBD - Fox
Carissa Smith, Vice President of Government Relations - Giroux Glass Incorporated
Nataline Lomedico, President & CEO - gkkworks | CannonDesign
Praful Kulkarni, Principal | Director of Integrated Services
- Goodwill Southern California
Patrick McClenahan, President and CEO - Greater Los Angeles African American Chamber of Commerce
Gene Hale, Chairman - Greenberg Traurig, LLP
Barbara A. Jones, Co-Managing Shareholder - Hackman Capital Partners
Zach Sokoloff, Vice President, Asset Management - Hanil
Cynthia Coulter, Executive Vice President - ICG Advisors, LLC
Michael Weintraub, Director - Jacobs
Gerard Orozco, Vice President & Executive Client Account Manager - JP Morgan Chase Bank
Brennon Crist, Managing Director of Middle Market Banking - Junior Achievement of Southern California
Les McCabe, Ph.D., President and CEO - Kaiser Permanente
TBD - Metro
Bryan Sastokas, Chief Innovation Officer - Latino Restaurant Association
Lilly Rocha, CEO & Executive Director - Los Angeles County Public Works Department
Mark Pestrella, Executive Director, Department of Public Works - Los Angeles County Department of Economic Opportunity
Kelly LoBianco, Executive Director - Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP)
Bryan Schweickert, Assistant Director, Key Accounts Section, Customer Service Division - Los Angeles Rams
Maria Camacho, Director of Government Affairs - Los Angeles Regional Consortium
Dr. Narineh Makijan, Chair/Assistant Vice President - Los Angeles Tourism & Convention Board
Adam Burke, President & CEO - Los Angeles World Airports
Justin Erbacci, CEO - Meta
Juan Salazar, Director of Local Policy and Community Engagement - Nissen Consulting Group
Steve Nissen, President & CEO, Former LAEDC Chair - Nixon Peabody LLP
Bryan LeRoy, Los Angeles Office Managing Partner - Occidental College
Amos Himmelstein, COO - O’Connor Cochran LLP
Maura O’Connor, Managing Partner, Former LAEDC Chair - Office of Los Angeles County Supervisor Hilda Solis
Goetz Wolff, Appointee for Supervisor Hilda Solis - Office of Los Angeles County Supervisor Lindsey P. Horvath
Kathleen Rawson, Chief Executive Officer – The Hollywood Partnership - Office of Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn
Jayme S. Wilson, Economic Development Deputy for Supervisor Janice Hahn - Office of Los Angeles County Supervisor Kathryn Barger
Monica Banken, Family Services and Econ Deve Deputy
- Office of Los Angeles County Supervisor Holly Mitchell
Schenae Rourk, Appointed by Supervisor Holly Mitchell - O’Melveny
Steven J. Olson, Partner - PNC Bank
Dan Timmons, Head of Corporate Banking - Port of Long Beach
Dr. Noel Hacegaba, Managing Director of Commercial Operations & Chief Commercial Officer - Port of Los Angeles
Gene Seroka, Executive Director - RSM US LLP
David Hill, Partner - Servicon Systems, Inc.
Laurie Sewell, President - Silverstein Properties, Inc.
Bill Dacunto, Executive Vice President - Southern California Edison
Zanku Armenian, Director, Public Affairs - Southern California Gas Company
Diana Boyadijian, Senior Government Affairs Manager - Talino Venture Labs
Winston Damarillo, Founder and CEO - UCLA
Gene Block, Chancellor - UCLA Extension
Eric A. Bullard, Ph.D., Dean of Continuing Education and UCLA Extension - UCLA Health
Santiago Munoz, Chief Strategy Officer - Univision Communications, Inc.
Jim Coronado, Vice President, Business Development - US Bank
Spencer Smith, Commercial Banking Group Manager - USC
Effie Turnbull-Sanders, Vice President of Civic Engagement and Economic Partnerships - Watson Land Company
Jeffrey R. Jennison, President - Waymo
Ellie Casson, Head of City Policy and Government Affairs - Wells Fargo Bank
Angela Yim-Sullivan, Senior Vice President, Market Executive - West LA College
James Limbaugh, President - Western States Petroleum Association
Catherine Reheis-Boyd, President and CEO - Whittier College
Timothy Anderson, Vice President of Innovation and New Ventures - Working Nation
Arthur Bilger, Founder and CEO
- ABL Inc.
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Board of Governors
LAEDC Membership
- ArtCenter College of Design
Jered Gold, Vice President, Marketing & Communications - Arizona State University
Dulce Vasquez, Director of Strategic Partnerships - ArroyoWest
Jesse Torres, Principal - Bank of China
Jimmy Tang Associate, Business Development Department - Bernards
Lee Sehon, Vice President of Commercial Operations - The Boeing Company
Mark Taylor, Director, State & Local Government Operations - California Community Foundation
Maria de la Luz Garcia, Senior Program Officer, Public Policy and Strategic Partnerships - Charter Communications
Stephen Sawyer, Director of Government Affairs - Citrus College
Michael Wangler, Dean of Career, Technical & Continuing Education - City of Arcadia
TBD - City of Beverly Hills
John Mirisch, Councilmember - City of Burbank
Mary Hamzoian, Economic Development Manager - City of Compton
TBD - City of Carson
LaToya Butler, Business and Employment Development - City of Culver City
TBD - City of Duarte
Craig Hensley, Director of Community Development - City of El Segundo
Barbara Voss, Economic Development Manager - City of Gardena
Jackie Choi, Economic Development Manager - City of Irwindale
Marilyn Simpson, Principal Planner - City of Industry
Sam Pedroza, Public Affairs Manager - City of Lancaster
Chenin Dow, Economic Development Manager - City of Lomita
Ryan Smoot, City Manager - City of Monrovia
Craig Jimenez, Community Development Director - City of Montebello
Michael Chee, Deputy Director, Public Affairs - City of Palmdale
Luis Garibay, Director of Economic and Community Development - City of Pasadena
David Klug, Economic Development Manager
- City of Rancho Palos Verdes
Karina Bañales, Deputy City Manager - City of Pico Rivera
Julia Gonzalez, Community & Economic Development Deputy Director - City of Rosemead
Ben Kim, Acting City Manager - City of Santa Fe Springs
Wayne Morrell, Director of Planning - City of Santa Monica
Jennifer Taylor, Economic Development Administrator - City of South El Monte
Rene Salas, City Manager - City of South Gate
Chris Jeffers, City Manager - City of Torrance
Fran Fulton, Economic Development Manager - City of Vernon
Carlos R. Fandino Jr., City Administrator - City of West Hollywood
Tara Worden, Business Development Analyst - College of the Canyons
John Milburn, Interim Vice President, Workforce and Economic Advancement - Compton Community College
Lynell R Wiggins, Director of Adult Ed & Workforce Development - Conrad N. Hilton Foundation
Jeffrey Forrest, Director, Older Youth Initiatives - Employment Training Panel
Robert Meyer, Director of Economic Development - Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco
Qiana Charles, Vice President, Regional Executive - FivePoint
Sandy Sanchez, Community Development Director - Foley & Lardner, LLP
Diane Ung, Partner, Healthcare - Gensler
John Adams, Managing Principal - Glendale Community College
Freddy Saucedo, Associate Dean (Interim), Career Education and Workforce Development - Global Green
William Bridge, CEO - Globant
Gautam V. - Google
Javier González, Head of California Local Government Affairs, Public Policy, & External Affairs - Grifols Biologicals LLC
Karen Glenn Martinez, Corporate Affairs Senior Manager - Hospital Association of Southern California
Adena Tessler, Regional Vice President, Greater Los Angeles Area - Insperity
Eric Swift, Business Performance Advisor
- Jeff Bomberger
Author, Meditation Coach, Intuitive Guide - KPMG LLP
Bindiya Khurana, Principal, Advisory - Los Angeles City College
Armando Rivera-Figueroa, Dean of Economic and Workforce Education - Los Nietos School District
William W. Gideon Jr., Ed.D, Assistant Superintendent, Curriculum & Instruction - Loyola Marymount University
Dayle Smith, Phd, Dean, College of Business Administration - Lynwood Unified School District
Patrick Gittisriboongul, Ed.D, Asst. Superintendent, Technology & Innovation - Metropolitan Water District of Southern California
Christine Frey, Government & Regional Affairs - Microsoft
Tim Ryder, General Manager Microsoft Manufacturing - Mt. San Antonio College
Bill Scroggins, President - Northrop Grumman
Matthew Garth, Public Affairs - NPower
Punita Patel, Placement Manager - Pasadena City College
Salvatrice Cummo, Executive Director, Economic and Workforce Development - Ron Tomson
Sharon Bensason, President - Sanitation Districts of Los Angeles County
Robert Ferrante, Chief Engineer and General Manager - Sentinel Peak Resources
Amanda Parsons, Community and Government Affairs - Skanska
Ellen Mair, Director of Business Development - United Airlines
Papia Gambelin, Managing Director - Valley Presbyterian Hospital
Gustavo Valdespino, President & CEO - Vasquez & Company, LLP
Gilbert Vasquez, Managing Partner - Vectis DC
David Herbst, Founding Partner and Chairman - Verizon
Randal Hernandez, External Affairs, Southern California - Warner Bros Entertainment, Inc.
Michael Walbrecht, Vice President, Public Affairs - Water Replenishment District of Southern California
Angie Mancillas, Government Affairs Representative
- ArtCenter College of Design
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LAEDC Affiliate Members
- Acara Solutions
- ArroyoWest
- AvAirPros
- AV Edge
- Catalina Express
- Central City Association and Downtown Center Business Improvement District
- Eddy Associates
- Hatch Spaces
- Junior Achievement (JA)
- JVS SoCal
- Larta Institute
- Leavenworth Endeavors
- Los Angeles Local Development Corporation
- Latino Coalition for Community Leadership
- Pasadena Promos
- Strength Based Community Change (SBCC)
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LAEDC Strategic Partners
- Asia Society of Southern California
- California Fashion Association
- Community Foundation of the Valleys
- Japan Business Association
- National Association of Women Business Owners, Los Angeles
- Bizfed
- California Stewardship Network (CSN)
- Latino Business Chamber of Greater Los Angeles
- Los Angeles Public Library
- Biocom California
- British American Business Council
- Japan America Society of Southern California
- Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce
- Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG)
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LAEDC Regional Development Partners
- San Gabriel Valley Economic Partnership
- Santa Clarita Valley Economic Development Corporation
- The Valley Economic Alliance
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Previous Board Chairs
- 2022/2023 Steve Olson,
Partner, O'Melveny - 2021/2022 Rudy Medina,
Southern California Market President, U.S. Bank - 2020/2021 Steve Nissen,
President and CEO, Nissen Consulting Group - 2019/2020 Dianne Harrison,
President, CSU Northridge (CSUN) - 2018/2019 Eric Rowen,
Principal Shareholder, Greenberg Traurig LLP
- 2017/2018 Jodie Lesh,
SVP, National Delivery System Strategy, Planning and Design at Kaiser Permanente - 2016/2017 Chris Martin,
CEO and Chairman of AC Martin and Martin Project Management - 2015/2016 Praful Kulkarni,
founding partner of gkk works - 2014/2015 Raul A. Anaya,
President, Bank of America – Greater Los Angeles Region - 2013/2014 Lew Horne,
President, CBRE Inc., Greater Los Angeles and Orange County Region
- 2012/ 2013 Christopher Carey,
Chief Financial Officer, City National Bank - 2011/ 2012 Robert Hertzberg,
California State Senator and former Speaker of the California State Assembly - 2010/2011 Maura O'Connor,
O'Connor Cochran LLP - 2009/2010 Lloyd Greif,
USC Lloyd Greif Center for Entrepreneurial Studies
- 2022/2023 Steve Olson,
Meet Some of Our Members
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Member Spotlight: Yvette Estrada, NBCUniversal
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Member Spotlight: Monica Banken, Los Angeles County Supervisor Kathryn Barger
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Member Spotlight: Patrick Gittisriboongul, Lynwood Unified School District
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LAEDC Member Spotlight: Ron Frierson, Amazon
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Member Spotlight: Dr. Narineh Makijan, LARC
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LAEDC Member Spotlight: Art Bilger, WorkingNation
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LAEDC Member Spotlight: Brett Howroyd, ActOne Group
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LAEDC Member Spotlight: Alejandra Santamaria, Univision
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Member Spotlight: Justin Erbacci, Los Angeles World Airports
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LAEDC Member Spotlight: Punita Patel, Npower