Board of Directors
Mary Dickson, Co-President
Mary has been a member and served on the board of the Glendale/Burbank League for nearly 30 years, most recently as President. She has experience with local non-profit organizations and helped form Walk Bike Burbank, a local chapter of the Los Angeles Bicycle Coalition. She is a certified bicycle instructor and speaks frequently to groups about bicycle safety both for individuals and in planning of infrastructure. In her working life, Mary is an attorney working in the affordable housing group of a national law firm specializing in real estate finance. Naturally, Mary enjoys bike riding in her spare time, as well as gardening and reading.
Laurice Sommers, Co-President
Laurice Sommers came to the attention of the College Board and was elected to the Board of Trustees. Penny served as Senior Educational Manager, assisting superintendents, administrators, counselors and teachers from school districts in southern California, Idaho, Arizona and Hawaii. She believes that every student deserves to graduate from high school equipped with the knowledge, skills, attitudes and behaviors to be successful in college and the workforce.
Gwendolyn Flynn, 1st Vice President
Gwendoly Flynn earned her BSc in Community and Human Services and has used it in her extensive nonprofit experience—as a volunteer worker, volunteer board member, and a seventeen year staff member. Flynn is past president of the Burbank Human Relations Council, and Parkway Homeowners Association. She was a Roots of Change stewardship board member, and a Los Angeles Food Policy Council founding leader. In 2018 Flynn joined the League of Women Voters of Greater Los Angeles (LWVGLA). She became active in the Homeless Action Committee, DEI Task Force, chaired the Leadership Academy, and a Homelessness Study co-author. She is a volunteer consultant with Executive Service Corps Southern California, a Lake Balboa Neighborhood Council member, and works as a nonprofit leadership development consultant. She enjoys cooking, travel, and time with her three grandchildren.
Leslie Rodriguez, 2nd Vice President
Leslie Rodriguez is a Manager of Government Affairs at NBCUniversal supporting the policy team by researching, analyzing, and monitoring public policy issues impacting the company. Before joining NBCUniversal, Leslie worked as an immigration paralegal managing cases before various courts and receiving awards for her leadership and dedication to serving the immigration community. She volunteers and supports non-profits such as the Fulfillment Fund and Young Center LA which are dedicated to empowering the youth through education and civic engagement. She holds a BA in Political Science from Loyola Marymount University and a double Master’s in Public Policy from the Pepperdine School of Public Policy and in Dispute Resolution from the Pepperdine Caruso School of Law. When she is not working, Leslie enjoys spending time with her family exploring the various experiences Los Angeles has to offer, and spending time with her two beloved dogs.
Gina K.Thornburg, Secretary
Gina K. Thornburg, PhD, is an author, editor, geographer, and advocate. Her work foregrounds the relationship between society and nature, as well as the intersection of governance and human agency. Areas of focus are homelessness; housing justice; groundwater contamination; urban governance; and rural socioeconomic change. Her articles have appeared in academic and mainstream journals and publications. As executive director of Coalition for Valley Neighborhoods, Dr. Thornburg won a 5% set-aside of new apartments for very low-income households in a huge redevelopment project in Woodland Hills. Dr. Thornburg holds a master’s degree in geography from CSU Northridge and a doctorate in geography from Kansas State University, as well as bachelor’s degrees in news-editorial journalism and French language and literature from the University of Kansas. For the LWVGLA, she co-chairs the Homelessness Action Committee and leads the Homelessness Draft Study Report project.
Cathy Kaiser, Treasurer
Cathy Kaiser has an M.B.A. from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor and a B.S. in Accounting from Wayne State University in Detroit. She is a retired licensed CPA in California. She has over 40 years of experience working in various executive-level audit, finance, and accounting roles. Cathy is a Consultant with Executive Services Corp and serves as a Board Member for two other nonprofits: Notre Dame Academy Schools of Los Angeles and Brave Trails.
Jake Ebright, Director-at-Large
Jake Ebright was born in Baltimore, Maryland and moved to Los Angeles in 2019 to pursue a career in acting. Prior to moving out west, Jake graduated magna cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania where he majored in economics and minored in public policy. In addition to volunteering for the LWVLA, where he is also a member of the Board of Directors and Speakers Bureau team lead on the Voter Service Committee, Jake is a member of SAG-AFTRA. His prior experience includes interning for the International Rescue Committee as an employment specialist, volunteering for the American Civil Liberties Union as a court observer, and interning on Capitol Hill for the congressional office of Representative John K. Delaney. Jake decided to join the League of Women Voters because he wants to stay politically active and informed while he works on getting himself on the big screen, and the LWV, with its strong reputation as a non-partisan voting advocacy organization, seemed like just the right place to do it.
Carla Fuentes, Director-at-Large
Carla Fuentes, a graduate of CSUN with a degree in Political Science, brings a wealth of experience and dedication to social change. Currently serving as the Social Innovation Coordinator at the Goldhirsh Foundation, Carla's background spans philanthropy, local government, and political campaigns. Beyond her professional endeavors she holds leadership positions, including serving as a Board Member for the Greater Valley Glen Council, as the Chair of Outreach for this year's LA Congress of Neighborhoods, as a member of the Emerging Practitioners in Philanthropy LA Steering Committee, as the Vice Chair of Communications of the Stonewall Young Democrats, and as the Vice Chair of the Women's Committee of the LA County Young Democrats. Carla's passion lies in advocating for women's rights, environmental justice, and racial equity.
Ann-Marie Holman, Director-at-Large
Ann-Marie Holman has 18 years of experience in messaging, marketing, branding, community engagement, and media relations. She is currently a public relations specialist at the LA Department of Water and Power. Previously, she was Director of Communications for the Los Angeles Department of Neighborhood Empowerment – primary support agency for LA’s 99 Neighborhood Councils, which together form the grassroots level of the City government. Ann-Marie has been involved in Los Angeles government since her election in 2014 to the Echo Park Neighborhood Council, where she chaired the Planning & Land Use Committee. A Utah native, she attended the University of St Andrews in Scotland, and received her B.A. in Sociology from UCLA. She is the proud owner of a 1972 Dodge Challenger.
Debbie Laskey, Director-at-Large
Debbie Laskey has two decades of marketing experience and an MBA Degree. She has worked in the high-tech industry, the Consumer Marketing Department at Disneyland Paris in France, the nonprofit arena, and the financial services sector. Her expertise includes brand marketing, employee engagement, leadership development, customer experience marketing, and writing. Currently, Debbie is a brand marketing consultant to emerging businesses and nonprofits. Her nonprofit experience includes marketing committee work for the LVWGLA’s 95th Anniversary event in 2015; and since 2016, membership in the Marketing/PR Committee of the Special Olympics of Southern California. Debbie is passionate about women’s equality, expanding leadership opportunities for women, and equal pay for equal work. Her great-grandmother marched for women’s suffrage in New York in the years leading up to the passage of the 19th Amendment. Visit her website at www.BrandingAndMore.net and her blog at www.DebbieLaskeysBlog.com.
Candace Leos Valdepena, Director-at-Large
Candace is a native of Compton and began organizing in 2019 to educate, empower, and mobilize residents. She built relationships with local and state officials to establish a strong pipeline of communication. Recognizing her passion for advocacy, she founded the Compton Advocates Coalition as a nonprofit in late 2019. The organization is dedicated to fostering positive change in Compton and surrounding communities. Candace serves on the Women's Commission for the 65th Assembly District, is a board member of Alma Backyard Farms, and is a member of the Steering and Community Partner Advisory Committees for Vote Early Day. Additionally, she is the Regional Subcontractor Administrator for the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (CHIRLA). In 2020, Candace shared her journey as a speaker at TEDx Compton Blvd Women, and in 2021, she was honored as the Woman of the Year for California State Assembly District 64.
Carla Lopez-Valdes, Director-at-Large
Carla was born and raised in Los Angeles to Salvadoran parents. For over 15 years, she has been a social justice advocate in the nonprofit sector. Through this work, she has advocated for domestic workers’ rights, health access, civic engagement, and education equity for underserved communities across Los Angeles County. It is her personal mission to advocate for policies, programs, and resources that play a critical role in ensuring communities in need can fully thrive. She currently serves as the Associate Director of Government and Community Relations at Para Los Niños (For The Kids), an organization that works through a holistic lens to ensure children and families can fully thrive.
Cameron M. Manning, Director-at-Large
Cameron has been engaged with the League of Women Voters since 2017, serving in diverse staff, committee, and Board positions across North Carolina, Colorado, and presently, Los Angeles. With broad experience in fundraising, program management, and nonprofit operations, Cameron specializes in measuring and evaluating social impact, leveraging his expertise as a trained data scientist. Across a decade of experience, he has led the development of innovative technology solutions and machine learning models that measure, predict, and visualize social impact for nonprofits serving young people, voters, and LGBTQ communities. Cameron holds a B.S. in Business Data Analytics from Arizona State University. Currently, he is pursuing a Master of Public Policy at the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs, focusing on econometrics and program evaluation. Originally from Western North Carolina, Cameron now resides in West Hollywood.
Lisa Robinson, Director-at-Large
Lisa Robinson has spent 40 years developing strategic communications programs for some of the world’s largest public relations agencies, including Burson Marsteller, Ketchum Communications, Fleishman Hillard, and Zeno Group. Ten years ago, she co-founded Crafted Communications, a fast-growing women-owned agency. A strong advocate of community relations, Robinson supported press relations for the foster care organization United Friends of the Children and served on the Board of The Alliance for Children’s Rights. Lisa was an eight-year member of the Wildwood School Board of Trustees. She has extensive experience leading major fundraising events including a star-studded event for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. Lisa is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of SUNY Stony Brook.
Arzo Yusuf, Director-at-Large
Arzo Yusuf is a political asylum refugee born in Afghanistan, raised in California. She has extensive experience in process development, operations management and business development. Arzo is the 2024 recipient of the Americorps President’s Volunteer Service Award; in 2023 she received the 2023 Century City Community Champion Award. Arzo is the Executive Director, and former Board president, of Angels Nest, a non-profit helping homeless foster youth. Her advocacy for foster children includes the film “Breaking The Cycle” and a TED talk. Drawing from lived experience, she also speaks publicly on behalf of the National Coalition For Domestic Violence. In addition to her LWVGLA Board service, she also sits on the Board of Directors for the Century City Chamber of Commerce, and is the co-Chair of its Women’s Business Council. Her hobbies include sailing, painting, and listening to jazz.
Staff
Raquel Beltran, Interim Executive Director (she/her)
Raquel Beltran is a native of San Diego and has lived in the greater Los Angeles area for over 25 years. Her background is in public administration, public policy, labor organizing, and nonprofit board governance. Her experience spans over 40 years in various cities of California, leading efforts in the area of civic engagement, elections management, and transformational change. Raquel is a native of San Diego and has received numerous recognitions throughout the years, including representatives of local, state, and federal government, community-based, and business entities from throughout the State. In addition, she received her Bachelor of Political Science from Cal State University, East Bay, and her M.B.A from Cal State University, Dominguez Hills, with Delta Mu honors.
Lauren Buisson - Administrative Assistant (she/they/ella)
Lauren Buisson (pronounced bwē-sŏn; pronouns she/they/ella) is a decades-long community activist, beginning at 13 when she joined her school’s volunteer service club. More recently, she served two terms as an elected Representative of the Echo Park Neighborhood Council, and supervised the kitchen for the inaugural Echo Park unhoused shower and services program with fellow neighborhood SELAH volunteers. The weighty responsibility of voting was impressed upon Lauren at an early age when she accompanied her mother to the polls. The hushed solemnity of ballot casting remained a vivid memory which makes joining the celebrated League of Women Voters seem fated. A journalist by training, and a teacher by temperament, Lauren occasionally lectures and writes on the enduring lessons of the struggles of American Civil Rights movements and the lives of those who sacrificed for them.
