BIOGRAPHICAL
INFORMATION
speakers
Jerry Brown
Mayor of Oakland, California
Brown began his political life in 1969 when he was elected to the Los
Angeles Community College Board of Trustees. In 1970, he was elected California
Secretary of State. Four years later, he was elected Governor. He was reelected
in 1978 by the largest vote margin in California's history.
As governor, Brown presided over a state where 25% of the nation’s new jobs
were created. He established the first agricultural labor relations law in the
country, started the California Conservation Corp (CCC), enacted into permanent
law the California Coastal Protection Act, successfully pushed for the
country's first building and appliance energy efficiency standards, halted
nuclear power development and made California the leader in solar and
alternative energy. He brought more women and minorities into high government
positions than any other chief executive, including the first woman,
African-American and Latino to the California Supreme Court.
After his defeat by Pete Wilson in a 1982 U.S. Senate race, Brown spent six
months in Japan and worked briefly with Mother Teresa in India. He practiced
law in Los Angeles and in 1989 became chairman of the state Democratic
Party. In 1992 he sought the Democratic
Presidential nomination. During that campaign he refused to take contributions
larger than $100 and used an ''800" number to raise funds. Despite limited
financial resources, Brown was the only candidate other than Bill Clinton to
receive enough voter support to continue until the Democratic National
Convention.
Brown won his mayoral campaign in Oakland in the primary with 59 percent of
the vote. Brown is a San Francisco native. He received his B.A. degree in Latin
and Greek from the University of California at Berkeley in 1961, and graduated
from Yale Law School in 1964.
Sandy
Close
Executive Director,
Bay Area Institute/Pacific News Service
Close received a
B.A. from the University of California, Berkeley in 1964, then moved to Hong
Kong where she worked as the China editor for the Far Eastern Economic
Review. Upon her return to the U.S.,
she founded The Flatlands newspaper, a raw voice of the inner city communities
of Oakland, California. In 1974, she
became Executive Director of the Bay Area Institute/Pacific News Service, helping
to develop it into one of the most diverse sources of literary voices and
analytical ideas in the U.S. news media.
In 1991, she founded
YO! (Youth Outlook), a collaboration of writers and young people, and in 1996
she co-founded "The Beat Within," a weekly newsletter of writing and
art by incarcerated youth. In 1996, she
also founded New California Media, a network of over 400 ethnic news
organizations collaborating to produce a weekly TV show, an awards program, and
an inter-ethnic media exchange and Web site.
In 1995, Close received a MacArthur Foundation "genius award"
for her work in communications. In 1997, a
film she co-produced -- "Breathing Lessons: The Life and Work of Mark O'Brian" --
won the Academy Award for best short documentary.
Delaine
Eastin
Superintendent of Public Instruction, State of California
On November 3, 1998, Eastin was elected to a second four-year term as State
Superintendent of Public Instruction. The superintendency is a nonpartisan
state constitutional office. Eastin is the highest ranking official in California's
elementary and secondary public school system and the first woman to be elected
State Superintendent.
As State Superintendent, she has spearheaded major efforts to improve
reading and mathematics instruction; reduce class sizes in kindergarten through
third grade; and implement statewide standards, assessment, and increased
accountability for what all students should know and be able to do. In addition
to fighting for improved technology and libraries, Eastin has advocated
increasing and improving mathematics and science educational standards, more
and better laboratory science in middle schools and high schools, and gardens
in every school. She campaigned to bring the arts back into schools at all
levels.
She has received numerous awards from other business and professional
organizations, including the Distinguished Alumni Award from the University of
California, Santa Barbara and Leader Award from California Leadership.
A native Californian, Eastin received her Bachelor's degree from the
University of California, Davis, and a Master’s degree in political science
from the University of California, Santa Barbara. She taught political science
for seven years and served as corporate planner for Pacific Telesis Group. She
has held numerous other elected and appointed offices, including serving twice
as city councilwoman in Union City. Prior to her election as State
Superintendent, Eastin served four terms in the State Assembly beginning in
November 1986.
James
H. Hill
President, Hill Communications
Hill is a senior public
relations executive with extensive experience in the field of communications.
He has worked for a number of corporations and organizations including the Sara
Lee Corporation, S.C. Johnson & Son and WGTE-TW/FM Public Broadcasting in
Toledo, Ohio. Most recently, Hill was the Vice President for Communications for
the Kaiser Foundation Health Plan in Oakland, California where he was
responsible for all internal and external communications.
Hill is also a member of several
boards including the Oakland Chamber of Commerce, The East Bay Community
Foundation, and the Oakland Museum of California. He received his Bachelor of
Science degree in Journalism from Ohio University and has received numerous
awards for his work including the International Association of Business
Communicator’s Gold Quill Awards of Excellence and Merit and two Silver Anvils
presented by the Public Relations Society of America.
Ditas Macrine Katague
Assistant Secretary
for Information Technology, State of California
Katague has more than ten
years of experience at federal, state and local government agencies. As the
Deputy Campaign Director for the California Complete Count for the U.S. Census,
Katague was the chief operating officer for this important statewide
effort. Katague was responsible for the
day-to-day operations for the $24.7 million outreach campaign. She managed a team of over 50 people running
all campaign aspects including Outreach, Marketing and Communications, Media
Relations and the general administration of
contracts to counties, community based organizations and schools.
Her experience includes working for the Vice President of
the United States’ National Advance Staff; the U.S. Secretary of Commerce’s
California Economic Recovery Initiative, Office of Sustainable Development; the
Governor of California’s Team California Economic Development efforts, and the
Los Angeles County Community Development Commission’s Aerospace Task
Force. Before Katague was appointed
Deputy Campaign Director, she was a Principal for The Ditas Group, a management
consulting firm. She specializes in state/local government and non-profit
organizations including economic development, transportation, public safety,
health and revenue agencies.
Previously, Katague was a manager for Deloitte Consulting’s Public
Sector Practice in New Jersey and Sacramento.
Katague received her Bachelor of Arts degree in Political
Communication and Practice of Art from the University of California, Berkeley
and her Master’s of Public Administration in Organization Development and
Intergovernmental Management from the University of Southern California.
Michael Omi
Associate Professor of Asian American and Ethnic Studies
University of California, Berkeley
Omi has written extensively on the
topic of ethnicity and race. Along with
Howard Winant, he is the author of Racial Formation in the United States (2nd edition, 1994) and numerous articles on
racial theory and politics. He has also
written about right-wing political movements, Asian Americans and race
relations; and race and popular culture.
Omi teaches courses on the history of Asians in America, on Asian American politics and political movements, and on racial theory and politics. In 1990, he was the recipient of Berkeley's Distinguished Teaching Award. He received an A.B. in Sociology from the University of California, Berkeley and a Ph.D. in Sociology from the University of California, Santa Cruz.
Constance L.
Rice
Co-director, The Advancement Project
Rice is known for success in tackling problems of inequity
and exclusion. She has received more than 50 major awards for her work in expanding
opportunity and advancing multi-racial democracy. She is co-director of the Advancement Project, a public
policy and legal action group that supports organizations working to end
community problems and address racial, class and other barriers to
opportunity.
Rice graduated from Harvard College in 1978. She won the
Root Tilden Public Interest Scholarship to New York University School of Law,
where she earned her law degree in 1984. The credential she prizes most, however, is her first-degree black belt
in Tae Kwon Do.
Rice has
worked for the NAACP Legal Defense Fund and as a litigator has filed class
action civil rights cases redressing police misconduct, race and sex
discrimination and unfair public policy in transportation, probation and public
housing. In these and other cases, Rice
has led multi-racial coalitions of lawyers and clients to win more than $2
billion worth of injunctive relief and damages.
In 1998, the Los
Angeles Times designated her one of 24 leaders considered the “most
experienced, civic-minded and thoughtful people on the subject of Los
Angeles.” And in October 2000, California Law Business named her, along
with Governor Gray Davis and , then Secretary of State, Warren Christopher, as
one of California’s top 10 most influential lawyers. She is frequently interviewed by local and national media,
including 60 Minutes, The Lehrer News
Hour, and Nightline.
Richard
L. Spees
Councilmember, District #4
City of Oakland
As a government relations consultant from 1987-1997, Dick Spees
represented clients on education, economic and environmental issues. His
clients included Lincoln Child Center, Kaiser Aluminum & Chemical
Corporation, Bechtel, Gibson Oil and Refining Co., and the California Business
Roundtable, an organization of the Chief Executive Officers of California's 100
largest corporations.
From
1956 to 1987 he served in public affairs, community relations and public
relations management positions with Kaiser Aluminum & Chemical Corporation,
retiring as Vice President of Public Affairs.
Prior to joining Kaiser, he served as Director of Research, National
Citizens for Eisenhower, Washington, DC, 1953-55. He spent two years active service with the U. S. Air Force and
was discharged as a 1st Lieutenant in 1953.
He
has served in a variety of public offices in Oakland and is active in state and
regional organizations with emphasis in jobs, education and transportation. He
is Vice chair and Founding Member, Bay Area Economic Forum, Vice Chairman of
the Bay Area World Trade Center and Founding Member of the Regional Trade
Development Alliance of Northern California (BAYTRADE). He is a strong advocate
for public education, children and youth, the disabled, arts and the
environment.
Spees
was a Public Affairs Fellow at the Brookings Institute, earned a Master’s
degree from Georgetown
University and a Bachelor’s from Oregon State University.
United States Department of State
Melanie Lewis presently works in the Western
Hemisphere Fulbright Program in the Bureau of Educational and
Cultural Affairs. Ms. Lewis joined the U.S. Department of State in 1998.
Her previous assignments within the State Department include the Bureau of African
Affairs Economic Policy Staff and Office of West African Affairs. Just
prior to joining the Fulbright program in September 2000, Ms. Lewis worked
in the Office of the Under Secretary for Public Diplomacy and Public
Affairs. She has also spent time at U.S. Embassies in Haiti, The
Gambia, and Madagascar. Ms. Lewis holds a Master of International
Affairs degree from Columbia University and Bachelor of Arts in French from
Dillard University.
America-Mideast Educational and Training
Services, Inc. (AMIDEAST)
Jennifer
Amrhein, Program Assistant at AMIDEAST, has worked in the field of
education for the past two years. Her responsibilities at AMIDEAST include
supporting students from Tunisia, Bahrain, Yemen, Gaza, Jordan, Lebanon and the
West Bank. She has a degree in
Anthropology and English from Mary Washington College in Virginia.
Institute of International Education
Thomas
Farrell is Vice President for Exchange Programs and Regional Services at
the Institute of International Education in Washington, D.C. His responsibilities include direction of
IIE=s administration
of the U.S. Student Fulbright Program, the largest portion of the Foreign
University Student Fulbright Program, as well as IIE=s portion of the International Visitor
Program, all sponsored by the U.S. Department of State.
He also oversees IIE activities
designed to build international capacity for U.S. university and professional
school students. Mr. Farrell supervises
the operation of the IIE regional offices in Denver, Houston, San Francisco and
Chicago and through them is involved in significant fundraising activities,
advocacy efforts and corporate programs for U.S. and foreign students as well
as visitors from abroad. Under Mr.
Farrell=s direction,
IIE has developed new programs to support the professional enhancement of
primary and secondary school teachers and administrators. IIE currently administers significant
projects in this area for foreign governments and U.S. business. He also has responsibility for major U.S.
government contracts supported by the U.S. Agency for International
Development, including a new Women in Development program for U.S.
professionals.
Prior to joining IIE, Mr. Farrell
served as a U.S. Foreign Service Officer from 1978-1987 in Iran, Canada and
Washington, D.C., where he worked in the operations center, the Secretariat,
and as a Special Assistant to Secretary of State George P. Shultz. In 1976, while a graduate student at the
University of Michigan, Mr. Farrell was a Fulbright Fellow to Pakistan. In addition, Mr. Farrell worked as a Peace
Corps Volunteer in India.
Sarah
Ilchman is Manager of Africa in the Fulbright Academic Services Division in
New York. She has worked at IIE New York for 8 years in various
capacities. Currently, she manages the Fulbright Student Program with Africa,
which sponsors approximately 100 new African students a year in the United
States. Ms. Ilchman was an international student both in England and France and
has traveled professionally throughout East and Southern Africa. In her free
time, she is completing a Master’s degree in Nonprofit Management at the New
School for Social Research in New York City.
Karin
Eisele, Executive Director of IIE’s West Coast Center, is a born and bred
New Yorker. Ms. Eisele has been
involved in international education since joining the AFS International
Programs after graduation from Smith College. From 1959‑79 she served
successively as Director of the Midwestern Division, Director of Admissions and
Director of Development. She then
served as Vice President of External Affairs for the worldwide teaching eye
hospital, Project Orbis and as Executive Director of the Coro Foundation in New
York, a nationally recognized vehicle for leadership development. In addition to her current responsibilities
at IIE, she serves on the governing boards of several nationally based
organizations.
Michael
Green, Director of External Relations at IIE's West Coast Center, has been
with IIE for three years. Before coming
to IIE he was a graduate student at the Monterey Institute of International
Studies where he focused on Russia.
Previously, he was the Associate Director of Admission at College of
Notre Dame.
Wagaye
Johannes, Senior Program Coordinator at IIE’s West Coast Center, has been
with IIE for three years. She was born
in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, raised in California, and has lived in Germany and
Japan. Ms. Johannes holds a B.A. in International Affairs from Mount Holyoke
College where she focused on immigration policies in Europe.
Tom
Koerber, Student Advisor at IIE’s West Coast Center, has worked at IIE for
over ten years in various capacities.
Mr. Koerber is a graduate of San Francisco State University with a
degree in English Literature. He has spent
time traveling abroad and has participated in a cultural exchange/study program
in Guatemala.
Kate
Leiva, Manager of Educational Services at IIE’s West Coast Center, is a
native California born of Swiss and Austrian parents. She graduated from the
University of California, Berkeley and served in the Peace Corps in El
Salvador. Ms. Leiva has coordinated student services at IIE West Coast Center
for many years. Her husband is from
Guatemala and they have a college‑age daughter, Maya.
Heather
Ramsey, Program Officer at IIE's West Coast Center, has been with IIE for
four years. Ms. Ramsey earned a Master's in International Policy Studies in
1994 with a focus on Gender Issues at the Monterey Institute of International
Studies. She has lived in Switzerland,
Romania and Egypt, and speaks French and German and is studying Spanish.
Laurie
Stevens, Student Advisor and Corporate Programs Manager at IIE’s West Coast
Center, has been with IIE for eight years.
Ms. Stevens, who holds a Master of Public Policy degree from Georgetown
University, has lived in Spain, Norway, Indonesia, Togo, and Mexico, and has
worked in the field of international education for twelve years.
Naoko Yoshida, Senior Program Associate at IIE’s West Coast Center, is
originally from Japan but has lived in America for a four years. She joined IIE
in June 2000 after earning a Master’s degree in Public Administration and
International Nonprofit Management from the Monterey Institute of International
Studies. Prior to coming to America, Ms.
Yoshida worked for the Center for International Education at Kansai University
of Foreign Studies in Japan. She was also an exchange student at State
University of New York at Albany in 1992.
Martina Frank is Senior
Program Officer at IIE’s West Coast Center, where she manages a new
international population leadership development program, funded by the Packard
Foundation. Ms. Frank has worked in the fields of international
population health and human rights for the past five years. She received her B.A.
in Medical Anthropology from the University of California, Berkeley and her
M.P.H. in Population and Family Health from Columbia University.
