About Us
UCLA Luskin Public Policy alumni are making an impact in their communities every day. Our alumni network continues to grow and spans the nation. From the fight against climate change to sustainable products at Nike, our alumni are today’s leaders. We recognize our alumni below for their commitment to change.
And our current MPP students are already making a difference at UCLA. Through the generosity of our alumni, the MPP Alumni Council recognizes the students below for demonstrating leadership and service to the community. Help support our students by clicking here.
MPP Alumni of the Year
Alumni of the Year awards honor members of the alumni community who have been impactful through community service, public service, University service and/or professional achievement. By recognizing alumni, the award hopes to inspire leaders and change agents who advance solutions to society’s most-pressing problems.
2023
Regina Wallace-Jones
CEO & President,
ActBlue
2022
Sandeep A. Prasanna
Senior Associate,
Miller & Chevalier Chartered; Former January 6th Investigator and Senior Congressional Adviser
2021
Isaac Bryan
Assemblymember of California’s 55th District,
California State Assembly
2020
Max Gomberg
Independent Consultant
2019
Nelson Esparza
City Council Member,
City of Fresno, California
2018
Jaime Nack
President,
Three Squares Inc.
Founder,
Women in Green Forum
2017
Tanzila “Taz” Ahmed
Civic Media Fellow,
USC Annenberg Innovation Lab
2016
Chuck Gatchell
VP/GM of Global Sport Moments & Purposes,
Nike, Inc.
2015
Nurit Katz
Chief Sustainability Officer,
UCLA
2014
Nathalie Rayes
President and CEO,
Latino Victory
2013
Rusty Bailey
Teacher/Coach,
Riverside Unified School District
2012
Kathryn Phillips
Policy Advocate and Activist
2011
Greg Spotts
Director,
Seattle Department of Transportation
2010
Manan Trivedi
President,
National Physicians Alliance
Chief Medical Officer,
Clinovations Government + Health
2009
Celeste Drake
Deputy Director for Labor & Economy,
National Economic Council
2008
Jennifer White
Consultant,
Jen White Consulting
2007
Andrew Von Ah
Director of Physical Infrastructure Issues,
U.S. Government Accountability Office
2006
Veronica Melvin
President and CEO,
LA Promise Fund
2005
Emily C. Williams
Chief Executive Officer,
UCLA-UCSF ACEs Aware Family Resilience Network (UCAAN)
2004
Mary Kohav
Vice President – Justice, Equity, Diversity & Inclusion (JEDI) and Community Engagement,
The Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles
2003
Dylan Presman
Director for Budget and Assessment,
Office of the National Cyber Director
MPP Alumni Fellowship Recipients
Through their generous support, each year the MPP alumni award a $5,000 fellowship to two or more second year MPP students. Students who have demonstrated exemplary leadership and service are nominated by their fellow classmates. The MPP Alumni Council in consultation with the Public Policy Department selects the finalists from all the nominees. Below are the current and former MPP Alumni Fellowship recipients.
2025
Lydia Kelley
Master of Public Policy Candidate,
UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs
2025
Ana Guadalupe Lua Martel
Master of Public Policy Candidate,
UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs
2024
Viviana Morales
Master of Public Policy Candidate,
UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs
2024
Dorothy Pirtle
Master of Public Policy Candidate,
UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs
2023
Sam Newman
Master of Public Policy Candidate,
UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs
2022
Donald Zelaya
Master of Public Policy Candidate,
UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs
2022
Lana Zimmerman
Master of Public Policy Candidate,
UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs
2021
Tonya McClendon
Workforce Development Specialist,
Strategic Concepts for Organizing and Policy Education
2021
Valeria Ceballos Jáuregui
Policy Manager,
National Digital Inclusion Alliance
2020
Courtney B. Taylor
JD Candidate,
UCLA School of Law
2020
Jason Ballou
Therapist,
Wayfinder Family Services
2019
Devon Schechinger
Consultant,
Health Management Associates
2019
Irma Castañeda
Research Analyst,
MEF Associates
2018
Erica Webster
Program Manager,
Local Initiatives Support Corporation
2018
Caio Velasco
Business Data Analyst,
Blue Orange Digital
2018
Gabriela Solis Torres
Project Leader,
Harvard Kennedy School
2018
Robert Gamboa
Policy Advocacy Manager,
Los Angeles LGBT Center
2018
Marissa Ayala
Campaigns Coordinator,
Alliance for Community Transit
2017
Estefania Zavala
LB Recovery Program Manager,
City of Long Beach
2017
Ramandeep Kaur
Management Fellow,
City of Santa Monica
2016
JC De Vera
Director,
Hirsch Philanthropy Partners
2016
Delara Aharpour
Human Services Research Analyst,
Mathematica
2015
Kelsey Mulcahy
Public Policy Manager,
Data for Good for Meta
2015
Tae Kang
Program Manager,
Harbor Freight Tools for Schools
2014
Jonathan Slakey
Senior Director of Data Analysis,
California Charter Schools Association
2014
Begoña Guereca
2013
Vernessa Shih
Senior Director of Story Bank,
Center for American Progress
2013
Janine N’jie David
Deputy Director,
Global Lab for Research in Action
Where Our Alumni Are
Update Information
New job? Moved? New email? Please feel free to update your information on the UCLA Alumni Portal to stay in touch!
If you are having trouble accessing the portal, please contact: alumni@alumni.ucla.edu or call 800-825-2586.
Contact Us
We would love to hear from you! Please email uclapubpolinfo@gmail.com if you have any exciting career updates, internship opportunities, have a prospective student in mind, etc …
You may also contact Luskin’s Director of Alumni Engagement, Karina Mascorro, with any updates or ideas.
Dr. Karina Mascorro
Director of Alumni Engagement
kmascorro@luskin.ucla.edu