Management Team

Judy Ivie Burton, President and CEO

As the President and CEO, Judy Burton brings expertise in successfully leading and operating public schools. A major emphasis in her work has been improving student achievement for all students with particular focus on students of poverty in underachieving communities. Ms. Burton has successfully impacted students at risk through best practices in leadership development, teacher professional development, and parent community engagement.

For three years from 2000 – 2003, Ms. Burton served as Superintendent of Local District B in the Los Angeles Unified School District. Ms. Burton led the largest of 11 local districts with 83 pre K–12 schools and early education centers serving more than 80,000 students in the North and Northeast San Fernando Valley school communities. Under Ms. Burton’s leadership elementary schools achieved significant improvement in literacy and math performance on state and local tests. Secondary schools succeeded in improving classroom instruction and demonstrated noteworthy progress in academic growth and instructional best practices.

As Assistant Superintendent, Ms. Burton previously headed the Office of School Reform for the Los Angeles Unified School District. She has spoken nationwide on urban school reform issues. She has been a key leader in educational reform throughout her career as teacher, principal, consultant, and Assistant Superintendent, guiding the implementation of systemic reform in collaboration with parents and community members, teachers, the business community, and universities researching the impact of reform.

Ms. Burton has led the implementation of reform efforts throughout the Los Angeles Unified School District including administration of Charter Schools, School-Based Management, LEARN, and Comprehensive School Reform Demonstration Programs (CSRD) in 780 Pre K-12 schools. Ms. Burton has been widely recognized at state and national levels for her leadership in the LAUSD implementation of the $53 million Annenberg Challenge Grant involving more than 200 schools in 22 Pre K-12 Families of Schools.

Howard Lappin, Vice President and Chief Academic Officer

As Vice President and Chief Academic Officer, Howard Lappin is responsible for school development and coordinator team support of ACRPS schools. He has expertise in leading and operating innovative schools. Prior to joining the Alliance, Mr. Lappin was the Director of the Urban Learning Centers at the Los Angeles Educational Partnership (LAEP) and the principal of Foshay Learning Center in the Los Angeles Unified School District.

He became Principal of Foshay Junior High School in 1989 (in 1994, it changed its name to Foshay Learning Center). Since then, it has blossomed from a Junior High School designated as one of the “31 lowest achieving schools in LAUSD” to a K-12 school that the Los Angeles Times called a “Model of Education Reform.” In 1996, Foshay was honored as a "California Distinguished School." In 1998, Los Angeles Magazine named Foshay as one of the "Ten Best Schools in Los Angeles." In 2000, Newsweek named Foshay the “95th Best High School in the U.S.A.” In 1995, Reader’s Digest called Mr. Lappin a "Hero in American Education," and in 1997, he was selected as "California Principal of the Year." Governor Pete Wilson also referred to him as a "California Hero" in his 1998 State of the State speech. Mr. Lappin retired from Foshay in 2001.

Howard Lappin is a native of Los Angeles and a product of the Los Angeles Unified School District. He received a B.A. in History from UCLA and an M.A. in Secondary Administration from CSU-Northridge.

Parker Hudnut, Chief Operations Officer

Mr. Hudnut is a graduate of The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, where he earned his M.B.A. and received the Wharton Leadership Fellow Award and the Morgenthau Award. He earned his B.A. in Environmental Science at the University of Virginia.

Mr. Hudnut served as a leading creator and manager of high-quality K-12 public charter schools as the director of development at Chancellor Beacon Academies in Boston, Massachusetts. His background and experiences include charter school startup operations, site acquisition, lease negotiations, charter application, demographic analysis, and construction oversight in six different states including Arizona, Florida, Missouri and New York. He has experience in evaluating and estimating returns on new business opportunities and has supervised and participated in development projects valued at over $25 million. He has also provided leadership in designing a Professional Development Institute for teacher training.

Sonali Tucker, Director, Financial Services

As Director of Financial Services, Ms. Tucker is responsible for overseeing all finances and accounting for LA Alliance and its schools. Ms. Tucker brings financial management and accounting experience. Prior to joining College-Ready Public Schools, she was a senior financial analyst at Sony Pictures Entertainment. She was responsible for budgeting and forecasting for the TV Division office and consolidation of financial reports and plans for 10 divisions within the Sony Pictures’ TV group. In addition, she was the TV finance liaison between corporate finance, TV group divisions, payroll, telecommunications, studio operations, studio finance, food services, and publicity/promotions.

Previously, she was a property accountant at Duckett-Wilson Investment/Development Company and was responsible for all accounting and financial reporting functions. Ms. Tucker has held various other positions as general manager, financial analyst and accountant at Sony Pictures Entertainment, Economic Development Corporation of Los Angeles County, City of Culver City, Island Spice, and WK Jinadasa’s, a Sri Lanka company.

She received her M.B.A. and is completing her Doctorate of Education in Organizational Leadership from Pepperdine University.

Mary Silva, Director, Parent Community Engagement

As Director of Parent Community Engagement, Mary Silva is responsible for developing and overseeing all aspects of parent participation and community awareness at each Alliance campus. Under her direction, Parent Advisory Councils have been formed at all Alliance schools. Ms. Silva contributes strong organizational, program planning and implementation skills as well as her experience working with the Families In Schools program, where her duties included development of curricula and program and training materials for parent education programs. Ms. Silva has also held senior administrative positions with the University of California, Los Angeles and the Chicano Studies Research Center. Ms. Silva holds a Masters degree in public administration from the University of Southern California and a Bachelors degree in history from the University of California, Los Angeles.

Julissa Palacios, Office Manager

Ms. Palacios manages all office activities/operations as well as provides administrative support to entire Alliance staff and schools. Her previous work experience consists of 5 years in the Human Resources Management field and Benefits Coordination; and one year in accounting in a direct mail marketing corporation.

As a Human Resources Generalist, sheimplemented policies and programs; handled all employee relations; and payroll. Also acted as the main liaison between insurance companies and executive team/employees. Additionally, Ms. Palacios assisted both Accounts Payable and Accounts Receivable Departments in all accounting inquiries.

Ms. Palacios is currently attending college to complete pending credits for her future transfer to Cal State Poly Pomona.

Board of Directors

The Alliance for College-Ready Public Schools board of directors includes a diverse set of experience and background covering critical aspects of the organization including education reform, charter school management, leadership development, political management, community/parent engagement, at-risk students, finance, operations, legal, and fund raising. The board is organized into four standing committees (executive committee, facilities, finance/development, and audit/legal).

Frank E. Baxter (Chair)

Frank E. Baxter is the Chairman Emeritus of the global investment bank, Jefferies and Company, Inc. Mr. Baxter brings organization leadership expertise and experience in driving education reform initiatives. Mr. Baxter is Chairman of the Executive Committee, Los Angeles County Museum of Art and Vice Chairman of the Los Angeles Opera. He is a Trustee of UC Berkeley, and Trustee of I Have A Dream Foundation, LA Chapter. He served as Director of the Securities Industries Association and the National Association of Securities Dealers. Mr. Baxter is a former Director of Investment Technology Group, Inc. and NASDAQ Stock Market, Inc. He is the recipient of the Bet Tzedek, House of Justice award and the City of Angels award. He served in the Air Force for four years and graduated from UC Berkeley with a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics with honor.

Alan Arkatov

Alan Arkatov is Chief Strategy Officer for Rogers & Associates, the leading independent Communications firm on the West Coast.  Alan previously served as CEO of Burson-Marsteller S. California, and was President of the eEducation Group, where he served as the Chief eLearning and Strategic Consultant for the LA Unified School District and USC, among others. He was the Founder and Chairman of OnlineLearning.net, the leading online continuing education provider in the United States.  When the company was sold to Sylvan Learning Systems, it had more the 25,000 degree credit enrollments from all 50 states and 72 countries, and was cited by the Chronicle of Higher Education for its unparalleled track record of academic outcomes and student satisfaction.  Previously, Alan was a television producer and political media consultant, having created the ads for over a dozen successful Mayoral, Gubernatorial, US Senate and Presidential campaigns.  Alan is a State Commissioner and former Chair of the California Postsecondary Education Commission, was President of the City of LA’s Commission for Children, Youth, and Their Families, an appointee of the Secretary of Education to the Congressional Web Education Commission, and President of the Board of Commissioners for LA’s Information Technology Agency. 

Kurt Benjamin

Kurt Benjamin is Co Founder of Mercator Group Funds, an institutional investment fund that focuses on the PIPE space.  Mr. Benjamin was born and raised in Los Angeles.  Previously he served as a partner in RIG Investments, a block trading company that specializes in the small and micro cap market place.

Maria A. Casillas

Maria A. Casillas is currently President of Families in Schools, an organization created by the Los Angeles Annenberg Metropolitan Project (LAAMP) to strengthen families, schools, and communities so that children achieve academic success. She brings experience in managing non-profits, creating effective boards, and fundraising. Her affiliation with the Annenberg Challenge began in 1995 when Ms. Casillas was named President of LAAMP, an organization established to accelerate school reform activities in Los Angeles County schools from 1995 to 2001. She has experience as a classroom teacher, principal, and district administrator, including regional superintendent for LAUSD. Most importantly, she has experience in delivering support services to schools. As Executive Director of Region XIX Educational Service Center, she worked closely with the Texas Education Agency, providing support to El Paso area schools and districts.

David I. Fisher

David I. Fisher is Chairman of the Board of Capital Group International, Inc. and Capital Guardian Trust Company, as well as an officer and director of numerous affiliated companies.  He is a portfolio manager for U.S., non-U.S., global and emerging market assets and has been responsible for the organizations international investing activities since 1982.  Mr. Fisher serves on many Boards of Trustees including Trustee Emeritus of the J. Paul Getty Trust, trustee for the Harvard Westlake School, the UCLA School of Public Policy CalArts, The Lowe Institute, The Institute of International Finance, Inc., Alternative Living for the Aging as well as the innovative High Tech High School.  Mr. Fisher brings finance and business expertise, innovation and community leadership to our Board of Directors.

Paul C. Hudson

Paul C. Hudson is currently President and Chief Executive Officer of Broadway Federal Bank, the oldest and the only publicly traded African American bank west of the Mississippi.  Broadway Federal has assets exceeding $200 million and has served the South Central and Mid-City Los Angeles market since 1947. Mr. Hudson brings experience in business and community leadership. Prior to joining Broadway Federal in 1980, Mr. Hudson practiced law with the Washington D.C. firm of Wilmer, Cutler and Pickering.  In 1975, he returned to Los Angeles to join the law firm established by his father, Hudson, Sandoz and Brown.  He is a member of the State of California and District of Columbia bars. Consistent with a family tradition of community service, Mr. Hudson is a past President of the Los Angeles NAACP and serves on numerous boards, including the California Community Foundation, Los Angeles Orthopedic Hospital Foundation, American Red Cross, Phillips Graduate Institute, and serves as Chairman of Community Redevelopment Agency Board of Commissioners and Community Build, Inc. Mr. Hudson has previously served on the boards of the Los Angeles Metropolitan Transportation Authority, Los Angeles Fire and Police Pension Fund, Los Angeles County Hospital Commission, Western League of Financial Institutions, America’s Community Bankers, California Business Roundtable, Employers Group, Fannie Mae Advisory Council, Southern California Edison Advisory Board, Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce, Greater Los Angeles African American Chamber of Commerce, Pitzer College, California State University at Los Angeles Foundation, Museum of Science and Industry Foundation, Fulfillment Fund, Alliance for Children’s Rights, Southern California Counseling Center, and the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corporation.

Dan Katzir

Mr. Katzir, Managing Director, Broad Foundation, has worked with numerous school districts, universities, corporations and community organizations to improve leadership in urban K-12 schools.  Katzir is former Executive Director of the UCLA School Management Program, a university-based nonprofit school leadership initiative run jointly by UCLA’s School of Education and School Of Management.  Katzir was the founding Los Angeles Regional Director for Sylvan Learning Systems and was the Chief Operating Officer for Teach for America.  Katzir was also a consultant with Bain & Company, an international management-consulting firm that assists Fortune 500 companies with business strategy and operational performance.  Katzir received his B. A. from Dartmouth College and M. B. A. from Harvard Business School. 

Stewart Kwoh

Mr. Kwoh is the President and executive Director of the Asian Pacific American Legal Center of Southern California (APALC) the largest and most diverse legal assistance and civil rights organization targeting Asian Pacific Americans in the United States.  He is also Vice-Chair of the Board of Directors for the National Asian Pacific American Legal Consortium (NAPALC) the country’s first national Pan Asian civil rights organization.  Mr. Kwoh is a trustee of the Methodist Urban Foundation, California Consumer Protection Foundation, The California Endowment and The California Wellness Foundation.  Mr. Kwoh earned his B. A. and law degrees at UCLA.

Arthur Levine

Arthur Levine is currently President of Levine Leichtman Capital Partners.  Mr. Levine has been a private equity investor since 1985.  In addition to planning the strategic direction of the firm, his activities include investment-structuring, negotiation of transactions, monitoring of portfolio companies and institutional fund raising.  From 1976 to 1985, he was a principal investor in Westwood One, a leading radio programming company. He served as Chairman of the Anderson School Entrepreneurial Studies Center and on the Corporate Advisory Board of NASD.  Mr. Levine is a graduate of the Columbia School of Law and received his MBA from the Anderson School at UCLA.

Harry Levitt

Harry Levitt is Managing Director of Mullin Consulting, Inc.  Mr. Levitt is a partner and business developer in a national executive benefits consulting firm with offices in Los Angeles, Chicago and New York.  Mr. Levitt consults with large public and private corporations in the design, funding, securitization and administration of leading-edge non-qualified executive benefit plans.  He frequently speaks and publishes articles on executive benefits and compensation topics.

Bernard J. Luskin

Bernard Luskin is presently Chairman and CEO of Luskin International, Executive Vice President and Director of the Media Studies, Media Psychology and Community College Leadership programs at the Fielding Graduate Institute (www.Fielding.edu), and Visiting Professor at Claremont Graduate University. He is also director and principal investigator of a major research project funded by the W. K. Kellogg Foundation to study the leadership contributions of the Kellogg Fellowship programs and fellows, their accomplishments, and implications for the future of education. He brings expertise in business management, starting and operating education organizations. In education, Dr. Luskin was president of Orange Coast College, founding president of Coastline Community College, launching with the largest opening enrollment of any college up to that time. He is a founding executive of KOCE-TV, the Orange County PBS station operated by the Coast Community College District. Dr. Luskin was also founding chancellor of Jones International University; the first fully accredited totally web-based university.  He has also served as President & CEO of several Fortune 500 companies, including Phillips Interactive Media, Phillips Education and Reference Publishing, and Jones International.  Dr. Luskin serves as Chairman of the Board of High Tech High L.A. Charter School.

Richard Merkin, M.D.

Dr. Merkin is the CEO and founder of Heritage Provider Network.  He has over thirty years experience in managing clinically focused, administrative service organizations in health care delivery and physician network development.  Dr. Merkin pioneered the development of medical networks responsive to the changing health care marketplace throughout California.  His leadership has inspired the formation of over 25 group models and IPA structures in California and New York.  Many of the medical groups have been recognized for their performance and service to the community some of the awards include:  the Health Plan Certificate of Excellence for Health Education Programs, the Physician's Recognition Award in Continuing Medical Education from the American Medical Association, the Health Plan Wellness Award and the California Task Force Employer Excellence Award.  Dr. Merkin graduated from the University of Miami School of Medicine. He received the Marquis Award for Health Care from the Southern California Foundation for Health, Education and Research. 

Neal Millard

Mr. Millard practices in the area of finance, representing foreign and domestic financial institutions.  He is extremely active in the public finance area where he represents banks and insurance companies providing credit enhancement and liquidity support for various issues of bonds, notes and certificates.  He has represented institutions with trust departments when they have acted as trustee for such issues.  Mr. Millard has acted as special counsel to several banks in connection with the bankruptcy of Orange County, California.  Mr. Millard is currently an Adjunct Professor of Law at the USC Law Center where he teaches finance and has been active in local government, having been elected as a trustee on the Altadena Library Board. He was recently appointed by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors to the Judicial Procedures Commission for the County of Los Angeles and served as its chair from 2000 to 2002.

Gayle Miller

Ms. Miller is the retired President of Anne Klein II, a leading designer sportswear manufacturing company in the United States. She brings business management and leadership expertise as well as experience on how to engage parents and communities in education causes. She also serves as Vice President of Program Development for a non-profit foundation she co-founded to develop and implement programs for inner-city children and parents. Over the past four years they have developed a values-based curriculum that has been used as an “after school program” in public and private schools and incorporated into the daily schedule of courses taught in many other schools in the Los Angeles area. She was also a board member of the Los Angeles Annenberg Metropolitan Project (LAAMP).

Theodore R. Mitchell

Ted Mitchell assumed the role of CEO of NewSchools Venture Fund in the fall of 2005 after having served on the NewSchools Board of Directors for seven years.

Ted served as president of Occidental College from July 1999 to September 2005. A former deputy to the president at Stanford and vice chancellor at UCLA, Ted is a national leader in the effort to provide high quality education for all students and has long been active in California and Los Angeles educational reform initiatives. Immediately prior to his presidency at Occidental, he served as vice president for education and strategic initiatives of the J. Paul Getty Trust. Ted is also an education advisor to California Senator Dianne Feinstein and served as a senior education advisor to then-Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan. He serves on the boards of a variety of nonprofit education organizations.

Ted graduated from Stanford with bachelor’s degrees in economics and history, and also earned a master's degree in history and a doctorate in education there.

Molly Munger

Ms. Munger is a co-founder and partner in the Los Angeles civil rights firm, English, Munger, & Rice.   She is also a co-founder and director of The Advancement Project, a national organization founded in 1998 to advance revitalized approaches to inclusion and opportunity. The Advancement Project focuses chiefly on criminal justice and police issues, educational access and equity, tax and fiscal fairness.  Among its most recent work is a collaborative effort, pursued in court and in Sacrament that has resulted in almost five billion dollars of state bond money becoming available to relieve longstanding school overcrowding in poorer urban areas in California.  Ms. Munger has served as Western Regional Counsel for the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund.  She is a graduate of Radcliffe College and Harvard Law School.  She currently serves on the board of the James Irvine Foundation, on the Rand Corporation Advisory Committee on K-12 Education, and on the Board of Trustees of Occidental College.

William G. Ouchi

Dr. Ouchi is the Sanford & Betty Sigoloff Professor in Corporate Renewal at The Anderson Graduate School of Management at UCLA. He brings business management, organizational development and change expertise. He previously served as Vice Dean and as Chair of the Strategy and Organization Area of the school. He serves as a member of prominent boards including Williams College, KCET public television, First Federal Bank of California. He was the Chairman of Los Angeles Unified School District Advisory Committee on Finance Reform and is past-chair of the Los Angeles Educational Alliance for Restructuring Now (LEARN). Professor Ouchi is also an advisor to the Joint Senate-Assembly Committee on Preparing California for the 21st Century, and is a member of the Consumer Advisory Committee of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Dr. Ouchi received his M.B.A. at Stanford, and his Ph.D. at the University of Chicago. Between 1993 and 1995 he served as advisor and then as Chief of Staff to Mayor Richard Riordan in Los Angeles. 

Tony Ressler

Mr. Ressler co-founded Ares Management LLC in 1997, the general partner of the Ares Funds, including Ares Leveraged Investment Funds I-VIII private securities investment funds focused primarily on bank loans and high yield securities and the Ares Corporate Opportunities Fund (“ACOF”) a private equity fund focused on making control oriented equity investments in under capitalized middle market companies.  Mr. Ressler also co-founded Apollo Management, L.P. in 1990, general partner of the Apollo Investment Funds, private investment funds focused primarily on making control oriented equity investments.  Prior to 1990, Mr. Ressler served as a Senior Vice President in the High Yield Bond Department of Drexel Burnham Lambert Incorporated, with responsibility for the New Issue/Syndicate Desk.  Mr. Ressler serves on several boards of directors including: Allied Waste Industries, Inc. and Samsonite Luggage.  Mr. Ressler is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Center for Early Education and a former executive committee member of LEARN.  Mr. Ressler is also one of the founding members of the Board of the Painted Turtle Camp, the Southern California chapter of The Hole in the Wall Gang Camps created to serve children dealing with chronic and life threatening illnesses by creating memorable, old-fashioned camping experiences.  Mr. Ressler received his B.S.F.S. from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service and received his MBA from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Business.  Mr. Ressler lives in Los Angeles with his wife and three sons.

Richard Riordan

As the former California State Secretary of Education,  Mr. Riordan brings expertise in managing the politics of change and relationships with key people that can help this organization in Los Angeles and throughout the state. Richard Riordan was born in Flushing, New York in 1930. He received a bachelor's degree in philosophy from Princeton University in 1952, after which he served in the Korean War as a U.S. Army field artillery officer. After leaving the Army, Riordan attended the University of Michigan where he earned a law degree. He went on to become a successful attorney and businessman, forming the law firm of Riordan & McKinzie during the early 1970s. In June of 1993, Riordan was elected to succeed long-term Mayor Tom Bradley to become the 39th mayor of Los Angeles. He assumed office on July 1, 1993. On April 8, 1997, more than 60 percent of Los Angeles voters reelected him to a second term that concluded on June 30, 2001.

Virgil Roberts

Mr. Roberts is the managing partner for the entertainment industry law firm of Bobbitt & Roberts. He brings legal expertise and has unique experience in working with at-risk communities. Prior to Bobbitt & Roberts, Mr. Roberts was the President of Solar Records (DGP). He is a board member the California Teacher Credentialing Commission, Treasurer of the Los Angeles Private Industry Council; Vice Chairman of the Public Education Fund Network; a Trustee of the Committee for Economic Development (CED); a board member of Los Angeles Education Alliance For Restructuring Now (LEARN); and former Chairman of the Board of the Los Angeles Annenberg Metropolitan Project (LAAMP). Currently, Mr. Roberts is Chairman of the Board of the California Community Foundation. He also serves on the Board of Community Build, and is a Trustee of Occidental College and the Marlborough School. Mr. Roberts holds a law degree from Harvard Law School.

James M. Rosser

Dr. Rosser has served as President and professor of Health Care Management at California State University, Los Angeles, since 1979 and as Professor of Microbiology since 2004. He has and continues to serve on many civic and community boards including: the Los Angeles Area Council of the Boy Scouts of America, the Los Angeles County Alliance for College-Ready Public Schools, the California Chamber of Commerce, Americans for the Arts, Community Television of Southern California (KCET), Los Angeles After-School Education and Child Care Program-LA’s Best, the Music Center Performing Arts Council/Education Council, and the California Community Foundation. His professional board affiliations have included: the American Association of State Colleges and Universities, the American Council on Education, Western Association of Schools and Colleges, the Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation, the California Council on Science and Technology, Edison International, United California Bank and the FEDCO, Inc. Foundation, as well as numerous committees and commissions of The California State University system.

Ana Tilton

Ms. Tilton is Partner at NewSchools Venture Fund, where she focuses on investment strategy and management assistance in the Charter Accelerator Fund and the Performance Accelerator Fund.  Before joining New Schools, Ana served as Senior Vice President of State and District Services for New American Schools.  In this role, she supported active networking among schools, school districts, and education service providers as they worked toward system-wide improvement and innovation. Ana also served as Senior Vice President of the School Support Division of Edison Schools. During her five-year tenure at Edison Schools, she was actively involved in new school development and ultimately responsible for half of Edison's portfolio of schools.

Harold Williams

Mr. Williams is counsel to the law firm of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom. He brings experience leading education reform efforts and influence in the Los Angeles region. He is also President Emeritus of the J. Paul Getty Trust, Los Angeles, California and was president and Chief Executive Officer for 17 years. Prior to assuming his position with the Trust, Mr. Williams was the Chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and has served as Dean and Professor of Management of the Graduate School of Management, UCLA, and Chairman of the Board of Norton Simon, Inc.

Mr. Williams serves on the Board of the Alliance for Excellent Education in Washington D.C.; he is Chair of the Board of Visitors of the UCLA School of the Arts; Director, Southern California Public Radio – KPCC; Co-chair of the Blue Ribbon Committee for Arts Education, LAUSD; Director, Center for Governmental Studies; Director, National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education; Member, Board of Advisors of the California Institute of the Arts; Trustee, Committee for Economic Development, and is an Advisor to the Center for Public Integrity in Washington, D.C.  He was a member of the Regents of the University of California, and the Los Angeles Annenberg Metropolitan Project.  Mr. Williams received his J.D. degree from Harvard Law School.

Senior Advisors

Robert F. Erburu

Mr. Erburu retired as chairman of the board of The Times Mirror Company in 1996. He brings expertise in non-profit strategy and experience in working with many foundations. Mr. Erburu was a trustee and chairman of the J. Paul Getty Trust and current chairman of the Board of Trustees of the National Gallery of Art. Mr. Erburu is a founding member of the board of directors for the Tomas Rivera Center, a national Hispanic policy institute, and was a member of the Board of Directors of the Los Angeles Annenberg Metropolitan Project (LAAMP). He is a Life Director of the Independent Colleges of Southern California; and he was the founding co-chair of the board of directors of the Pacific Council on International Policy and is its current chair. He is an honorary trustee of the Brookings Institution. Mr. Erburu is also a member of the boards of the Ahmanson Foundation, the Carrie Estelle Doheny Foundation, The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, the Fletcher Jones Foundation and The Ralph M. Parsons Foundation. Mr. Erburu served as a director of The Times Mirror Foundation until his retirement and served as a director of the Pfaffinger Foundation from 1985 to 1997. Mr. Erburu earned a J.D. from Harvard Law School. 

Antonia Hernández

Ms. Hernández is President of the California Community Foundation and former President and General Counsel of the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF), a national litigation and advocacy organization that uses the law, community education and research to protect the civil rights of the nation's 29 million Latinos. She has special expertise in working with at-risk communities and engaging parents and communities. She also brings experience in managing the politics of education reform. An expert in civil rights and immigration issues, Ms. Hernández worked in the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee as Staff Counsel and drafted bills and briefed committee members on national issues. Ms. Hernández formerly served as a Board of Directors for the Federal Reserves Bank of San Francisco, Los Angeles Branch and the Los Angeles Annenberg Metropolitan Project. Ms. Hernández earned her J.D. at the UCLA School of Law. She was admitted to the State Bar of California, Washington D.C. Bar, the United States Courts for the Ninth Circuit, and the U.S. Supreme Court.

Mónica C. Lozano

Ms. Lozano is the President and Chief Operating Officer of La Opinión, the largest Spanish-language daily newspaper in the United States. She brings political experience and expertise in working with at-risk communities. Ms. Lozano has served on the California State Board of Education and served as its President during the 2000 session. She is a member of the Board of Directors of the California Health Care Foundation, the Fannie Mae Foundation, and the National Council of La Raza. She also serves as a Trustee of the University of Southern California and has been Vice Chair of the Los Angeles Annenberg Metropolitan Project (LAAMP). Most recently, she joined the board of directors of Union Bank of California and the Walt Disney Company.

Robert E. Wycoff

Mr. Wycoff retired as President and Chief Operating Officer of ARCO in 1993, after forty years. He brings business management expertise as well has experience in driving education reform initiatives. During his time at ARCO and continuing after his retirement, Mr. Wycoff has been engaged in a number of Los Angeles-area community organizations. He was a charter member of LEARN, a coalition seeking to reform and restructure the Los Angeles public school system. He also served on the Board of Governors of LAAMP, an organization closely paralleling the goals of LEARN. He also served on the California Commission on Higher Education.