Senior Program Manager, HOPE

Director of Programs, HOPE

Diana Amaya oversees the implementation of HOPE’s flagship leadership development programs and the design of new programs with the goal of preparing Latinas for civic and career leadership. Diana and the programs team train over 170 women annually through the pipeline of leadership programs that serve Latinas at various stages in their lives. Under Diana’s leadership, HOPE formalized college initiatives into the HOPE College Leadership Program, a national training hub for first-generation Latinas. Diana describes her work as Latina power building, and her passion for it stems from her upbringing, having been raised by a single mother and witnessing

Diversity & Community Engagement Specialist, ABC7

As Diversity & Community Engagement Specialist for ABC 7, Mariel has over 23 years’ experience championing diversity/community outreach in the entertainment industry.  Since joining ABC7 in 2017, she manages major station campaigns such as the FEED SOCAL Food Drive, SPARK OF LOVE Toy Drive, Circle of Health and ABC7 “Hello” as well as manage and organize community events, dinners, walks, parades, etc. and serve as primary point for our special community projects.  She works closely with many nonprofit organizations, corporations and advertising clients to develop and implement projects which benefits the viewers and the communities that ABC7 serves within the five county coverage area.

Mariel also helps manage the partnerships with the HOPE Latina History Day Conference and Young Latina Professional Summit, ALA Air Climb, Suan G. Komen Walks, LA Pride Parade and KOLLAB Workforce Development Program.

Beyond her diversity and community engagement role, she is part of several Disney BERGs including MAS+, Disney Pride and Pride@ABC News &OTV, and serve as co-leader for ABC7 Belong Team and ABC7 Pride@OTV.

Mariel began her career in the entertainment industry at the Walt Disney Company as Diversity/Multicultural Programs Representative serving the Latino, LGBTQ+, African American, Asian American and Native American communities.  She worked and cultivated relationships with several prominent national non-profit organizations such HOPE (Hispanas for Political Equality), UnidosUS, NALIP, NALEO, Hispanic Scholarship Fund, NAACP, United Negro College Fund, GLSEN, Trevor Project, Christopher Street West (LA Pride), East West Players, CAPE, ASCEND and American Indian College Fund.

She graduated from Loyola Marymount University with a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration majoring in Marketing and International Business.

Mariel was raised and resides in Burbank, CA.  She is self-proclaimed “Latina geek” who is an avid toy collector of Star Wars and female superheroes of DC and Marvel Comics.  Her family and serving her communities are her greatest passions.

Community Journalist, ABC7

Amanda Palacios is a community journalist for ABC7 covering stories in the North San Fernando Valley. She officially joined the team as a community journalist in October of 2021 after working as an intern, news assistant, freelance assignment editor and video journalist at KABC.

Amanda is an alumna of California State University, Fullerton, where she studied broadcast journalism. During her time at CSUF, Amanda was part of the Titan TV sports team where she was a sports reporter.

Amanda is a SoCal native and grew up in Chino Hills. She is grateful for the privilege to report on stories that are affecting the North San Fernando Valley communities.

When Amanda is not working, she enjoys spending time with her family, playing golf and traveling to new places.

Digital Strategist, Noteworthy Lab

Noelia Sanchez is a Branding and Digital Strategist who specializes in working with organizations and individual professionals looking to grow their thought leadership. Noelia helps purpose-driven leaders transform the way they market, brand, and communicate their genius with her intentional approach to personal branding.

At Noteworthy Lab, Noelia collaborates with nonprofits and small businesses to grow their influence and expand their reach. Together, they create a vision for growth and bring remarkable client experiences to life. Noelia’s insight into design, automation, and growth marketing have helped shape projects such as the ARC Network: A STEM Equity Brain Trust funded by the National Science Foundation, and programming like This Is Rural Health, a podcast by the California State Rural Health Association. Noelia holds a BA in Linguistics from UC Santa Barbara and has 20+ year of experience working in digital strategy and communications.

Fun Fact: When she is not working with thought leaders and change agents, you can find her indulging in her fabric obsession. As a self-taught seamstress, she loves to make her own clothes and teaches the occasional dressmaking workshop in her neighborhood.

Client Relationship Consultant, U.S. Bank, HCLP ’23

Karla Mena Escobar is a first-generation Latina and a dedicated advocate for financial literacy and community empowerment. As the first in her family to earn a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration from California State University Fullerton and her Master of Business Administration from Pepperdine University, Karla combines her academic achievements with over six years of experience in the banking industry. Currently, she serves as a Client Relationship Consultant at U.S. Bank, where she manages and mentors a team of twelve high school seniors at the Mountain View High School U.S. Bank Branch in El Monte. Through her leadership, she equips young professionals with essential skills in finance, leadership, and professional growth. Karla is passionate about creating opportunities for underserved communities, particularly by teaching financial literacy to Latinas and empowering them to make informed financial decisions. Her dedication to community outreach is evident through her involvement on various boards, including serving as the Marketing Director for the Latino Business Student Association at California State University Fullerton, and as Treasurer for Fullerton’s Fashion Association. As a 2023 HOPE College Leadership Program Scholar, Karla’s mission is to inspire and uplift others, paving the way for the next generation of Latinas to succeed professionally and personally.

Client Relationship Consultant, U.S. Bank

Joaquina Quiñones is a first generation Latina who is passionate about making a positive impact through teaching financial literacy in her community. She has worked with U.S. Bank for over 6 years and began her career as at a teller in Tukwila Washington. She is currently a Client Relationship Consultant at Abraham Lincoln High School where she mentors high school students through an internship program. This has been the most impactful work she has done in her banking career. She is part of El Monte Promise Foundation Parent Advisory Committee and currently serves as treasurer of her daughters Girl Scouts Troop. Joaquina earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Public Administration with a Criminal Justice Administration concentration from Cal State Dominguez Hill. She enjoys spending time with her two daughters and really values family time. A fun fact about Joaquina is that she loves trying new food.

Senior Program Manager, HOPE

Development Talent Marketplace Manager, The Walt Disney Company

Claudia Durón Burke has been part of Human Resources with the Walt Disney Company for over 13 years. Career Development has been her focus with previous Leadership roles with the Disney College Program, Disney University, Disney Aspire and now with Enterprise Career Development. She is on the leadership team for HOLA-DLR, THRIVE@Disney a BERG Mentorship program and enterprise-wide Hispanic Latinx Advisory board. Claudia is a bilingual media spokesperson for international and domestic Public Relations & Promotions Media Events. Prior to Disney, she spent eight years in higher education, creating developmental opportunities for diverse, primarily first-generation students. Claudia is continuously refining the art of work-life rhythm because when she is not discovering new adventures in her career, she is creating magical memories alongside her partner, Jeremy and three children, Arón, Benjamín and Valentina.

Post-Bar Scholar, Los Angeles Dependency Lawyers

Karla Muñoz is a Post-Bar Scholar at Los Angeles Dependency Lawyers (LADL), where she works with attorneys in dependency law. Before applying to law school, Karla worked at an immigrant rights non-profit organization, CARECEN (Central American Resource Center), for five years. She attended Southwestern Law School where she secured an externship with a civil judge at Stanely Mosk Courthouse. In addition, she also served as a law clerk at the Office of the Public Defender in Los Angeles County for both a summer and semester. During her time at Southwestern she served in several leadership roles, including Co-Chair of the Public Interest Law Committee and Chair of the Immigration Law Student Association. For two consecutive years she was a mentor for the First Generation Mentorship Program, a start-up program at Southwestern for first-generation law students, where she was paired with two mentees in their first year at Southwestern.

Ph.D. Candidate, Latin American & Latino Studies
Designated Emphasis in Critical Race and Ethnic Studies
University of California, Santa Cruz

Brittney Jimenez is a first-generation Chicana from the San Fernando Valley. She is currently a fourth-year Doctoral Candidate in the Latin American and Latino Studies Program with an emphasis in Critical Race and Ethnic Studies. She received an M.A. in 2021 from CSU Northridge in Chicana/o/x Studies and a B.A. from UC Irvine in Chicano/Latino Studies with a minor in Psychology. Her master’s thesis, “Constructing Community: San Fernando Valley Youth and Community Activism,” focused on youth organizing in the San Fernando Valley, specifically the different routes through which youth become involved in social movements. Her current research looks at Chicana youth organizing, the present-day Chicana Movement, and the role of elder’s histories in organizing and young women’s identity formations. As a graduate student, she has worked as an Archival Fellow at the UC Santa Cruz Archives, as a researcher at the Dolores Huerta Research Center for the Americas, and as a GIS Fellow at Latinos in Heritage Conservation.

Community Wide Plan Coordinator, Domestic Violence Prevention Network

Oriana Fuenmayor is a first-generation Venezuelan immigrant, asylum-seeker, and a service-oriented young professional with a passion for equity and social justice. Currently, she serves as the Community Wide Plan Coordinator at the Domestic Violence Prevention Network, where she supports the organization’s strategic plan to change the culture that leads to domestic abuse. Her previous career experiences include working at Women4Change, a nonprofit that advocates for positive change for Hoosier women. Oriana also interned at a small law firm, where she assisted attorneys providing criminal and deportation defense to Latino/e immigrants across Central Indiana. She recently graduated from Indiana University Indianapolis with degrees in Political Science and Global & International Studies, as well as minors in Legal Studies and Africana Studies. As a student, she was a recipient of multiple honors and awards in recognition of her academic excellence, community engagement and campus leadership. Her long-term goal is to become a public interest attorney, providing legal representation to marginalized individuals and advocating for transformational change.

Senior Policy and Government Relations Manager, Affirm, Inc.

Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute (CHCI)

Cheye-Ann Corona serves as a Senior Policy and Government Relations Manager at Affirm, Inc., a San Francisco-based financial technology company, providing honest and transparent point-of-sale consumer financing solutions. Cheye-Ann leads the public policy and government relations strategy focused on regulatory and legislative affairs in the states. She came to Affirm after 10 years of service in the non-profit and government sector where she advocated for public policy reforms that provided economic, political, and social mobility for communities of color. Cheye-Ann is a former CA state legislative and hill staffer and an alumna of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute. She graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) with a B.A. in International Development Studies and a dual Masters’ degree in Urban Planning and Latin American Studies.

Luz Castro is the Associate Director of Policy at Inclusive Action for the City, where she leads the worker justice, immigrant safety net, and financial systems policy portfolios. Inclusive Action is a non-profit organization and Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) dedicated to serving underinvested communities and building thriving local economies by improving access to transformative capital and advancing policy through collaborative research and community-driven advocacy.

Motivated by a desire to understand how policies impact daily life, Luz began her political career working for Congresswoman Lucille Roybal-Allard and Linda Sánchez. In her previous role at the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (CHIRLA), she spearheaded the federal policy portfolio and played a pivotal role in national immigration reform campaigns, including ‘We Are Home’, ‘Value Our Families’, and the ‘Fair Immigration Reform Movement’.

During the 117th and 118th Congresses, Luz led the introduction of the Renewing Immigration Provisions of the Immigration Act of 1929, a comprehensive legalization bill proposing updates to the immigration registry, allowing immigrants who have lived in the U.S. for at least seven years to qualify for green cards. Luz also launched CHIRLA’s ‘All In for Registry’ campaign, advocating for a pathway to citizenship for 11 million undocumented individuals through an update to the immigration registry.

Luz brings deep expertise in immigration and economic justice policy, along with extensive experience in advocacy, civic engagement, and organizing. She is a member of the Latinas Lead California Young Professionals Network and an alumna of the HOPE Leadership Institute.

Karla Muñoz is a Post-Bar Scholar at Los Angeles Dependency Lawyers (LADL), where she works with attorneys in dependency law. Before applying to law school, Karla worked at an immigrant rights non-profit organization, CARECEN (Central American Resource Center), for five years. She attended Southwestern Law School where she secured an externship with a civil judge at Stanely Mosk Courthouse. In addition, she also served as a law clerk at the Office of the Public Defender in Los Angeles County for both a summer and semester. During her time at Southwestern she served in several leadership roles, including Co-Chair of the Public Interest Law Committee and Chair of the Immigration Law Student Association. For two consecutive years she was a mentor for the First Generation Mentorship Program, a start-up program at Southwestern for first-generation law students, where she was paired with two mentees in their first year at Southwestern.

Ashley Fumiko Dominguez serves as the Director of Federal Relations within UCLA’s Government & Community Relations department. She leverages her expertise in immigration, education, national security, international affairs and government to assist UCLA in maintaining a strong and robust relationship with the federal government. Ashley has served as a member of the APLU CGA Executive Committee since 2020 and has served as the Immigration Task Force Co-Chair for APLU and AAU for three years and remains an active member of the task forces where she assists in setting immigration policy for the higher education community. She is a recipient of APLU’s 2023 Emerging Leader Award and AAU’s 2021 New Innovator Award. At UCLA, Ashley serves on the Student Conduct Committee and the AANAPISI Committee. She previously served on Chancellor Block’s Advisory Council on Immigration Policy, the Hispanic Serving Institute Committee and the External Affairs Sexual Harassment and Discrimination Task Force.
Ashley serves on the St. Joseph Center Board of Directors, which provides working poor families, as well as homeless men, women, and children of all ages with the inner resources and tools to become productive, stable and self-supporting members of the community and is a HOPE HLI 21′ Alumnae.

Prior to joining UCLA, Ashley served in the district office of Congressman Ted W. Lieu as his Special Projects & Events Supervisor, in the district office and leadership office of Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi in multiple roles including Personal Correspondent and District Scheduler / Special Assistant, and in the state office of Senator Dianne Feinstein as a Constituent Services Representative. Ashley was a first generation college student and holds a Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts degree in International Relations from San Francisco State University.

Lila DiBella currently serves as Director, Patient Experience and Nurse Clinical Outcomes at Adventist Health White Memorial (AHWM). With 11 years of nursing experience, Lila’s journey at AHWM began in the cardiac/neuro unit. Over time, she has taken on increasingly complex roles, including Perioperative Nurse, Care Transitions Nurse Navigator, and RN Clinical Quality Abstractor. Lila played a pivotal role in developing grant-funded care transition navigation programs, with a special focus on high-risk chronic illnesses, homeless health, and substance use disorders. In her current capacity, Lila drives organizational process improvements centered around patient experience, clinical safety, healthcare quality, and patient-centered care.

Lauryn Lawton is a Distribution Operations Associate on the Television Mastering team at The Walt Disney Company. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Operations Management from California State University, Northridge and a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from Pepperdine University. After spending six years of her career in retail, she transitioned to her dream company and industry by leveraging the power of authentic networking. As the first woman in her family to earn a Master’s degree, as well as having a value for relationship-building, she is passionate about inspiring future generations and helping them find confidence in their own career paths.

As a Community Engagement Manager at HOPE, Emelly supports the planning and execution of the organization’s events and conferences, notably the Latina Empowerment Day series. In her role, she connects with community partners, elected officials, and key stakeholders to deepen HOPE’s impact within the community. She is a first-generation college graduate from UCLA (Go Bruins!) with a B.A. in International Development Studies.

Karen Herrera leads digital integration for the Enterprise Diversity Equity, and Inclusion team at The Walt Disney Company. She works with teams across the company to create integrated digital strategies that amplify our inclusion work. Prior to this role she served as Director, Digital Marketing, responsible for leading product development, marketing operations, digital strategy, and content initiatives engaging diverse audiences in unique and impactful ways. Prior to joining Disney, she began her career in media production at NBCUniversal and over nine years advanced from an associate producer to a technology executive leading interactive development.

Fabiola Moreno is a civil engineer with over 14 years of experience in the public utility sector. She is currently the Regulation, Legislation, and Grants Manager in the Water Resources Division at the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power. In her prior assignment she specialized in the design of large-diameter pipes, ensuring reliable and sustainable delivery of potable water to the City of Los Angeles. She has a strong commitment to safety and the use of innovative solutions and was responsible for promoting and delivering a Safety by Design program for the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power.

Fabiola is a first-generation immigrant from Honduras, a first-generation college graduate who obtained a B.S. in Civil Engineering from the California State University, Los Angeles, and a M.S. in Water & Waste Management from the University of Southern California. In 2021 she helped launch LADWP’s Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers Chapter and is an establishing member of LADWP’s Board of Commissioner’s first Women’s Council.

Alexia is a first-generation Latina, born in Lynwood, a small city in Southeast Los Angeles (SELA), and raised in Compton, CA. She is the proud daughter of Mexican immigrant parents and is passionate about democratizing technology, building generational wealth, and giving back to her community. Alexia has over four years of experience in business operations, project management, sales, and civic engagement across both the public and private sectors. She has been a Business Partner at Google for a little over a year, leading business operations for the Global Product Solutions (GPS) team.

Hello, my name’s Monica Grimaldo and I’m a Digital News Producer at ABC7 in Los Angeles.

I’ve been working in local news for the past 12 years since graduating from the University of Houston with my bachelor’s in broadcast journalism. I previously worked as a multimedia journalist (MMJ) in Louisiana and Arizona then went behind the camera to work as a digital news producer in my hometown of Houston and now L.A.

Since moving to L.A., I’ve covered hundreds of local stories and produced content that lives on all of ABC7’s digital platforms. I’ve also helped produce content for ABC7’s entertainment brand On The Red Carpet, the Emmys, and have participated in various volunteer and career development programs at Disney. I’m also a member of the Women in Disney group and Mas+, the Hispanic/Latinx employee resource group at TWDC.

Casey Prottas is an Internship Recruiter at The Walt Disney Company. She obtained her degree in Journalism and started her career within television production, specifically in late night TV and talk shows, and eventually moved over to the network side of television. While she loved working in television, she also always had a passion for early career development and decided to pursue internship recruitment and programming, which is where she is now in her career journey at Disney and absolutely loves it.

Dr. Laura C. Romero is Founder and President of her consulting firm, Brillante Strategies, where she advises people and organizations on professional development and public affairs. Brillante Strategies is based on her extensive visionary career, especially her UCLA mentoring doctoral dissertation and experience managing an award-winning innovative, enterprise-wide mentoring program. Laura is an international speaker who enjoys addressing audiences on topics such as mentoring, networking, careers, workforce development, internships, public-private partnerships, and civic engagement. She also currently serves as a UC San Diego Leadership Development Coaching Program Coach and recently served as a Loyola Marymount University College of Business Administration Executive Coach and Human Capital Management Instructor.

Prior to Brillante Strategies, Dr. Romero worked at a world class university, a television network, and nonprofits. During her UCLA career, Laura promoted the University’s mission of research, teaching and public service working with corporate and community leaders, elected/government officials, university/school administrators, faculty, staff, volunteers, students, and alumni. She worked in the Office of Government & Community Relations, the Higher Education Research Institute’s Cooperative Institutional Research Program, the Extramural Programs and Opportunities Center, and taught the new “Civic Engagement in Los Angeles” seminar. Before UCLA, Romero worked as Acting Director of Public Affairs at Univision Los Angeles and National Mentoring Coordinator and Trainer of the award-winning Communities In Schools, Inc./Univision Mentoring Initiative. Romero also worked at Child 360 focusing on corporate relations.

Laura C. Romero received her bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees from UCLA. Dr. Romero has the honor of serving as a member of the California State Summer School for the Arts (CSSSA) Board of Trustees, LA’s BEST Advisory Board, CSSSA Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Subcommittee, University of California Chicanx Latinx Alumni Association, and recently served as Vice President of the UCLA Latino Alumni Association Board of Directors.

Digital Strategist, Noteworthy Lab

Noelia Sanchez is a Branding and Digital Strategist who specializes in working with organizations and individual professionals looking to grow their thought leadership. Noelia helps purpose-driven leaders transform the way they market, brand, and communicate their genius with her intentional approach to personal branding.

At Noteworthy Lab, Noelia collaborates with nonprofits and small businesses to grow their influence and expand their reach. Together, they create a vision for growth and bring remarkable client experiences to life. Noelia’s insight into design, automation, and growth marketing have helped shape projects such as the ARC Network: A STEM Equity Brain Trust funded by the National Science Foundation, and programming like This Is Rural Health, a podcast by the California State Rural Health Association. Noelia holds a BA in Linguistics from UC Santa Barbara and has 20+ year of experience working in digital strategy and communications.

Fun Fact: When she is not working with thought leaders and change agents, you can find her indulging in her fabric obsession. As a self-taught seamstress, she loves to make her own clothes and teaches the occasional dressmaking workshop in her neighborhood.

Chief of Staff, Water System at the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power

Evelyn Cortez-Davis, P.E., BCEE is the Chief of Staff for the Water System at the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, the largest municipal utility in the USA. She has over 30 years of water industry experience in the areas of engineering design, planning, pipeline construction, asset management, water operations, recycled water, water supply, conservation, groundwater remediation, and environmental compliance. As Chief of Staff supporting LADWP’s Chief Executive Officer and Chief Engineer, Evelyn supports Department-wide strategic initiatives, including enterprise performance management, process improvements, and organizational design. In her most recent prior role, she was the first Latina to serve as LADWP Director of Water Engineering, overseeing the planning, design, and delivery of major infrastructure projects to supply reliable water to the 4 million people of the City of Los Angeles. She has also served as the Assistant Director of Water Resources and was the first woman to serve as Assistant Director of Water Operations. She has served on the Colorado River Board of California, on the Board of Directors of the National Water Research Institute, and on the Board of Trustees of WateReuse California. A first-generation immigrant from El Salvador, Evelyn earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in Civil Engineering from UCLA. She is a registered Civil Engineer in California and is a Board Certified Environmental Engineer.