LA Partnership for Early Childhood Investment Meeting: How Can funders Put Equity In Action?

Aurea Montes-Rodriguez is the Executive Vice President at Community Coalition and has worked at the organization for more than 20 years. Born in Mexico and raised in South LA she developed a passion for creating change at the local level. Aurea has been a key leader responsible for building the organization’s youth programs to fight for educational equity, leading efforts to keep children in family care and out of the foster care system, helping to build organizing capacity in South LA, and leading a capital campaign to transform the organization’s headquarters in to a state of the art community hub for community organizing.

Deborah Allen is Deputy Director of the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, where she heads the Bureau of Health Promotion. Divisions within the bureau include Chronic Disease and Injury Prevention, Maternal, Child and Adolescent Health, Women’s Health, Children’s Medical Services, and Substance Abuse Prevention and Care. Bureau programs take a holistic approach, addressing health needs in the context of family and community. Like all programs of the Department of Public Health, they emphasize the elimination of health inequality as a central goal. Dr. Allen is new to the Department of Public Health and to Los Angeles. She served previously as Director of Child, Adolescent and Family Health at the Boston Public Health Commission, as Associate Professor of Maternal and Child Health at the Boston University School of Public and as director of the Division for Special Health Needs at the Massachusetts Department of Public Health. Dr. Allen received the MCHB Director’s Award and the Federation for Children with Special Needs Executive Director’s Award in 2016; the Coalition for Excellence in MCH Epidemiology Outstanding Leadership Award in 2014; the American Public Health Association Maternal and Child Health Section Outstanding Leadership Award in 2013; the Massachusetts Association for Behavioral Healthcare Children’s Behavioral Health Award in 2012; and the Boston University School of Public Health Excellence in Teaching Award in 2009, 2010 and 2012. She currently chairs the Maternal and Child Health Section of the American Public Health Association and serves on the board of CityMatCH, the national organization of urban maternal and child health leaders. Throughout her career, she has served on multiple leadership and advisory committees for maternal and child health programs at local, state, and national levels. Dr. Allen has a doctorate in Maternal and Child Health and master’s degrees in MCH and Health Policy and Management from the Harvard University T. H. Chan School of Public Health.

Sonya Young Aadam (CEO), a University of Pennsylvania Wharton School of Business graduate, brings more than 20 years of comprehensive experience in strategic planning, financial analysis, and management with corporations like Barclays Bank, The Walt Disney Company and Viacom/MTV Networks to her most important work in the past 10 years -- supporting transformative intervention in underserved, urban communities - particularly in South Los Angeles where she was born and raised.
In October 2014, Sonya joined the California Black Women’s Health Project as Chief Executive Officer after serving as Director of Strategy & Development with the Los Angeles Urban League, and as Strategy & Community Relations Officer with BTL Health, Inc. In addition to strong technical skills, Sonya’s deep passion for the overall health and uplifting of Black Women and families is driven by her rearing as a woman of faith, committed to education, and the heartfelt sentiment that “…we lift as we climb”. Sonya, a strategist and trained facilitator, is currently serving a second term on the LA County Community Prevention and Population Health Task Force, sits on the Governor’s Behavioral Health Task Force, and was a Fellow in the Blue Shield CA Foundation: Reimagine Design Lab working on innovative strategies in domestic violence prevention. Additionally, she serves on multiple advisory boards and steering committees addressing African American maternal and infant health, domestic/family violence prevention, and mental health.

Liza is both a visionary and hands-on leader. In her role as Executive Director, she oversees all aspects of PCSLA, including operational, fiscal and governance management; fund development, strategic planning; staff supervision; partnership development; evaluation; cross-agency care coordination; and external communications.
She has been instrumental in spearheading PCSLA’s evolution and growth and is a sought-after expert on strategic collaborations that deliver sustained impact. Liza has over 28 years of non-profit experience, working specifically with at-risk youth and families in the South Los Angeles community. She grew up and still resides in the very community that she has committed her life to supporting. When she is not working, Liza enjoys spending time with her two cats, watching documentaries, and painting.