On Friday, June 6, we celebrated the culmination of a 10-month journey of growth, community engagement, and connection for our Emerging Leaders and Leadership CORPS program participants.

At an afternoon ceremony at the beautiful Library | Parks & Recreation Center in South San Francisco, we celebrated the 76 graduates of the Class of 2025.

The graduates are from all sectors of San Mateo County: businesses, nonprofits, municipalities, commissions, councils, etc. They started these programs as a group of strangers. They developed purpose statements and imagined the communities they wanted to live and work in. They spent each month’s Learning Day in a new County location, learning about the challenging issues we collectively face. They worked on small teams that helped local nonprofits, city and county leaders take action on hard, complex issues by providing research and tangible recommendations. With our expert coaches, they practiced leadership skills to lead with transparency, innovate through reflection, and ultimately deliver impact.

“Look around. These are your people,” said Margi Power, Leadership Council SMC Co-President, to the graduates. “In the weeks, months, and years to come, you have each other for support, guidance and—most importantly—to collaborate to get hard things done.”

“Look around. These are your people...you have each other for support, guidance and—most importantly—to collaborate to get hard things done.”

Margi’s Co-President, Kaarin Hardy, echoed this sentiment. “We look forward to seeing what you accomplish as members of our growing Leadership Council SMC family. We commit to being an ongoing resource, a source of information and connection, and a partner in the work you do for your organizations and your communities.” 

"...We commit to being an ongoing resource, a source of information and connection, and a partner in the work you do for your organizations and your communities.” 

San Mateo County Supervisor Lisa Gauthier and County Executive Mike Callagy each welcomed the attendees with their inspiring remarks. They recognized the dedication, resilience, and collaborative spirit of the graduates, and how these attributes are essential to driving positive change in our wonderful County of San Mateo. They appreciated Margi and Kaarin and the Leadership Council SMC team for their passion and commitment to leadership development.

The graduates themselves then shifted the focus to the future. They each took the stage to share their Commitment Statements. San Mateo County’s Poet Laureate, Antonio López, closed the formal ceremony with a powerful performance. At the reception following, graduates were celebrated for their achievements by their classmates, families, friends, and the extended Leadership Council SMC community. It was wonderful to see

Congratulations, Graduates of the Class of 2025!. Thank you for all you have done to make this a truly wonderful year.

Many Thanks!

Thank you to the  City of South San Francisco for the use of the beautiful Library | Parks & Recreation Center, and to the staff that supported us. Thank you to City Manager Sharon Ranals and Mayor Eddie Flores for their continued partnership.

Thank you to supporters of our graduation celebration:

• Heritage Bank of Commerce for sponsoring our refreshments
• Mazzetti’s Bakery for providing delicious celebration cupcakes
• Moonstar Charitable Organization for creating delicious appetizers

Thank you to the Leadership Council SMC Board Members and alumni who generously volunteered to help make Graduation Day such a success!

Emerging Leaders Class of 2025 *

• Julissa Acosta, Commissioner, SMC Commission on the Status of Women
• Jennifer Adams, Environmental Justice Program Director, Nuestra Casa
• Lucero Avila-Garcia, Executive Assistant to the City Manager, City of East Palo Alto
• Tanya Beat, Director of Commissions, County of SM
• Suruchi Bhutani, Administration, Business Support & Waste Management Services, City of San Mateo
• Marika Buchholz, Human Services Analyst – Center on Homelessness, County of San Mateo
• Spandan Chakrabarti, Community Resource Director, Sonrisas Dental Health
• Corina Chung, Supervising Epidemiologist, San Mateo County Health
• Jennifer Dianos, Acting HR Director, City of San Bruno
• Erika Dugay, San Mateo County Director of Programs, Youth Leadership Institute
• Bernadette Frias, Director of Programs, Life Science Cares
• Artem Gevorkyan, Aquatics Director, YMCA of Silicon Valley
• Goldie Gica, Records Manager, Cypress Lawn
• Elisa Guizar Chavez, Collective Impact Coordinator, RWC Together
• Ruby Gomez Harrison, Principal Insights Partner, Genentech
• Robert Kalkbrenner, Police Sergeant, Town of Hillsborough
• Michelle Kim, Community Engagement Associate, Acterra
• Laura Kirby, Management Analyst II – HR, City of Belmont
• Angenette Lau, Communications Manager, South San Francisco
• John Lovell, Senior Project Manager, Mission Housing Development Corporation
• Jose Luaorozco, Detective, East Palo Alto Police Department
• Jade Martinez, Associate Director, PAL Center
• Gracia Martinez Najera, Youth and Family Therapist, Daly City Youth Health Center
• Carmela Meehan, Community Outreach Program Director, Nuestra Casa
• Anjenette Mendoza, Director of Shelter Services, Samaritan House
• Emile Morales, Vice President, DeBolt Civil Engineering
• Emily Mungul, Director of Community Engagement, Boys and Girls Clubs of the Peninsula
• Osvaldo Muro, Coordinator of College Access Counseling and Programming, Peninsula Bridge
• Virginia Portillo, Commissioner, City of Menlo Park Housing Commission
• Carlos Reyes, Program Manager – North San Mateo County, Renaissance Entrepreneurship Center
• Graham Rogers, Business Operations Project Manager, CalTrain
• Abby Rovner, Director of Grants, Partnerships and Operations, San Mateo County Office of Education
• Carolina Salinas, Community Program Analyst II – Immigrant Services, County of San Mateo
• Joe Sanfilippo, Economic Development and Housing Specialist, City of Burlingame
• Lenelle Suliguin, Senior Management Analyst, City of Daly City
• Kayla Tolentino, Program Officer, Sobrato Philanthropy
• Anthony Yoshida, District Representative, Office of Senator Josh Becker

Leadership CORPS Class of 2025 *

• Reema Agarwal, Senior Vice President/Director – Floating Rate, Franklin Templeton
• Shakeel Ali, Governing Board President, Jefferson Elementary School District
• Hope Atmore, Assistant General Manager, Granada Community Services District
• Danielle Azzalino, VP of Adult Programs and Camp Via West, AbilityPath
• Daniel Barros, City Manager, Town of Colma
• Christopher Bernhardt, Senior Management Analyst, NOVAworks
• Mary Bier, Councilmember, City of Pacifica
• Robert Burns, Director of Programs, Silicon Valley Urban Debate League
• Ken Chan, Senior Organizer, Housing Leadership Council of San Mateo County
• Sean Charpentier, Executive Director, City/County Association of Governments of San Mateo County (C/CAG)
• Karen Decker, Economic and Community Vitality Manager, City of Half Moon Bay
• Jonathan Garcia, Supervising Attorney, Legal Aid Society
• Daan Giron, Vice President, Philanthropy, LifeMoves
• Tamara Hamai, President, Hamai Consulting
• Dhruv Hemmady, Senior Product Manager, Affordable Housing, Entrata
• Patrick Horn, Member, Pescadero Municipal Advisory Council
• Christina Horrisberger, Assistant City Manager, City of San Mateo
• Sarah Hubbard, Executive Director, Sustainable San Mateo County
• Eric Isero, Chiropractor, Dr. Eric Isero, DC, QME
• Stacy Jimenez, Vice Mayor, City of Foster City
• Rich Lee, Assistant City Manager, City of South San Francisco
• Adam Loraine, City Councilmember, City of San Mateo
• Vanessa Merina, Vice President of Brand and Audience Development, KQED
• Georganne Morin, Executive Director, Healthy Cities Tutoring
• Marchelle Moten, Executive Director, P-3 Early Education, San Mateo County Office of Education
• Dee Olomajeye Dragon, Vice President, People and Culture Strategy, Senti Bio
• Suzann Pershing, Associate Professor and Vice Chair, Stanford University School of Medicine
• Emily Roberts, Strategic Initiatives Manager, First 5 San Mateo County
• Andres Romero, Executive Director, YMCA Silicon Valley
• Matt Schreiber, Associate Director of Real Estate Development, Eden Housing
• Liz Scully, Executive Director, San Mateo County Family Child Care Organization
• Darcy Smith, Assistant City Manager, City of San Bruno
• Audrey Strout, Client Director, Gartner
• Susan Takalo, Director of Programs/Service and Special Projects, Second Harvest of Silicon Valley
• Kris Treanor, Executive Director, Business Insights and Analytics, Sutro Biopharma, Inc.
• Pranita Venkatesh, Councilmember, City of San Carlos
• Nelmarie Vilaró Caro, Director of Operations, Peninsula Conflict Resolution Center
• Hayley Village, CEO, It Takes A Village Children and Family Services, LLC
• Dianne Willoughby, Leadership Council SMC, Communications Director

* Titles represent their position at the start of the program, September 2024.