Mark brings serves as the Vice President of Government Relations for JVS SoCal where he advocates for the systems change that address the barriers to good paying jobs, including the creative sector. Much of the work is done in collaboration with other organizations.

Mark has an expertise in navigating complex bureaucratic systems that was first developed in the private sector while employed as an Associate for a leading land-use firm, where he specialized in land use entitlement issues and later serving as the Director of Government Relations for a premier boutique lobbying firm. In this capacity, Mark assisted clients with obtaining or maintaining nearly $250,000,000 in contracts with city and county governments.
In the public sector, Mark’s knowledge base was further developed as a Senior Field Deputy for former Councilwoman Cindy Miscikowski. He was responsible for managing Brentwood, West Los Angeles and a portion of Palms serving the array of needs for approximately 50,000 constituents. Solving constituent issues involved working collaboratively with city, county, and state agencies, and with the community.

Mark worked for the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority as a Planner. In this capacity, he was an integral member of a team that brought to completion the Bring Los Angeles Home Plan, a blueprint to significantly reduce the number of people who are homeless within ten-years. The project was a successful public-private partnership that involved managing a broad and diverse coalition of stakeholders.

Mark is involved with and committed to community. He served in the United States Marine Corps Reserves and was honorably discharged. He was instrumental, as part of a team of community leaders, in the creation of the Hollywood United Neighborhood Council. He completed a three-year stint as a Board Member of Homeless Healthcare Los Angeles, a dynamic, and progressive, not-for-profit agency that effectively works to improve the health of people who are homeless through direct services, education, and advocacy, working with fellow board members and the executive director to navigate us through a horrible economic downturn. Mark served on the board of Barnsdall Art Park Foundation Board, where he served as chair for two years where they had a role in supporting the inclusion of the Hollyhock House as an UNESCO World Heritage Site representing one-of-eight Frank Lloyd Wright buildings. Presently, Mark serves on the Executive Board of Governors for the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, chairs the Legislative Action committee, and formerly co-chair of the Economic and Workforce Development committee.
A product of Cleveland Heights, Ohio, Mark has resided in Los Angeles for 27 years. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Urban Studies from California State University, Northridge with a concentration in Public Administration and Community Service.

Nadia S. Chrisanto (she/her) is the Operations Manager at the Center for Cultural Innovation (CCI). She is passionate about advocacy, accessibility, equity, inclusivity, fat liberation, and social justice issues, particularly within the undocumented & immigrant community. Nadia has previously worked at the California African American Museum (CAAM) and Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA). Her expertise includes nonprofit operations & administration, programming, curatorial & exhibitions planning, and grantmaking. She was an ACTIVATE alumni, a mentor for the ACTIVATE: Protege program, and a former Co-Chair for the Emerging Arts Leaders Los Angeles. Nadia is currently serving on the board of Arts for LA.

Nadia received her A.A. in History, Humanities, and Social & Behavioral Sciences from Pasadena City College and her B.A. in History from California State Polytechnic University Pomona. She enjoys reading and experimenting with new recipes & cooking techniques in her free time.

Gail Lopes is a retired lawyer with specialties in corporate, employment, technology, and nonprofit law. She has served as Chair of the Boards of Directors of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, GLSEN (the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network) in New York City, and Students Rising Above in the California Bay Area. She is also a past member of Theatre Communications Group’s (TCG) National Advisory Council and former Chair of its Governance Task Force. After earning a JD at Harvard Law School, she spent ten years at the law firm of Morrison & Forester. Gail was also Vice President of Product Development for two start-up software companies serving legal and HR professionals. Through a consulting firm she co-founded, she has led numerous strategic planning and business development initiatives at both profit and nonprofit organizations. Gail is prioritizing equity and social justice through her nonprofit work and has participated in equity and anti-racism trainings from TCG’s EDI Institute, artEquity, The Interaction Institute for Social Change, Race Forward, and The People’s Institute for Survival and Beyond (Undoing Racism). As the Chair of three nonprofits’ Governance & Nominating Committees, she has designed equity-based Board recruitment strategies, EDI Committees, codes of conduct, and governance structures. Gail and her husband Jim have two daughters: one a theatrical director in Los Angeles and the other a sommelier.

Cary J. Lefton is Chief Executive Officer of Agora Realty & Management, which he founded in 1986. Agora Realty is a full service commercial real estate company holding income producing assets in California, Hawaii and Nevada. Since 2001, Agora has been listed as the 3rd largest private developer in the San Fernando Valley and been listed in the Los Angeles Business Journal as one of the top 25 developers in Los Angeles County.  His firm has joint ventured with private and publicly traded companies such as Kimco Realty and Alexander and Baldwin. Agora is a family-owned business that has an investment strategy that especially benefits small businesses, assisting them in navigating the complexities of starting a new business.  Agora’s team prides itself on developing socially responsible projects with the objective to add value to communities in which it invests in. Agora currently owns and operates a commercial real estate portfolio of approximately 1.9 million square feet.

Lefton began his career in 1980 as a real estate broker, specializing in commercial real estate, with Arthur Rubloff and Company of Southern California. He earned the “Rookie of the Year” award during his first year with the company, representing such companies as Westinghouse and Huffy Bicycles, and leased more than 1,500,000 square feet during his two-year tenure. In 1982, Lefton joined Westwood Properties as vice president of acquisitions, where he successfully negotiated for commercial and industrial real estate throughout the Southern California region. His responsibilities also included project analysis, loan packaging and general office administration.

Lefton attended the University of Southern California where he majored in Political Science.  He has been married to his wife Marla for over 40 years. Marla is an artist who enjoys painting with oils on canvass. Cary and his wife have two sons Ryan and Aaron who also work for Agora.

Hobbies include, collecting wine, tennis, skiing, traveling, sailing and playing with his grandchildren…….not necessarily in that order.

Fabian Fuertes (he/him), holds the position of Gift Planning Officer with the Los Angeles Philharmonic, is Vice Co-Chair of the Board of Directors with Arts for LA, Chairs Arts for LA’s EPIC Committee (Equity, People, Inclusion, and Culture), and is a former Delegate for Assembly District 53, CA. His passion for equitable education and the arts inspires his work in creating a profound societal renewal in our generation and the next. As a native Angeleno and first-generation Latino, he is proud to be a part of an organization that engages more than 1,800 young people from historically marginalized communities across LA County through free music experiences and creative youth development to inspire belonging, autonomy, civic and social abilities, and stronger lifelong learners. Fabian is excited to continuously explore personal blind spots, enable transformation, and continue his pursuit in creating a world in which access to equitable education, for all, inspires any person to fulfill their greatest potential.

Jennifer M. Cuevas (she/her/ella) is a Los Angeles-based arts executive,
entrepreneur, arts advocate and cultural producer with a passion for
storytelling, connecting people, and a 20+ year history of advancing the arts in
Los Angeles. For more than two decades she has been dedicated to
supporting visual and performing artists, developing campaigns for social
impact and amplifying the missions, artists and programmatic work of non-
profit institutions.

She recently served as Executive Director of Self Help Graphics & Art and
prior to her role as ED, contributed since 2017 as a consulting strategic
advisor, cultural producer, and communications executive, bolstering the
organization’s visibility locally and nationally. Jennifer is a multifaceted leader
who brings with her diverse experiences in the non-profit sector and has
previously worked with the Vincent Price Art Museum, LA Commons in
collaboration with the City of LA’s Department of Arts and Culture (DCA),
Academia Avance Charter School (Avance), California Native Vote Project
(CNVP), Women Organizing Resources, Knowledge and Services (WORKS),
Metro Arts, Alliance for California Traditional Arts (ACTA), and many others.

Jennifer received a B.A. in Communications, with a concentration in Public
Affairs/Information, from the University of La Verne. She currently serves on
the Board of Arts of LA.