Moderator:

Dan Schnur

In addition to his posts as a professor at the University of Southern California’s Annenberg School of Communications and the University of California — Berkeley’s Institute of Governmental Studies, Dan is also the Director for the California Influencers project, a statewide program in which 60 of the state’s foremost experts in politics, policy, and government discuss the 2018 campaign on a regular basis through the November election.

Dan has also taught at the John F. Kennedy School of Government’s Institute of Politics at Harvard University and George Washington University’s Graduate School of Political Management. He is the founder of the USC/LA Times statewide political poll.

He has worked on four presidential and three gubernatorial campaigns as a leading political strategist, been a valued advisor to several well-known foundations on issues of education and workforce preparedness, and has served as an analyst for multiple news outlets.

Panelists:

Renee Chanon

Renee is a former president of the League of Women Voters of Los Angeles and also served on the League of Women Voters of California State Board. She served for 10 years as a member of the Ballot Simplification Committee for the City of Los Angeles. As an active participant in civic affairs, Renee was appointed by Mayor Bradley to the Downtown Strategic Plan Advisory Committee as one of 60 civic leaders assigned the task of developing a 20-year plan for Downtown Los Angeles. Renee is currently a member of the board of the League of Women Voters of Los Angeles Education Fund and has served on a variety of other nonprofit boards, including the National Women's History Project. Professionally, Renee has worked as a public affairs and community relations consultant.

Wendy Greuel

Wendy was appointed by Mayor Eric Garcetti to the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority Commission in 2015.

Wendy started her career in public service working for former Mayor Tom Bradley on a wide range of public policy issues including child care, senior care homelessness, housing, public health, and education. She also helped lead the fight to combat HIV and AIDS.

She served in President Clinton’s administration as the Deputy Director of the Interagency Council on Homelessness and later as the Southern California Regional Director at the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

She worked for five years as an executive at DreamWorks SKG.

Wendy was elected to the Los Angeles City Council in 2002 and quickly developed an impressive record.

In 2009, Wendy was appointed as City Controller, becoming only the second woman in L.A.’s history elected to citywide office. She ensured the efficient use of taxpayer dollars and greater transparency to government.

Wendy played a key role in opening the Discovery Cube LA kids’ museum that focuses on STEM proficiency, early learning, healthy living, and environmental sustainability.

Pete Peterson

Pete Peterson is the dean of Pepperdine’s School of Public Policy and a leading national speaker and writer on issues related to civic participation and the use of technology to make government more responsive and transparent. He was the first executive director of the Davenport Institute for Public Engagement at the School. In 2008, he developed the organization's annual Public Engagement Grant Program, which has provided over $400,000 in grants over the last several years to dozens of municipal governments across California.

Peterson has co-created and currently co-facilitates the training seminar, Public Engagement: The Vital Leadership Skill in Difficult Times, a program that has been attended by over 1,000 municipal officials, and he also co-created and co-facilitates the seminar, Gov 2.0: What Public Officials Need to Know.

Pete has been a public affairs fellow at The Hoover Institution, and he serves on the Leadership Councils of the Public Policy Institute of California and California Forward, and he sits on the steering committee at the Institute for Local Government.