Local
As the name suggests, our Dr. Beatriz María Solís Policy Institute Local training focuses on building strong advocates ready to craft local policy and shape community budgets. Each SPI-Local cohort is made up of teams from various counties around the state. SPI-Local is conducted in both English and Spanish.
Check out our previous policy wins.
Applications will open in 2025
When: Thursday, January 30th, 2025
Time: 4:30 PM – 6:30 PM
Where: Downtown Los Angeles (location to be confirmed)
Join us as we unveil the refreshed Dr. Beatriz María Solís Policy Institute Local (SPI Local) program and celebrate the transformative power of local policy to drive collective liberation. Local policies are where the seeds of change take root, shaping the systems that touch our daily lives and laying the foundation for broader movements toward justice.
This special gathering will bring together our Los Angeles County community to share the vision for the newly reimagined SPI Local program, launching with an inaugural LA County cohort in 2025.
2022 SPI-Local Issue Areas:
The Women’s Foundation California’s Solís Policy Institute (SPI) focuses on shaping just policies that will positively impact the lives of non-binary and genderqueer people, cisgender and transgender women, and transgender men in California. This year, SPI-Local aims to feature teams working to address racism, anti-Blackness, and cis-hetero-patriarchy through the following specific areas:
Focused on eliminating anti-Black racism, our team works to reimagine child safety and support families in crisis in Los Angeles County beyond the family regulation system, inaccurately known as child welfare, with an ultimate goal of disbanding the system.
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Reshona Benjamin
Board Member, Parenting For Liberation
Keshia Adeniyi-Dorsey
Founder,Family Justice Tribe
Jay Brissette
Community Organizer,Parenting For Liberation
Based in southern Santa Cruz County, our team partners with youth to support the development of restorative justice policies in our school districts.
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Sofia Cuentas
Community Health Policy Coordinator, Pajaro Valley Prevention and Student Assistance
Jazmin Ponce
Community Engagement Manager, Second Harvest Food Bank Santa Cruz County
Crystal Gonzalez
Senior Policy Analyst, Pajaro Valley Prevention and Student Assistance
Focused on the primarily Spanish-speaking Alisal Union School District, our Community Health team works to create stronger family connections to the school district through accessible and equitable early childhood programming and preschool enrollment.
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Erika Arreola
Community Organizer,First 5 Monterey County
Gaby Silva
Community Organizer,First 5 Monterey County
Working across Los Angeles County, we promote just transition policy that protects our workforce, encourages a just economy, and addresses the intersections of mass incarceration, climate change, COVID-19, and racial inequity.
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Michaé De La Cuadra
B2SL Campaign Coordinator,Californians United for A Responsible Budget
Bryanna Siguenza
Judicial Accountability Coordinator,La Defensx
Megan Castillo
Re-Imagine LA Coalition Coordinator,La Defensa