Annual Black History Month Celebration
Return to Service – Ensuring Sustainable Representation Throughout the Transportation Industry
Friday, February 25, 2022
at the City Club 555 S. Flower St. Los Angeles, CA 90071
5:00 pm Reception, 6:00 pm Dinner and Program
Business attire
Join us for an evening of upscale ambiance, great company, and thoughtful dialogue.
MEET OUR SPEAKERS
-
CEO and Principal Consultant, Brasfield & Associates
Brasfield (Dr. G) is an accomplished diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) advocate with over 18 years of experience in construction focusing on leadership and DEI program development, training, education and outreach for the construction industry and construction-related trades. Dr. G drives organizations to go beyond DEI talk by taking actionable steps to create culturally diverse, equitable and inclusive workplaces.
A longtime consultant and advocate for DEI education, workforce issues and small businesses, Dr. G is a passionate change agent across the construction industry. Recognition for her work includes being named a 2021 Outstanding Women In Construction by the Construction Business Owner Magazine, a 2021 Inspirational Women finalist by the Los Angeles Times, a 2021 LA County Impact Maker by Stratiscope, 2020 Mujer del Año (Woman of the Year) by the Regional Hispanic Institute, and named a Game Changer by Diversity Professional Magazine. She’s also a DEI social influencer who Autodesk industry bloggers called a Top 50 Construction Influencer across the United States in 2020 and 2019.
At heart, Dr. G is a DEI strategist and educator committed to transforming the industry through transformative and capacity-building program development and implementation. She also knows that organizations that embrace and implement DEI strategies outperform their peers.
Dr. G holds dual doctorate degrees from the University of La Verne, a D.P.A. in Public Administration, and an Ed.D. in Organizational Leadership. For Board services, Dr. G serves as Chair of the Associated General Contractors (AGC) of California’s Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion Steering Committee, on the Board of the Associated General Contractors (AGC) of California’s Construction Education Foundation (CEF), and on the Board of RAND’s Center to Advance Racial Equity Policy (CAREP).
-
Amber Meshack is the Director of the Business, Jobs, & Social Responsibility (BJSR) Division at Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA). LAWA is the City of Los Angeles public agency that owns and operates Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), the fourth busiest airport in the world, as well as Van Nuys General Aviation Airport (VNY). LAWA established BJSR in 2018 to advance social responsibility and maximize access to business and career opportunities at LAWA.
As Director of the BJSR Division, Ms. Meshack is responsible for workforce and business opportunity programs including: ensuring delivery of inclusivity commitments for the $14B LAWA capital program, overseeing LAWA’S First Source Hiring Program, managing the small contractor development and bonding assistance program, and developing strategic partnerships for business and workforce development.
Under her leadership, BJSR established LAWA’s first small contractor training program, the BuildLAX Academy; launched the Contract Finance Assistance Program to support access to financing for small construction contractors; established the first Inclusivity Team dedicated to capital projects oversight; led the development and implementation of LAWA’s policy to require Inclusivity commitments as a competitively scored category in all major procurements; and directed the first study at LAWA to examine gaps in contracting equity correlated to race and gender.
Prior to taking on the role of BJSR Director, Ms. Meshack worked on the LAX Landside Access Modernization Program (LAMP), where she managed executive operations and procurements, including for the City’s largest ever public-private-partnership (P3) project, the $4.9B Automated People Mover, the largest contract ever entered into by the City of Los Angeles. As part of that effort, Ms. Meshack was responsible for developing the local hire, workforce, and small, local, and disadvantaged business contracting requirements, the first such performance requirements included in the US P3 market.
Before coming to LAX, Ms. Meshack helped to establish the City of Los Angeles Neighborhood Council system and was an organizer with the Los Angeles Alliance for a New Economy, “The Living Wage Coalition”, helping to establish local livable wages.
-
Malaika Billups currently serves as the City of Los Angeles’s Chief Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Officer. She oversees the Office of Workplace Equity within the Personnel Department.
Ms. Billups is responsible for managing the City’s equity investigations and it leading efforts to re-envision the City’s workplace equity policies and enforcement procedures, and citywide diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts.
Before her transition to human capital work, Ms. Billups was a practicing employment attorney representing both public and private agencies in litigation defense and in providing legal advice, counsel and trainings regarding labor, employment, and other complex matters concerning the workplace.
Ms. Billups graduated cum laude from Spelman College with a B.A. in Child
Development, received her J.D. from Loyola Law School in Los Angeles and also holds a certification in Strategic Human Resources Leadership and in Diversity and Inclusion for HR from Cornell University.
-
Kome Ajise is the Executive Director of the Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG).
He has three decades of experience in regional planning and transportation, most recently as the Director of Planning at SCAG. Prior to working at SCAG, Kome was the Chief Deputy Director at the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans), where he was responsible for internal operations, overseeing more than 18,000 employees and a budget in excess of $1.1 billion. Previously, he was Caltrans’ Deputy Director of Planning and Modal Programs and oversaw the Aeronautics, Mass Transportation, Rail, Transportation Planning, Local Assistance, and Research Innovation and System Information Divisions. Kome has a Bachelor of Science degree in Geography and Regional Planning from the University of Benin, Nigeria and a Master of City and Regional Planning degree from California State University, Fresno.
FEATURING
Recognizing former COMTO SoCal President and current COMTO National First Vice Chair, GwenDolen Gray with the COMTO SoCal Legacy Award
REGISTRATION OPTIONS
-
Show your commitment to the sustainability of diverse representation in the transportation industry.
Includes: ten attendees, reserved table, recognition at event and in event marketing, four COMTO SoCal annual memberships.
-
Includes five attendees, reserved seats, recognition at event, and two COMTO SoCal annual memberships
-
For COMTO SoCal members only. Registration fee includes dinner.
-
Includes dinner
COVID 19 PROTOCOLS
For your safety, COMTO will be social distancing and are requiring that all guests wear masks, unless they are actively eating and/or drinking, or are on stage.
If you are experiencing COVID symptoms or are feeling sick, we ask that you please stay home.
By attending the COMTO SoCal Black History Month Celebration Dinner, individuals agree to hold COMTO SoCal harmless from liability related to COVID-19 exposure at this dinner.
Please THIS LINK (or the button below) to provide proof of vaccination to secure your registration. Our venue - the City Club - additionally requires proof of vaccination and photo ID to be presented onsite for entry, per LA County regulations.