Meet Youth Policy Institute’s
Board of Directors.
Ari Lanin, Chair
Partner | Gibson Dunn
Ari Lanin is a partner in Gibson Dunn’s Century City office and co-chair of the firm’s Private Equity Practice group. He advises companies, private equity firms, and investment banks across a wide range of industries, focusing on mergers and acquisitions, securities regulation and corporate governance.
“Our children are the most precious natural resource we have. Every day, cycles of poverty leave them stripped of the opportunity to improve their own lives. For every incredible story of a child who ‘beats the odds,’ there are innumerable stories of children who don’t. That statistical reality exists, regardless of where you fall on the political spectrum.
What’s unique about YPI is the manner in which it works to break the cycle by embracing communities. It’s a wraparound approach, an everything approach. And the difference between having access to these services or not can mean the difference between breaking the cycle or reliving it. I'm pleased to serve on the board of this impactful organization and look forward to working with my colleagues to promote and advance YPI's important work.”
Dixon Slingerland, Vice President
President & CEO | Youth Policy Institute
Dixon Slingerland is the president and CEO of Youth Policy Institute. Since 1996, Dixon has directed YPI as it has grown to an annual budget of $57 million. Dixon leads more than 1,600 staff serving over 100,000 youth and adults each year at 125 program sites in Los Angeles.
“I am passionate about the work we do at YPI and am honored to collaborate closely with this talented board of directors.”
Sandra Lee, Secretary
President & CEO | ES Advertising, Inc.
Sandra is the president and CEO of ES Advertising, a Los Angeles-based full-service advertising agency specializing in the multicultural markets. She oversees all departments of the agency to ensure superior service.
In 1999, Sandra established ES Advertising as a full-service multicultural advertising division of Samsung’s in-house agency to service Samsung’s multiple U.S business units and to broaden the clientele in other industries. To avoid diluting the agency’s main focus of expertise, ES Advertising became an independently-owned and operated, full-service advertising entity in 2001.
Today, the national trade publication, Advertising Age, has ranked ES Advertising as one of the top 10 Asian-American advertising agencies in the country. ES Advertising’s clients include California Bank & Trust, Chubb Group of Insurance Companies, Disney Home Entertainment, Samsung Electronics America, and Time Warner Cable.
Sandra is dedicated to educating Fortune 500 corporations on the enormous potential and importance of multicultural markets. She currently serves as the acting treasurer on the board of directors for the Asian-American Advertising Federation, an organization that seeks to grow the Asian-American advertising industry and further professional growth within. In addition, she is a member of the Southern California Chapter of National Association for Multi-Ethnicity in Communications (NAMIC), where she is actively involved in promoting diversity and inclusion in the entertainment industry’s workforce and is also an executive member of the National Association of Women Business Owners.
She is also actively involved in the community by serving as a board of director for Visual Communications, the organization that produces the annual Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival, as well as for the Koreatown Youth & Community Center, a nonprofit organization that seeks to help underprivileged youth in the Korean community.
Sandra holds a bachelor’s degree in communication studies from the University of California, Santa Barbara.
James Alva
Senior Vice President & Southern California Market Manager | Citi Community Development
James Alva serves as senior vice president and as the Southern California market manager for Citi Community Development. In his role within Citibank’s second largest market globally, James oversees the bank’s strategic efforts to progress financial inclusion in underserved communities by focusing on youth economic empowerment and urban transformation. He is responsible for managing a multi-million dollar community investment portfolio from Santa Barbara south to the border. Prior to joining Citi, James worked for six years in the nonprofit space with the Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs), in which he managed innovative programs in both Los Angeles and San Francisco targeting the underserved. At the SBDC, James developed a nonprofit accelerator for technology companies called Tech Futures Group, which helped underserved technology companies to raise nearly $30 million in capital in its first 18 months of operation. Responding to the Latino small business community’s need for increased financial inclusion, James worked alongside the current Administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration Maria Contreras-Sweet to open what is now ProAmerica Bank in Downtown Los Angeles. James also has served as an International Fellow with the World Bank in Mexico City.
James is the first in his family to graduate from college. He has a degree in international relations from Stanford University, where he served as a two-time president of his class. He is passionate about developing opportunities for low- to moderate-income communities, regularly mentors college students, and speaks at urban high schools, encouraging the predominantly minority student community to seek the transformative asset of a college degree.
Andrew E. Bogen
Retired Partner | Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP
In addition to his role with YPI, Bogen is currently active in the development of New Village Girls Academy charter school located in Los Angeles’ Rampart neighborhood, serves as director of St. Anne’s Maternity Home, and is a trustee of the Weingart Foundation.
“For those of us who have enjoyed in full measure the benefits of a fine education and the business, cultural, and natural riches of our country, I believe it is appropriate to do what we can to make the same opportunities available for young people who have the least of family and community resources.”
Angelina Corona
Executive Director | Hermandad Mexicana
Richard Foos
CEO | Shout! Factory
Richard Foos has been in the entertainment business for more than 45 years, starting with a small record store named Rhino Records, which he eventually grew into an audio label with well over $100 million in annual revenue. He and his partner Harold Bronson sold Rhino to Time Warner in 1998. In 2003, Richard and his partners started a new company, Shout! Factory. Shout! specializes in creating unique products comprised of classic, contemporary, and cult TV series and feature films, animation, live music, comedy specials, and documentaries. Richard serves as chairman emeritus for Little Kids Rock and is also on the boards of The Nation Institute, Government Accountability Project, and other nonprofits that make a strong commitment to social progress.
Brenda Freiberg
Community Activist
Brenda Freiberg is a community activist with extensive local, national and international experience in nonprofit, corporate and government sectors. Her work has encompassed satellite communications, healthcare, HIV, gay rights and anti-poverty work, and education.
In addition to her board of directors role at YPI, Brenda is chair of New Village Girls Academy, the only all-girl charter high school in California dedicated to educating and providing assistance to at-risk young women.
“YPI’s commitment, comprehensive and thoughtful approach to fighting poverty by building strong education systems, job development and helping to establish community leadership makes a good and productive life possible for countless in Los Angeles.”
Yasmine Delawari Johnson
Co-President | Alliance of Moms
Born in Los Angeles, Yasmine Delawari Johnson runs a busy household with four children ranging from preschool to college. Yasmine is co-president and co-founder of the Alliance of Moms, a membership-based auxiliary group that supports the work of the Alliance for Children’s Rights, for which she is also on the board. Yasmine was the Alliance’s 2015 National Champions for Children honoree, a St. Anne’s 2016 Angel Award recipient, and was named a game-changer in Los Angeles magazine’s L.A. Woman feature. Yasmine holds a degree in political science from the University of California, Los Angeles. She and her husband Matt Johnson are active philanthropists and political activists.
Dr. Myung Ki “Mike” Hong
Founder & President | Dura Coat Products, Inc.
Shari Leinwand
Retired Partner | Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher
Shari Leinwand is a retired partner of Gibson Dunn and was a member of the firm’s tax/personal planning department, specializing in estate, gift, and income tax planning; probate and trust administration; charitable giving; and tax-exempt organizations. She has been a frequent lecturer and author on topics involving estate and gift planning, probate and trust administration, and charitable giving and charitable organizations. Ms. Leinwand has served on the boards of various philanthropic organizations, both private foundations and public charities, currently including: ACLU Foundation of Southern California (chair); Human Rights Watch Los Angeles Committee (former co-chair; also member); Human Rights Watch’s audit committee and trustee of HRW Japan; Stone Soup Child Care Programs (chair, audit committee); the Kolb Foundation; Thelma Pearl Howard Foundation; and the Elizabeth Bixby Janeway Foundation. She received her bachelor’s degree from the University of California, Berkeley, and her law degree from the University of Southern California Gould School of Law.
Steven Rindner
Executive Vice President | Main Street Advisors
Steven Rindner is an attorney and corporate development executive. He has extensive experience creating and structuring partnerships and joint ventures and developing growth strategies across a number of industries, including media, marketing, technology, and healthcare. Currently, Steven is executive vice president of Main Street Advisors, a firm representing clients predominantly in media and entertainment, professional sports (owners and athletes), and CEOs and entrepreneurs. Working closely with its clients, Steven is responsible for providing strategic advice, developing business plans and negotiating transactions to start and further develop clients’ business interests.
Prior to joining Main Street Advisors, Steven worked with Bob Pittman (iHeart Media CEO) and his private equity firm (Pilot Group), and led corporate strategy and development for Scout Media, Inc., an online content and subscription-based company. Steven successfully expanded the company’s network of online sites and implemented the strategy to monetize the audience through commerce and the sale of advertising and subscriptions.
Before joining Pilot Group, Steven led a number of corporate development initiatives on behalf of Besins Healthcare International, a multi-billion dollar, Belgium-based pharmaceutical company, including the successful launch and execution of their online and retail strategies.
Previously, Steven served as a senior vice president at Citigroup, developing and negotiating partnerships to create new revenue streams and bring innovation to the payments space. He also served as a senior vice president at AOL, where he developed and executed on strategies for content, website functionality, advertising, marketing, and subscriber acquisition. Before joining AOL, Steven worked as an M&A attorney at Fried Frank and served for four years as an assistant attorney for the District of Columbia. He currently serves on the board of Charles E. Smith Life Communities, which provides housing and services to elderly people. Steven is married to Karen Rindner, Corporate Counsel to Neustar, Inc., and, together they have three teenage daughters.
Tom Unterman
Founding Partner | Rustic Canyon Partners
As I wind down my investment, I am concentrating my time on public and community service projects.
“YPI is growing quickly and rapidly becoming such a leader in Los Angeles in boosting student performance that I wanted to try to be helpful.”
Amit Verma
Principal | PricewaterhouseCoopers
Amit is a partner in PriceWaterhouseCoopers Market & Acquisition practice. He advises companies on strategic and operational aspects of a transaction across the deal continuum—diligence, integration, and divestiture.
Amit is passionate about leveraging technology and STEM to help students stretch their thinking and imagination. Working with YPI, he will be able to deploy this for the benefit of YPI students and families.