Coro to Graduate the 2008 Health Fellows

Coro Southern California – Center for Civic Leadership

PRESS RELEASE

September 24, 2008
For Immediate Release
Contact: Edward Headington
E-mail: EHeadington@Coro.org
Phone: 818.720.7181

Los Angeles, CA – For over half a century, the Coro Southern California Center for Civic Leadership has been “Training Tomorrow’s Leaders” in a variety of different program areas: Fellowship in Public Affairs, Youth, Community/ Neighborhood, and Healthcare. The fourth class of the venerable Coro Health Leadership Program (HLP) officially began in April and concludes tomorrow evening at a special ceremony at L.A. Care Health Plan. Jim Lott, Executive Vice President of the Hospital Association of Southern California, will be the Keynote Speaker, Hela Mahgerefteh, Project Specialist at L.A. Care Health Plan and HLP IV graduate, will be the Graduation Speaker, and certificates from Los Angeles Councilmember José Huizar will be handed out by council aide Edel Vizcarra to the 2008 Coro Health Fellows.

“While you can go to school to learn just about anything, leadership training is an elusive pursuit, often limited to on-the-job training,” said Councilmember José Huizar. “I want to thank Coro for providing this much-needed service and for doing so much to mold our leaders of tomorrow today.”

The Coro Health Leadership Program now boasts nearly 100 alumni. Below are the graduating 2008 Coro Health Fellows and the organizations they work for:

Ana Lilia Alvarez Valdepeña – COPE Health Solutions
Christine Bae – Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health
Rhonda Bean – Martin Luther King, Jr. Multi-service Ambulatory Care Center
Dana Colbert – American Heart Association
Evelyn Escobedo – Loyola Marymount University
Behnaz Hekmatnia – LAC+USC Healthcare Network
John Newell Henning – Office of Supervisor Michael Antonovich
Pernell R. Jones – HealthCare Partners Medical Group
Hela Mahgerefteh – L.A. Care Health Plan
Gema Morales-Meyer – Rancho Los Amigos National Rehabilitation Center
Rebecca Pizzitola – Insure the Uninsured Project
Yeira Rodriguez – Los Angeles County Department of Public Health
Elizabeth Tabita – The California Endowment
Gladys Valdovinos-Castillo – L.A. Care Health Plan
Lori Viveros – Olive View-UCLA Medical Center
Ana Wong-McDonald – Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health
Kerri Yoder – Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation of America

“The 2008 Coro Health Fellows are some of the best and brightest boundary-crossing leaders in the healthcare arena,” said Coro Southern California President and CEO, Don Pierro. “I expect the Fellows to stay involved, serve the underserved and work to build a stronger healthcare system.”

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Coro Southern California and its affiliated centers nationwide shape civic leaders for effective roles in public affairs. Coro graduates are teachers, investment bankers, union leaders, corporate directors, activists, lawyers, journalists, and elected officials, among other professions. No matter where the more than 10,000 alumni work or what job titles they hold, they have learned how to challenge themselves and others to be more ethical and effective leaders. Coro runs programs in San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York, St. Louis, Pittsburgh, Kansas City and Cleveland; over a 1,000 participants go through Coro programs nationwide. For more information, go to http://www.corola.org/.