Jacky Guerrero enrolled in the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs with a mission to combine her passion for improving the economic lives of low-income communities of color and her pragmatic perspective on policy. As a Master of Public Policy candidate, her interests are focused around politics, economics and their intersections on race and gender. Her roots stem from Santa Ynez Valley, CA where she became an advocate for Latinos in higher education. She then expanded her horizons by attending California State University, Northridge where she pursued her degree in Journalism with a concentration in online media.

After completing her Bachelor’s degree, she used her background in online media to a become co-founder of a Latino LGBTQ organization. Then, in 2008 after Proposition 8 passed, she worked on building awareness about LGBTQ issues in Latino communities. Soon thereafter, she joined the Liberty Hill Foundation, a non-profit organization which focuses on funding community organizations that organize for policy changes at the local level. During her tenure as a Program Associate she was responsible for conducting research and development for the foundation’s capacity building training program and managed the LGBTQ grant-making portfolio by conducting site visits and landscape assessments. She currently sits on Liberty Hill’s Community Funding Board as well as the San Fernando Young Democrats Board.

As a Bohnett Fellow, she is honored to be joining the L.A. Mayors Economic Development team focusing on the Promise Zone initiative. She hopes to take this opportunity to build on her experience utilizing the tools she has learned both in the classroom and out in the field. During her down-time she enjoys barbequing, brunches on Sunday mornings and supporting local micro-breweries in the area.