25 Featured Alumni
Over the course of our 25 years, the School of Public Policy has graduated more than 1,000 alumni who are serving throughout the country and around the world in positions of influence across the government, nonprofit and policy-related business sectors. We call our alumni "Wavemakers," and for this anniversary celebration, we're delighted to feature this representative group of alums.
Meet our Wavemakers
Read Eryn Witcher Tillman's Bio
Eryn Witcher Tillman is the bechtel director of media and government relations at Stanford University's Hoover Institution where she is responsible for the communications strategy of its current director and former secretary of state Condoleezza Rice.
Tillman also manages the Hoover Institution’s press strategy, internal communications, book publicity, journalist programs, and public affairs events. In addition, Tillman oversees Hoover’s Washington, DC, office which works closely with Capitol Hill, the legislative and executive branches, and third-party groups to foster relationships that further Hoover’s mission of promoting ideas that define a free society.
Before joining Hoover, Tillman spent nearly three years as White House assistant press secretary and director of television, serving as a spokesperson and chief liaison between the White House and television networks. From 2004 to 2006, Tillman served as press secretary at the Environmental Protection Agency, where she led the agency’s media response to Hurricane Katrina. She also served as a special assistant to Secretary of Labor Elaine Chao.
Tillman’s experience in the news media was as a producer for MSNBC’s Hardball with Chris Matthews. She also worked on Capitol Hill as the press secretary for Senator Bob Smith and as deputy press secretary for Senator Paul Coverdell.
Tillman, a California native, has a bachelor's degree in public relations from Pepperdine University’s Seaver College and a master of public policy from the Pepperdine School of Public Policy.
Read Hanna Skandera's Bio
Hanna Skandera has more than two decades of executive leadership experience in a variety of national and state-level private, public, and nonprofit organizations. She serves as the Visiting Professor of Education Policy and Impact at the Pepperdine School of Public Policy.
Skandera joined the Daniels Fund in December 2020. As the Chief Executive Officer, Hanna implements the Board’s strategic direction and leads all programs and operations of the Daniels Fund. She is CEO of Mile High Strategies, serving as an education and employability thought leader and advisor in leadership development and strategy, growing organizational impact, and transforming organizational culture. Skandera is also the editor-in-chief of The Line, founder of Pathway 2 Tomorrow, chief in residence with Chiefs for Change, co-founder of the Women in Leadership Initiative, and the Visiting Professor of Education Policy and Impact at Pepperdine University's School of Public Policy.
Skandera served as secretary of education for the State of New Mexico under Governor Susana Martinez. In this role, Skandera oversaw a budget of $2.7B, and created a high-performing team of more than 300 employees while cutting the agency operating budget by one-third. She realized record-breaking outcomes including graduation rates reaching an all-time high—up 10 percentage points, AP course enrollment more than doubling, a one-third increase in the number of high-achieving schools, and the dramatic reduction of high school graduates' college remediation rates—down 17 percentage points.
Much of Skandera's recent success stems from her systemic yet innovative efforts in large, complex, bureaucratic organizations as well as in the launch of several national, state, and local profit and nonprofit entities. These endeavors capture her clear commitment to realize greater returns on investment, expand choice and competition, transform system incentives, and empower the ultimate customer.
Previously, Skandera served as undersecretary for Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, deputy commissioner for Governor Jeb Bush and deputy chief of staff and senior policy advisor for US Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings. Skandera was also a Research Fellow with the Hoover Institution at Stanford University and a Pahara-Aspen Institute Fellow. Skandera graduated cum laude with a degree in business from Sonoma State University and graduated from Pepperdine School of Public Policy.
Skandera also serves on the board of the Colorado Community College System, Academic Partnership Board of Directors, Newsela Board of Directors, Daniels Fund Board of Directors, Code.org Board of Directors, Harvard Kennedy School's Mayoral Leadership in Education Network Advisory Committee, Senior Fellow and chair of the Education Policy and Impact Initiative at the Pepperdine School of Public Policy, George W. Bush Center Education Advisory Board, and former chair of Chiefs for Change, a bipartisan policy and advocacy organization she launched.
Skandera is recognized for her ability to grow organizational impact, transform organizational culture, and deliver results as well as her extensive network that spans private, public, charitable, and academic spheres.
Read Almis Udrys's Bio
Almis Udrys has built a career fostering teams and organizational cultures that transform popular buzzwords like efficiency, transparency, and accountability into reality.
Starting out as a performance auditor for the State of California, Udrys reviewed government operations and developed recommendations for process improvement. Continuing as a policy consultant in the state legislature Udrys helped legislators make public policy, including a stint as a senior staffer responsible for negotiating the $125 billion state budget with the Schwarzenegger administration.
At the city of San Diego, Udrys worked in a variety of policy and operational roles to support Mayor Sanders and Councilman Kersey, creating policies to tackle a multi-billion dollar infrastructure backlog focused on under-resourced communities, developing an open data policy, and serving as Mayor Faulconer’s founding director of an award-winning Performance & Analytics Department. Under Udrys' leadership, San Diego was recognized by the California League of Cities, the Harvard Ash Center, Governing Institute, and Bloomberg as a “What Works City.”
Concluding his time in local government, Udrys served as Deputy Chief of Staff and Assistant Chief Operating Officer, tackling the city’s COVID-19 response, including the establishment of one of the nation’s first small business relief funds, major housing reform, and homelessness, as well as climate action and mobility, while bolstering intergovernmental and binational relations, immigrant affairs, and equity initiatives. Udrys also served on the boards of the San Diego City Employees’ Retirement System where he helped adopt a trajectory toward full funding and the San Diego County Water Authority where he worked on innovative approaches to diversifying regional water supply.
With 20 years of public service, Udrys believes that government can work. He has deployed creative strategies to empower his teams, the public, and decision-makers, most notably via San Diego’s popular Get It Done reporting app, which allows users to report issues in their neighborhood from potholes to streetlight outages and graffiti.
Today, Udrys is a professional services director for OpenGov, a well-known govtech startup, where he leverages his experience to oversee budgeting, financials, procurement, and workflow cloud-based software deployments for state and local governments in 13 western states. Udrys' focus is building strong teams that deliver on time, on budget and with unprecedented customer satisfaction.
Udrys often shares his insights with students and professionals in both domestic and international settings, including as an adjunct professor co-teaching an Innovative Local Leadership course at the Pepperdine School of Public Policy.
Read Alicia Weintraub's Bio
Alicia Weintraub is a strategic and analytical elected public policy professional with more than 20 years of local government experience. Weintraub's experience is in building consensus, managing budgets, and developing innovative community programs. She has demonstrated the ability to oversee public-private partnerships and manage community outreach.
In 2002 Weintraub received her master of public policy from the Pepperdine School of Public Policy with a specialization in economics and regional and local policy. Weintraub received her undergraduate degree from the University of California, Los Angeles.
During Weintraub's work for a variety of cities throughout Southern California, she managed economic development projects, worked on multi-jurisdictional land use projects, and developed community engagement policies.
In 2015 Weintraub was elected to the Calabasas City Council. She is currently serving her second term. Weintraub was Mayor during the COVID-19 shutdown and oversaw the COVID-19 response for the City of Calabasas and helped to keep the City running during this period.
Weintraub has focused her City Council efforts on regional public policy issues including homelessness, public safety, education, environment, and regional transportation. She spearheaded the adoption of a citywide civic engagement policy which now serves as a model nationwide for community engagement and has actively engaged with law enforcement to create public policy that continues to make Calabasas one of the safest cities.
Weintraub currently services on the Las Virgenes—Malibu Council of Government and the Transportation Committee for the Southern California Association of Governments.
Read Negin Mosaheb-Assad's Bio
Negin Mosaheb-Assad graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles with a bachelor of arts degree in Sociology in 1998, followed by her degree in Master of Public Policy from Pepperdine’s School of Public Policy (SPP) specializing in American politics and international relations. She was honored by the Fritz Institute to be named a 2003 Lynn C. Fritz Scholar, joining an elite group of scholars devoted to augmenting the capabilities of humanitarian organizations engaged in disaster management worldwide.
Post-graduate school she continued to support SPP as a recruiter, visiting various universities and colleges, and promoting the Pepperdine brand, in search of future bright and gifted SPP candidates.
In 2004 Mosaheb-Assad and her husband established Lion’s Breed Investments, Inc., a real estate firm dedicated to helping immigrants, international investors, and first-time buyers secure loans, make purchases, and navigate the investment process. Although new to real estate, her extensive background and training in research helped flourish the business by coordinating the needs of investors and investments. Her multilingual ability and keen appreciation for the dynamics of global logistics helped grow their company and its continued success.
Mosaheb-Assad's personal familiarity with the Iranian culture and language aids her in her continued role as a consultant for Karvaran’s Division of the Overseas Merchandise Inspection Co., Ltd. (OMIC), a Japanese-based international inspection company with its subsidiary in Iran, where she initially did her summer internship while attending Pepperdine.
She also volunteers for the Red Cross, where she not only donates her time but also her CMV-negative blood, a rare and precious type, ideal for premature babies.
Ultimately, as much as she enjoys her work in policy and real estate, Mosaheb-Assad regards raising her two children as her greatest pride and accomplishment.
Read Lance Christensen's Bio
Lance Christensen brings nearly two decades of public policy and political experience to the California Policy Center where he serves as the vice president of education policy and government affairs. He actively oversees the operations with two of their central projects, ParentUnion.org and California Local Elected Officials. Christensen was also one of the principal architects of the recent school choice initiatives and chief strategist for Fix California in preparing to put education reform on the November 2022 ballot. Before stepping into the nonprofit world, he worked as a legislative consultant in the California State Senate, as well as a finance budget analyst at the Department of Finance. More recently, Christensen served as chief of staff and senior policy advisor to California State Sen. John Moorlach. While he dealt with every major policy issue confronting the legislature, much of his work there centered on addressing the state’s most difficult challenges: unsustainable government budgets, failing infrastructure, an inadequate education system, broken retirement promises and disastrous mental health laws.
Outside of government, Christensen served as director of the Pension Reform Project for Reason Foundation, setting the stage for major reforms in state and local retirement funding across the country. His research and commentary on education issues and state and municipal fiscal policy is regularly published in national and local publications.
Christensen earned his bachelor’s degree in English from Brigham Young University and a master of public policy from the Pepperdine School of Public Policy, specializing in international relations. Based in Sacramento, Christensen is fully engaged in his community, coaching any number of youth leagues, sitting on various boards and serving in lay positions in his church. He is a happily married father of five children, all of whom are seventh-generation Californians.
Read Daniel Hoang's Bio
Daniel Hoang graduated from the Pepperdine School of Public Policy in 2005 and spent the next 15 years in various consulting roles. He developed his early career skills at the California Bureau of State Audits and later at a private accounting firm in the consulting arm. Over the next 15 years, he developed specialties in organizational change management, program management, and data analysis (thanks to his statistics and econometrics training at Pepperdine).
Named a Rising Star by Consulting Magazine in 2015 in strategy consulting, Hoang developed a unique ability to visualize complex concepts and ideas in real-time via graphical sketches. He trained at The Grove International and became a graphic facilitator. While not formally trained, his natural design eye made him in demand by consultants for being able to communicate complicated ideas simply to clients.
In 2020 Hoang started his consulting business a couple of months before the pandemic. His business specialized in change management and creating transitions between analog to digital, timely with the pandemic. He later joined a lifesciences startup, Singletto, in the latter half of 2020 to help commercialize an antimicrobial technology designed to decontaminate masks and other PPE from SARS-CoV-2.
Today, Hoang splits his time between his business and the startup, raising a family of three kids, and diving deep into crypto/Web3.
Read Nicole Neily's Bio
Nicole Neily is the president and founder of Parents Defending Education (PDE), a nonpartisan, nonprofit national organization giving parents the resources and support they need to advocate for their children’s education. Since its launch in March 2021, PDE has broken dozens of education-related stories from coast to coast—including the National School Board Association’s pretextual letter vilifying American parents; filed more than 300 public records requests with districts around the country; submitted eight Office of Civil Rights complaints to the federal Department of Education; helped more than 22,000 people submit comments to the Federal Register; and leveraged the power of the judiciary in two lawsuits—one open case in New York state court, and one federal case in Wellesley, Massachusetts that was settled in February 2022.
Prior to launching PDE, Neily created Speech First, a nationwide membership organization that defends college students’ free speech rights through litigation and other means, filing six federal lawsuits throughout four years against public universities (including both her and her husband’s alma maters). Neily has also worked at the Franklin Center for Government & Public Integrity; the Independent Women’s Forum; and the Cato Institute. She has also worked in the private sector at both a crisis communications firm and a public opinion firm. Neily earned her bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of Illinois, and her master of public policy from the Pepperdine School of Public Policy. She lives in northern Virginia with her husband and two children.
Read Troy Senik's Bio
Shortly after graduating from the Pepperdine School of Public Policy in 2007, Troy Senik joined the White House staff as a speechwriter for President George W. Bush. In subsequent years, his career has taken him to the intersection of public policy, journalism, and education.
As a writer, Senik has been a columnist and member of the editorial board of the Orange County Register, the editor-in-chief of Ricochet, and a contributor to City Journal. His writing has also appeared in publications such as the Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times, and National Affairs.
As a broadcaster, he has hosted a series of popular podcasts covering topics as disparate as constitutional law, military history, immigration, education, domestic policy, and foreign affairs for the Hoover Institution at Stanford University.
As an executive, Senik has been part of the leadership team at the Los Angeles World Affairs Council and the Manhattan Institute for Public Policy, serving as a vice president of the latter.
Today, he is the co-founder of Kite & Key, a digital media channel with videos covering a wide range of public policy topics ranging from economics to science to urban affairs.
In September 2022, Senik released his first book, A Man of Iron: The Turbulent Life and Improbable Presidency of Grover Cleveland, through Simon & Schuster.
Read Radu Oprea's Bio
The master of public policy experience, with its classes, internship, on- and off-campus jobs, and interaction with faculty, staff, and classmates, equipped me with skills and expertise that have shaped Radu Oprea's sense of community development. Without being fully aware at the time, I developed the skills of grant writing and project implementation, while growing a passion for participative democracy and entrepreneurship.
After graduation, Oprea returned to Romania and started using his skills to obtain grants for projects funded by the European Union. Together with public and private partners, he has helped more than 200 start-ups receive seed money for new entrepreneurial endeavors, and has trained more than 2,000 people in entrepreneurship and jobs like babysitting, construction worker, elderly care, trade worker, cooking, IT which have increased their chances for better income.
In the small village of Cudalbi for example, Oprea renovated an old school and transformed it into a community center, providing programs such as after-school care, basic family planning education, a chess club, an autism program, and a foreign languages club. He also helped renovate the local emergency unit and bought medical equipment, while renovating five houses owned by impoverished residents. On the policy side, Oprea's engagement with employers’ associations has generated numerous policy proposals that have shaped the entrepreneurial environment.
He is now running his own firm and nonprofit organization, holding training courses in entrepreneurship, and teaching young people how to obtain seed funding for start-up businesses from public donors. Oprea is looking forward to starting a new project with his wife Delia, in rural tourism development. His goals are to organize summer boot camps for Pepperdine at his location and to prepare his six-year-old son, Patrick, to attend Pepperdine.
Read Hans Zeiger's Bio
Hans Zeiger is president of the Jack Miller Center, a nonpartisan nonprofit dedicated to restore education in America's founding principles and history. Prior to his August 2022 apointment at the center, he was a member of the Pierce County Council in Washington State, serving as one of seven elected leaders in the formulation of policies for a county of more than 921,000 residents and a budget of more than $3 billion.
Zeiger previously served in the Washington State Legislature from 2011 to 2020. In the State House of Representatives, Zeiger took leadership roles in higher education and transportation policy. He gained a reputation as a bipartisan collaborator, being named by the National Institute for Civil Discourse as a co-recipient of the Gabrielle Giffords Award for Civility in State Governance in 2015. In the Senate, he chaired the Senate Early Learning and K–12 Education Committee, co-chaired a task force on poverty reduction, and worked to tackle the homelessness crisis as a ranking member of the Housing Stability and Affordability Committee.
Zeiger led the Chapman Center for Citizen Leadership at the Seattle-based Discovery Institute from 2012 to 2020. He was also a Leadership Fellow of the Henry M. Jackson Foundation and a Rodel Fellow of the Aspen Institute.
From 2012 to 2022, Zeiger served in the Washington Air National Guard. During a deployment in support of Operation ALLIES WELCOME, he served as an operations officer in charge, playing a key leadership role in the resettlement of Afghan refugees. He also worked in the National Guard Coordinating Center during the response to Hurricanes Harvey, Maria, and Irma in 2017.
Zeiger is a trustee of the Washington State Historical Society. His writings on public
policy, history, and civil society have appeared in the Seattle Times, Philadelphia Inquirer, San Francisco Chronicle, Front Porch Republic, Real Clear Policy, Philanthropy Daily, Strong Towns, American Legion magazine, Columbia magazine, and HistoryLink.
Zeiger holds a bachelor’s degree from Hillsdale College and a master’s in public policy
from the Pepperdine School of Public Policy. He undertook additional graduate studies
in political science at Claremont Graduate University. Zeiger and his wife Erin will
be relocating with their two daughters from Washington to Pennsylvania.
Read Kevin McGowan 's Bio
Kevin McGowan serves as the director of the Los Angeles County Office of Emergency Management. Leading an all-hazards emergency management program, McGowan is responsible for countywide emergency management preparedness, planning, coordination, training, response, recovery, and mitigation efforts. During his tenure with Los Angeles County and in previous emergency management positions, McGowan has led preparedness, response, and recovery efforts for multiple presidential major disaster declarations and for numerous natural, technological, and human-caused disasters such as COVID-19, wildland fires, debris flows, severe winter storms, a mass fatality shooting, and hazardous materials events.
A native of Southern California, McGowan holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a master of public policy from the Pepperdine School of Public Policy. McGowan has attended a variety of emergency management educational programs, including FEMA’s National Emergency Management Executive Academy, the Naval Post Graduate School’s Center for Homeland Defense and Security’s Executive Leaders Program, and Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government Leadership in Crises.
Read Eli Steele's Bio
Eli Steele is an award-winning filmmaker who has a passion for uncovering the untold stories in America.
A graduate of Claremont McKenna College and the Pepperdine School of Public Policy, Steele recently collaborated with his father, Shelby Steele, on the documentary, “What Killed Michael Brown?” Initially banned by Amazon, the film eventually premiered at the #1 spot for documentaries on Amazon and remained in the top ten for over five weeks.
Steele’s career highlights include “How Jack Became Black,” “What’s Bugging Seth,” winner of 10 film festivals, and “Katrina,” an MTV Network pilot which won him the Breakthrough Filmmakers Award.
In the last year, Steele produced 15 short documentaries and accompanying articles for Fox News. He also produced more than 100 episodes for the acclaimed Rooftop Revelations series that featured untold and unfiltered stories from the South Side of Chicago.
Steele has written for publications ranging from Los Angeles Times, and Quillette to Commentary Magazine. He currently resides in Sherman Oaks, California, with his two young children.
Read Hattie Mitchell's Bio
Hattie Mitchell is an educator, entrepreneur, and speaker. Over the past 14 years, she has served in multiple roles throughout the education field, ranging from classroom teacher to policymaker. Before the founding of Crete Academy, Mitchell served as the Chief of Staff for the Louisiana Department of Education and interned at the White House Domestic Policy Council under the Obama Administration.
In 2017, Mitchell founded Crete Academy, a nonprofit charter school, serving children in South Los Angeles who are experiencing homelessness and poverty. She has served various roles at the school but currently focuses on fundraising and business development. Recently, Mitchell joined the Pepperdine School of Public Policy as the Visiting Professor of Education Policy. Mitchell consults with various nonprofit organizations and writes in her spare time. Last year, she published her first children’s book.
Mitchell holds a bachelor's in education with a teaching credential from California State University, Los Angeles; a master of public policy from the Pepperdine School of Public Policy; and a doctorate in Educational Leadership from the University of Southern California.
Mitchell lives in Inglewood, California with her husband Brett and four children Bubba, Coco, Nash, and Blair. She will be running for the Inglewood Unified School Board in November 2022.
Read Isaac Hayman's Bio
Isaac J. Hayman served with the Defense Information Systems Agency, supporting the
new Cyber Directorate, where he was assigned to the Joint Regional Security Stacks
team in April 2016. Hayman was appointed as a Presidential Management Fellow in Feb
2014 by the Army CIO/G6 Headquarters at the Pentagon, in Arlington, Virginia. He participated
in a two-year intensive Department of Defense leadership development program that
had a structured curriculum, including broad-based training and development, cross-functional
rotational assignments, and senior leadership mentoring.
Hayman gained skills in IT financial resource management by working with the Planning
Programming Budget Execution system, Management Decision Package (MDEP) execution,
and the Program Objective Memorandum process. Hayman has analyzed MDEPs in a well-defined
discovery process to ensure CIO/G-6 and the Installation (II) Program Evaluation Group
to understand the requirements, risk levels and allocated funding of each MDEP. His
next rotation was with the Operations Analysis Division, at the Center for Army Analysis
in Fort Belvoir, where he led a project developing and designing a complex database
matrix for USAFRICOM Authorities Reference Project. He then served on rotation with
the Office of the Executive Advisor for the Deputy Chief Management Office, Office
of the Secretary of Defense, developing responsibilities for a new Under Secretary
of Defense that will be established in 2017.
Hayman joined the US Army Infantry in 2005 and spent three overseas tours in South Korea and in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. As a Sergeant, his leadership qualities were the standard of Alpha Company, 1-28th Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade, 1st Infantry Division. In 2010, Hayman returned to civilian life, completed his undergraduate degree, enrolled in the master of public policy program at the Pepperdine School of Public Policy (SPP), and studied Arabic and Farsi at the Beverly Hills Lingual Institute. In 2012, he provided in-depth analysis at the Institute of Counter-Terrorism, within the Interdisciplinary Center in Israel. He then spent 2014, 2015, 2016, and 2017 at the Pentagon, supporting several diverse organizations, and exploring National Security and Cyber Security challenges at the highest levels of the Department of Defense.
Hayman has a bachelor of science degree in Business Administration from Upper Iowa University. He also has a master of public policy with a specialization in international relations and state and local government degree from SPP, and a master of strategic cyber operations and information management, from the George Washington University School of Professional Studies. Hayman currently resides in Los Angeles, California.
Read LaToya Butler's Bio
In 2007 LaToya Butler-Jones received her bachelor’s degree from Baylor University. She went on to receive a master’s degree from St. Mary’s University in San Antonio, Texas. Upon graduation, she worked for Baylor University Press as the Exhibits and Marketing Operation Manager overseeing all marketing of published books within the university. After completing a Department of Homeland Security Internship in 2010, she decided that her heart was to serve in the federal government and went on to attend the Pepperdine School of Public Policy. While obtaining her second master’s degree, she took a position in Washington, DC, where she aided in the coordination and implementation of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival program in the Office of Communications within US Citizenship and Immigration Services. Butler-Jones went on to work in External Affairs at the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) where she coordinated high-level disaster communications and response materials for the agency during its steady-state position including White House briefing materials. Throughout hurricane season, Butler-Jones is the primary Technical Specialist Lead interpreting data and analysis of flood mapping and flood-impacted areas during disasters that include flood events. Since 2016, she has provided aid during the past six hurricane seasons and led extensive communications efforts for 122 named storms, including major hurricanes such as Matthew, Maria, and Michael.
Butler-Jones is now a Marketing & Outreach Liaison for the Federal Insurance Directorate Marketing and Outreach Branch. She specializes in marketing and program analysis of the National Federal Insurance Program (NFIP) within the Federal Insurance Mitigation Administration. She has led multiple national-level campaigns and initiatives with contract staff to produce award-winning campaigns on the importance of flood insurance programs. Alongside her marketing team, the NFIP 2021 “Keep Home” campaign received two American Advertising Federation awards. Throughout her career, she remains dedicated to encouraging the FEMA Mission of helping people before, during, and after disasters.
Read Alain Datcher's Bio
Alain Datcher is the executive director of the Los Angeles County Youth Commission; a youth-led advisory body that oversees one of the largest child welfare and juvenile justice systems in the country. Datcher joined LA County with more than 10 years of experience in child welfare and human services, having led child- and youth-centered programs and projects at state and federal levels, including Oregon’s Department of Human Services and the US Department of Health and Human Services.
Datcher’s passion for youth-driven policy advocacy was formed when he entered the foster care system at 11 years old. His work to build and center the voices of young people to be community leaders have led to new parks being built in South LA, reducing gang violence and opening new economic development projects in blighted neighborhoods. In 2020 Datcher founded 54th & Hyde Strategy Group, a consulting firm aimed at providing technology and business strategy to state and local human services agencies.
He holds a master of public policy from the Pepperdine School of Public Policy and earned a bachelor's from Biola University. Datcher has also been an adjunct professor of communication and political science. A native of Los Angeles, Datcher has lived experience with the LA County foster care system. He is an avid cyclist, Lakers and Dodgers fan and enjoys hikes with Auni, his Doberman Pinscher.
Read Ben Peterson's Bio
Ben Peterson is an assistant professor of political science in the department of political science and criminal justice at Abilene Christian University. Peterson earned a bachelor of science in history pre-law at Oklahoma Christian University, a master of public policy at the Pepperdine School of Public Policy, and a PhD in political science at Texas A&M University. As an undergraduate and graduate student, Peterson had the opportunity to study abroad in Europe and the Middle East, and he worked for a year as a program assistant for the Middle East Studies Program, then based near Jerusalem, Israel. Peterson's research and writing interests concentrate on political and constitutional theory, sitting at the intersection of religion, politics, and policy. His academic work focuses on comparative, Islamic, and American political thought, with special attention to competing religious and philosophical foundations and their institutional implications. In public writing, he draws from Christian social and political theory, the broader Western tradition of political thought, and contemporary social science to address questions relevant to social policy. He teaches courses on American government, American political thought, state and local politics in Texas, and research methodology. In free time, Peterson enjoys activities like running and working out, and he is a movie buff. He is a member at the University Church of Christ in Abilene, Texas.
Read Habi Zhang 's Bio
Habi Zhang is a Chinese national who moved to the United States in 2015 when she started her master of public policy at the Pepperdine School of Public Policy. It was with great affection and tremendous gratitude for the school and the program that she graduated in 2017. She started her current doctoral program in political science at Purdue University in 2018. She focuses on totalitarianism, ideology, and the comparison of the Western and Chinese political cultures. In her spare time, she writes political commentaries. Her work is seen in Law & Liberty, the Imaginative Conservative, The American Mind, The American Conservative, the Wall Street Journal, and The Daily Wire, among others.
Zhang is an admirer and staunch defender of American Conservatism which she regards as a tradition—a way of living—not an ideology or philosophy. Her work reflects her adoration for the tradition that in her view is most conducive to human flourishing. She lives with her 8-year-old son Hattie in Lafayette, Indiana. It is living among a local Catholic community that she has for the first time felt a sense of belonging.
Read Jeff Longust's Bio
Jeff Longust graduated from the Pepperdine School of Public Policy (SPP) in 2018, then moved to Washington, DC, shortly after where he joined the world of consulting and political campaigns. He currently works as a Client Strategy Director at Targeted Victory, a top digital firm in DC, where he manages a team consulting for more than 10 federal candidates. During his tenure at SPP, Jeff built a robust policy knowledge base and honed his political communication ability—both are critical skills for excelling in the industry.
Read Brittany Tayloe Kristofferson's Bio
Born in Simi Valley, California, Brittany Kristofferson was raised and graduated high school in Southern California. She graduated cum laude from Pepperdine University in Malibu, California, in 2015, earning her bachelor of arts in Political Science and a Certificate in Dispute Resolution. In 2019, she graduated from a joint-degree program at the Pepperdine Caruso School of Law and the School of Public Policy, earning her Juris Doctor and Master of Public Policy with an emphasis in International Relations and National Security. Kristofferson received her commission to the Judge Advocate General (JAG) Corps of the United States Navy in August 2018.
Currently, Kristofferson works at Defense Service Office Pacific Pearl Harbor as a defense attorney and a Lieutenant in the Navy JAG Corps. She participated as defense trial counsel at various courts-martial, administrative separation boards, and boards of inquiry, receiving commendation as Junior Officer of the Quarter for her work on trial motions, representation of clients while underway on the USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70), and work on policy-level change in Naval Personnel Command processes. Previously, Kristofferson worked at Region Legal Service Office Hawaii, where she spent five months in the Legal Assistance department where she drafted wills and assisted with matters such as landlord-tenant disputes and small claims for military service members, veterans, and their family members. She also spent seven months in the Command Services Department where she advised commanders overseeing administrative and military justice processes and participated in Pacific Fleet Command’s Pacific Fury exercise, which simulated the application of Law of Armed Conflict in the Pacific theater.
In May 2022 Kristofferson will join Region Legal Service Office Southeast Detachment
Pensacola to serve as the Staff Judge Advocate to the Commanders of Naval Air Station
Pensacola, Naval Air Station Whiting Field, and Naval Support Activity in Panama City,
Florida.
In May 2019, Kristofferson married John Kristofferson, whom she met while he was studying
at Caruso School of Law. In her free time, Kristofferson likes to scramble to the
top of Hawaii’s tallest volcanic peaks, cook and bake, kayak, read, and play with
her three dogs.
Read Brigitta Sanchez-O'Brien Barrows' Bio
Brigitta Barrows attended the Pepperdine School of Public Policy (SPP) after her undergraduate thesis, Mi Sangre es Su Sangre, a documentary film on heroin addiction and the public health crisis in Tijuana, Mexico, sparked her desire to move beyond identifying a problem, and instead, work to offer solutions. That desire ultimately led her to SPP. She graduated from SPP in 2020 with specializations in dispute resolution, international relations, and national security. Key areas of interest include education policy, drug policy, and a passion for Middle Eastern affairs. The latter of which took her to Israel for the summer of 2019 where she worked as an International Law & Public Diplomacy Intern with Jerusalem Institute of Justice; a nonprofit dedicated to advancing human rights, defending democracy, and improving the quality of life in Israel and the Middle East. After graduation, she relocated to Nashville, Tennessee, with The Daily Wire, one of America’s fastest-growing conservative media companies and counter-cultural outlets for news, opinion, and entertainment. As their Marketing Operations Manager, she worked directly with The Daily Wire’s CMO and organized all internal operations for the growing marketing department to finish their most successful year yet. Brigitta’s year and a half with The Daily Wire concluded this March with a recent move to Washington, DC, as a marketing contractor. She remains open and excited to pursue any policy opportunities in the future.
Read Kassy Dillon's Bio
Kassy Dillon is a political strategist, commentator, and director of digital engagement at Amb. Nikki Haley’s Stand for America. While attending a liberal women’s college in Massachusetts, she founded Lone Conservative, a group that has given more than 500 conservative students a voice and media experience. She attended the Pepperdine School of Public Policy where she obtained a master of public policy specializing in American politics and international relations. She previously worked at The Daily Wire as a writer, where she also created short documentaries focusing on immigration, homelessness, and feminism. Her work has appeared in the Wall Street Journal, the Washington Examiner, the Hill, Campus Reform, Providence Magazine, and The American Mind.
Read Michael Huling's Bio
Michael Huling grew up in Poway, California, affectionately calling it the "Best City in the World." He attended the University of California, San Diego where he graduated magna cum laude with a bachelor's in political science. He is graduating with a master of public policy specializing in American politics and policy; and state and local policy.
Prior to attending the Pepperdine School of Public Policy (SPP), Huling worked as the communications director for the Republican Party of San Diego County. He made efficient use of his time at SPP, working as a graduate research assistant and Advisory Council member with the Davenport Institute for Public Engagement and Civic Leadership, where he developed and administered certificate programs, collaborated with local government leaders, and wrote articles for PM Magazine, ICMA, ELGL, PublicCEO, and Catalyst. Additionally, he worked as a graduate research assistant for Dr. Ted McAllister and tutored microeconomics for Dr. Robert Sexton. Huling's summer internship was located in Washington, DC, with The American Conservative magazine and was funded through a fellowship with the Intercollegiate Studies Institute.
He plans to work with local governments as an engagement consultant with NBS, while also continuing to work with the Davenport Institute as a project manager.