Karla was born in Nicaragua, raised in Los Angeles since she was eight years old, and studied abroad in Mexico. She is an experienced bilingual leader in the public and private sector. This diverse intersection of public and private industry experience has allowed her to have the ability to work effectively with multidisciplinary professionals. The guiding principle that drives and motivates Karla as a professional is her ability to empower, impact and influence individuals and organizations toward a common good. Her life mission is to contribute to a more humane world by collaborating with visionary leaders, developing and implementing transformative ideas, strengthening organizations, and being of service to our communities. One of her proudest collaboration was as an undergraduate student at UCLA. Karla was the first Director of Centro Coatlicue for MEChA Calmecac. She was part of the founding of the student-initiated, student-run, and student-funded retention program created in response to the problem of high attrition rates for Latinx UCLA undergraduate students. The program still exists at UCLA. In the public sector, she worked as an Assistant Manager at the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco’s Los Angeles branch, Field Director in the California State Controller’s Executive Office, and an Analyst at the City of Santa Monica’s Finance Department. Since 2010, she has management experience in nonprofit organizations such as the California Community Foundation, Nonprofit Finance Fund, Board Treasurer, Interim CEO and COO for Families In Schools, and most recently as Interim CEO of Casa Treatment Center. In 2013, she launched her financial and strategic management consulting work under SOS Strategies partnering with nonprofit organizations interested in strengthening their organizational workflow and effectiveness in the areas of business planning, leadership transition, restructuring, governance, revenue model realignment, and financial literacy and training. Karla’s professional experience is enhanced through her engagement as a volunteer with several community organizations. She is also a board member of the United States Selective Service System, Grand Performances, and continues to be involved in several community projects. Karla earned a Master of Arts Degree in Public Policy from the Claremont Graduate University and a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science with an emphasis in international relations and specialization in Chicana/Chicano Studies from the University of California, Los Angeles. Ms. Salazar also completed the Executive Program in General Management at the University of California, Los Angeles, John E. Anderson School of Management. When she is not working, she enjoys spending time with her son and family, hiking, attending outdoor concerts at Grand Performances, and traveling.