Board and Staff Members

OUR BOARD

Ben Allen - SM-MUSD School Board Member, Director of SPARK LA

Brian Selmo – CFA, Vice President, First Pacific Advisors

Jakgeem Mays (Secretary) – Former Entertainment Industry Producer, JD Candidate 2010

Joyce Rushing – Assistant Principal Morningside High School, Director of MACS, Inc.

Dr. LaTonya Rease-Miles – Director, Learning Resource Center, LMU

Dr. Nancy Greenstein - Board of Trustees, Santa Monica College

Dr. Omai Garner (Treasurer)– Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Pathology, UCLA

Director 

D'Artagnan Scorza entered UCLA in 1998 as a graduate of Morningside High School in Inglewood, CA.  His studies were interrupted immediately following the events of September Eleventh, when he decided to join the U.S. Navy and became an Iraq-War Veteran. In April of 2006, he returned to UCLA to resume his studies and became a McNair Undergraduate Research Scholar where he developed curriculum for culturally relevant for African-American male youth and worked to reduce recidivism, imprisonment and death rates in the community.  He was appointed as a representative on the Chancellor's Enrollment Advisory Committee, served as a participant in the Alliance for Equal Opportunity in Education (AEOE) and the UCLA Task Force on African American Enrollment which helped to increase enrollment from 96 African-American students in 2006 to 213 African-American students in 2007.

D'Artagnan is a UCLA graduate with a B.A. in the Study of Religion from and also has a B.S. in Liberal Studies with an emphasis on Business Management from National University.  Currently a Ph.D. student in the Department of Education at UCLA, he established the Black Male Youth Academy (BMYA) at Morningside High School, a literacy program designed as a localized replicable model in order to provide education which supports positive identity development, increases academic achievement and expands opportunities for civic engagement.

D'Artagnan served a two-year term as a UC Regent from 2007 through 2009.  As a member of the Board of Regents, University of California, he participated in the governance of the University.  He was an outspoken advocate for equity and inclusion, affordability and access for future generations of students.  His emphasis on clean energy and sustainable practices supported the University's policies on being climate friendly.  He was also a strong supporter of academic preparation programs for grade levels P-16 and believes they help create a level playing field.  He was a 2010 Education Pioneer Fellow and worked at the California Community Foundation (CCF) supporting their scholarships program area.