Leadership Program Presenters
USC leadership programs are presented by a combination of USC faculty, faculty from other universities and other experts from across the nation. The leadership programs are individually tailored to meet client curriculum needs and draw on interdisciplinary approaches from public administration, business administration, public policy, marketing, sociology, psychology, and communications. The following is a list of presenters typically used in leadership programs.
Presenters by Topic Area:
- Collaboration and Networks
- Organizational Leadership
- Organizational Behavior and Communication
- Organizational Management
- Ethics
- Specialists
Collaboration and Networks
Robert Biller has played a leading role in shaping higher education policy and management for more than 20 years. He served as Dean of USC's School of Public Administration from 1976 to 1982 and then served in various senior administrative positions within the university, most notably Vice President for External Affairs, Vice President for Undergraduate Affairs and Executive Vice Provost. In 1993, he rejoined the School of Public Administration's faculty.
H. Brinton Milward, Ph.D is McClelland Professor of Public Management, Associate Dean and School Director of the Eller School of Public Administration & Policy at the University of Arizona. His areas of expertise include public management, nonprofit organizations, health and mental health service systems, and interorganizational networks.
Organizational Leadership
Rich Callahan, DPA, is Associate Dean and Director of State Capital and Leadership Programs for the University of Southern California, School of Policy, Planning, and Development. He has earned a master degree and a doctorate in public administration from the University of Southern California. His current research is on the relationship of organizational performance to the design of public agencies
Dina Hidalgo serves with distinction as Director of Personnel for the California State Senate and is recognized as one of the State's leading personnel professionals. Her leadership role has extended through the tenures of Senate President Pro Tempore David Roberti, Bill Lockyer, John Burton and now Don Perata. In addition to writing and implementing the Senate's EEO policies, she manages personnel matters for approximately 1000 employees and the other 39 Senators.
Tim Hodson, Ph.D. is the Executive Director of the Center for California Studies at California State University, Sacramento. He is also a full professor with the Departments of Government and Public Policy and Administration.
Elisabeth Kersten served for over 20 years as Director of California’s Office of Senate Research. In this capacity, she initiated policy initiatives for Senators and provided relevant background material and research for Members and committees of the Senate
John King, a master seminar and program leader, has trained over 7,300 people in community impact projects, and developed more than 300 coaches. While pursuing his lifelong interest in teaching and coaching, John began an in-depth study of the emerging fields of chaos and complexity a combination, which has fueled his transformational leadership.
Sharoni Little, Ph.D., is Assistant Professor of Clinical Management Communication at USC's Marshall School of Business. Her specialties include workplace diversity, ,management and leadership communication, organizational and risk management, intercultural communication, and conflict management.
Dave Logan, Ph.D is Senior Partner of JLS Consulting., a management consulting firm specializing in cultural change, executive coaching, and strategy. He is also a frequent keynote speaker on the topics of emerging patterns of corporate leadership, executive coaching, organizational transformation, and team performance.
Robert Myrtle, D.P.A., holds a joint appointment with USC Davis School of Gerontology. Professor Myrtle’s key research interests are strategic decision making, and organizational and management effectiveness. He is currently a commissioner for the Los Angeles County's Hospital Commission.
Francesca Wright is a consultant who works with public and non-profit agencies to develop policies that foster healthy communities for children and families. She facilitates collaborative learning, planning, policy development and internal program evaluation.
Organizational Behavior and Communication
Jerry Estenson, Ph.D. is a Professor of Organizational Behavior at California State University, Sacramento. He is dedicated to taking his hands-on experience to academics where he has created courses which link theory and action. His current research interests include communication systems used in facilitating organizational change and leadership in rapidly changing environments.
Laree Kiely, Ph.D is CEO of The Kiely Group, offering research, consulting, and executive development design and delivery. She was also a Professor at USC’s Marshall School of Business for 15 years.
Dave Landis is a Nebraska state senator, an award-winning teacher and a skilled negotiator in the public arena. He currently chairs the Revenue Committee for the Nebraska Unicameral.
Organizational Management
Ron Gilbert, Ph.D is an Associate Professor in the College of Business Administration at Florida International University. He has authored or co-authored a dozen books on quality and management, and continues to write articles and chapters on a variety of management and organizational topics.
Eileen Jacobowitz has over 14 years of management consulting experience in a variety of areas of organization development. She is a principal of EJC Consulting, which provides guidance in change management, team building, and other areas.
Larry Liberty has over twenty-five years of experience and advanced academic credentials with special expertise in: Individual Transformation, Organizational Behavior, and Leadership & Management Development. He has personally trained, facilitated, coached and consulted with over 100,000 managers and staff and is the personal coach to many managers and executives.
Carol Ackerson, D.P.A., is currently Senior Associate for Girl Scouts Arizona Cactus-Pine Council. Inc.; her responsibilities include research, program evaluation, systems development and organizational capacity building. She has served in nonprofit management positions for over 30 years, and also works as a consultant for nonprofits with a focus on financial and administrative development.
Nandini Rajagopalan, Ph.D is Professor and Capt. Henry W. Simonsen Chair in Strategic Entrepreneurship at USC's School of Policy, Planning and Development. Her research in strategic management focuses on CEO succession and compensation systems, strategic change, corporate governance and global strategic alliances
Ethics
Terry L. Cooper, PhD is the director of the Civic Engagement Initiative and one of the principal investigators in the Neighborhood Participation Project. He is also the Maria B. Crutcher Professor in Citizenship and Democratic Values in the School of Policy, Planning, and Development. Professor Cooper's research centers on citizen participation and ethics in government.
Chester A. Newland, Ph.D., is a teacher at the University of Southern California, where he is the Duggan Distinguished Professor of Public Administration. He is a fellow and past trustee of the National Academy of Public Administration.
JoAnne Speers serves as executive director for the League’s non-profit research arm, the Institute for Local Self Government. In 1999, JoAnne's efforts were recognized by the State Bar’s Public Law Section, which named JoAnne "Public Lawyer of the Year."
Specialists
Raphael Bostic, Ph.D. joined USC's faculty after spending six years on the staff at the Federal Reserve Board of Governors. He enjoyed a successful tenure at the Fed, having quickly attained the rank of Senior Economist and received a Special Achievement Award in 2000 for his work supporting a Congressional mandate. He is currently conducting research on the ways in which the Community Reinvestment Act has influenced the behavior of lenders and credit markets.
Juliet Musso, Ph.D is Director of the Master of Public Policy Program at USC's School of Policy, Planning and Development. Her areas of expertise include federalism, urban political economy, fiscal policy, community governance, and neighborhood organization.
Dowell Myers is Professor of Urban Planning & Development at USC's School of Policy, Planning and Development. He authored the most widely referenced work on census analysis, Analysis with Local Census Data: Portraits of Change (Academic Press, 1992).
Kevin Starr, Ph.D. is State Librarian Emeritus, and has penned more than a million words on the state of California. His multi-volume work, "Americans and the California Dream" is considered an indispensable reference work for those interested in the history, culture and development of the world's sixth-largest economy.
Jonathan Brown, DPA, has been the President of the Association of Independent California Colleges and Universities since 1975. In this capacity, he develops and implements public policy strategies in the Legislature and state agencies for Association of 76 non-profit colleges and universities. In addition to his work for USC, he also teaches courses at Universidad Anáhuac de Xalapa in Xalapa Mexico
Dan Mazmanian, Ph.D, holds the Bedrosian Chair in Governance at USC's School of Policy, Planning & Development. He previously served as SPPD's C. Erwin and Ione L. Piper Dean and Professor, and is a leading scholar in the fields of environmental policy and policy implementation.