Department of Neighborhood Empowerment
Newsletter

January 4, 2006

Re: INVENTORY PROCESS.  NEW STAFF APPOINTED.

INVENTORY PROCESS OFFERED

Neighborhood Councils have asked for, and we are happy to provide assistance in how each Neighborhood Council can keep track of its equipment, furniture, and other valuable inventory in an easy and uniform way. Especially when changes of leadership occur, it increases the likelihood that equipment will be misplaced.

We are in the process of mailing to each Neighborhood Council president an inventory tracking system that is based on the one that is used by city departments. We will be providing a list of inventory items of which we are aware, inventory tags for each item, and an inventory certification form for us to keep. In this way, your Neighborhood Council and we will be ready when the auditors come knocking.

NEW STAFF APPOINTED

Lisa Sarno is the new Assistant General Manager.

She most recently was the Deputy Chief of Staff for Councilman Antonio Villaraigosa, and then was named the official Caretaker of the office while the office was without a councilmember.

Before that, she worked for Councilmember Jackie Goldberg, was the Public Affairs Manager for the Dodgers (under O'Malley), the field director for Assemblyman (Speaker) Antonio Villaraigosa, the Executive Director of a Community College District foundation, and she ran clinics and support groups for the Muscular Dystrophy Association.

Lisette Covarrubias is our new Project Coordinator.

She came to us a project/legal assistant at the Center for Human Rights and Constitutional Law. She worked at AFTRA, the Mexican Consulate (as a political analyst), the UCLA Urban Planning Department, and the UCLA Labor Center. She collects Masters degrees for a hobby (Urban Planning and Latin American Studies).

Pat Berni will be a new Project Coordinator next week.

She started the Volunteer Bureau in the mayor's office under Mayor Bradley, and directed it though the Riordan administration. This involved managing several volunteer-based programs, including Neighborhood Emergency Training, Neighborhood Code Enforcement Program, and the Crisis Response Team. During that time, the city's volunteer base expanded from 10,000 to 30,000 persons. Has been working as a freelance business consultant who has worked with small businesses to overcome negative workflow and staff issues, and to revamp work plans, staff communications, and office manuals. She is a skilled photographer, and has written grants, and developed unique database programs.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Greg Nelson
gnelson@mailbox.lacity.org

866 / LA HELPS
213 / 485-1360
213 / 485-4608 fax
done@mailbox.lacity.org email
www.lacityneighborhoods.com website