Russell Castañeda-Calleros, who is Director of Government and Community Relations at Rio Hondo College, will discuss the “California’s 2016 Ballot Measures” at the Fall Conference of the Sierra Mar District of Business and Professional Women on Saturday, October 22, 2016 at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, 2009 S. Garfield Avenue, Monterey Park. Registration is at 9:00 a.m. with the meeting starting at 9:15 a.m. The conference and luncheon is open to all interested people. There is no registration cost for guests, but the cost of the luncheon is $15. Call or E-mail Marie Clifton (626) 287-5306 or mclifton40@msm.com to make a reservation or for questions.

Castañeda-Calleros, who will be the afternoon speaker, has been at Rio Hondo since 2005. From 2001-04 he was Director of Community Services at Loyola Marymount University Campus Ministry, and from 1998-2000 he was Director of Special Projects at District Office of Congressman Xavier Becerra. He has a B.A. from Stanford University and an M.P.P. from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. He is a member of the Board of the Whittier Union High School District and has volunteered his time for Whittier First Day Coalition, the Whittier Cultural Arts Commission, the PUENTE program and the Hispanic Outreach Taskforce.

The morning speaker will be Teresa Dreyfus, Superintendent/President of Rio Hondo Community College. The topic of her talk will be “My Professional Journey.” Dreyfus was named the 9th President of Rio Hondo Community College in 2013. She had served as interim President from June 2012. Previously, she was Vice-President for Finance and Business at the college. She has been on the staff at the college since 1987. A native of Taiwan, Dreyfus is a graduate of the University of Chinese Culture. She earned an M.B.A. at the University of La Verne in La Verne, California.

The luncheon speaker will be María-Itzel Torres Siegrist, who will speak on “My Trail from Fine Arts to Law School.” Torres Siegrist is El Monte BPW’s Young Professional for 2016-17.

The mission of Sierra Mar District of the California Federation of Business and Professional Women is “to promote and support equity for working women in all phases of their lives and to promote personal empowerment and professional development.” Our objectives are “to advocate on state and national legislative issues of importance to women, to promote personal and professional development for women and to foster connections among women to promote BPW and its members.” Membership is open to both men and women who support this mission and these objectives. Those who are members also belong to EPW-USA and BPW International. For more information about membership contact Mavis Hansen (626) 441-6231 or mavishansen6@gmail.com.