Arlon joined T.R.U.S.T. South LA in 2019.  She has 11 years experience as an Executive Assistant to the CIO in one of the largest banks in the Philippines.  She has a degree in Business Management.  She is part of the team that handles the day to day operation of T.R.U.S.T. office, providing clerical support, updating member files, social media and website management.

Since coming to the organization in 2014, I’ve participated and supported TRUST’s events, programs, and staff. I think this work around land and housing is the most important work I could do as a Leader, and I am very happy to be an active member of TRUST South LA. I feel the most proud when I am inviting new community members to our organization, leading and helping facilitate our meetings and events, and giving input on our programs and work. I’m very proud to represent TRUST South LA in all spaces I am a part of.

Ms. McNeill has been involved in community building work for over twenty years, working with community-based organizations and coalitions, which have each approached the problem of wealth and resource inequality through a range of strategies.

As principal of Sandra McNeill Consulting, Ms. McNeill is committed to enhancing the capacity of non-profit organizations and community-based initiatives by offering her experience, skills and services in policy and program development, community education and technical capacity-building, and strategic planning for organizations and campaigns.  From 2007 to 2017, Ms. McNeill served as the Executive Director of T.R.U.S.T. South LA (Tenemos que Reclamar y Unidos Salvar la Tierra-South LA). Her previous work also includes co-founding Strategic Actions for a Just Economy (SAJE), an economic justice organizing group, and coordinating the Figueroa Corridor Coalition for Economic Justice (predecessor to UNIDAD) and the Share the Wealth coalition

Ms. McNeill holds a Master’s Degree in Urban Planning, with a concentration in Community Economic Development, from University of California-Los Angeles (UCLA); and currently instructs the Community Collaborative program at UCLA’s Luskin School of Public Affairs. She also holds a Bachelor of the Arts in Political Science, with a minor in Spanish Language and Literature, from Williams College in Massachusetts.

Aishah was border town raised with the privilege of growing up across Tijuana, B.C., and San Ysidro, CA. Aishah has dedicated their time and service to understanding health as a social effect, health as an institution, and abolition as a process of regeneration towards community-led systems change. While receiving her B.A. in Public Health with a minor in Public Policy at UC Berkeley, they served local community-based organizations centered on Environmental Justice coordinating service events and developing an EJ curriculum decentering learning from the academy and centering systems change by impacted communities. After graduating, Aishah also served capacity-building initiatives for community-based organizations, public health departments, and philanthropic institutions across issues including, strategic communications. Aishah has also invested in skills for building therapeutic relationships in reflection that individual relationships and system dynamics are an interplay of each other. With Somos Familia, Aishah facilitated learning for friends and families with queer loved ones to have humility for LGBTQIA+ issues and be conscious allies. While pursuing her dual Master’s in Social Welfare and Public Policy at UCLA, Aishah has also counseled high school students in Los Angeles through the COVID-19 pandemic as an interning clinical therapist as well as accompanying incarcerated men completing their community-based treatment programs with Project 180. Aishah is now an associate project manager with TRUST South LA supporting initiatives to stabilize South LA neighborhoods by expanding access to permanently affordable housing and shared ownership models for our South LA residents.

Gabriela Nunez was born and raised in South Los Angeles. She has been volunteering weekly at T.R.U.S.T. South LA since summer 2017. At T.R.U.S.T. South LA, Gabriela has been involved in projects like the “Welcome to Our Neighborhood Dream” Slauson & Wall community event and their resident-led Sustainable and Stable Slauson plan. In addition, she has worked in T.R.U.S.T.’s office; organizing files, drafting and publishing bilingual social media posts, drafting letters, and assisting with many other clerical needs. She is earning her Bachelor’s degree from California State University, Los Ángeles, majoring in Political Science and minoring in Chicana/o Latina/o Studies.

Jessica was born and raised in South Central Los Angeles. Inspired by hearing her father’s experiences growing up in South Central as an immigrant during the crack-cocaine epidemic, she pursued her BA in Politics from the University of San Francisco. After graduating, she began her professional career as an organizer in South Central LA organizing around criminal justice policies, policies in education involving equitable funding, and gun reform. She’s worked towards building thriving and sustainable communities, rooted in justice and equity through systems change work, by implementing a community school model in LAUSD schools and coordinating the South Los Angeles Building Healthy Communities collaborative while enrolled in UCLA’s Masters in Urban and Regional Planning Program. She graduates in June 2022 and looks forward to working with TRUST South LA as their Director of Policy to combat displacement, develop innovative strategies to create community-controlled development, and build power among residents in South LA.

Kiara Phillips is a native Angeleno that aspires to incorporate sustainable and affordable infrastructure into South Los Angeles that does not displace current low-income residents. Her current role at T.R.U.S.T. is as the Environmental Justice Coordinator. She collaborates with multiple organizations on projects related to clean transportation, water rights, mobility justice, and green space justice among others.

While completing her Bachelor’s degree in Environmental Science at UCLA, Kiara participated in several efforts to create environmental justice on and off campus. As President of the student-led organization UCLA Rising Over Oppression Through Science (UCLA ROOTS), she participated in a number of research projects related to the environmental inequalities across Los Angeles County. Additionally, she served as an intern at CALPIRG, working on their End Oil Drilling Campaign. She also served as an intern with the Los Angeles Regional Collaborative (LARC) working on their Extreme Heat Campaign, bridging the gap between research and the public about the dangers of extreme heat. She also interned at the Theodore Payne Foundation, working to increase enrollment in their California Native Plant Landscaper Certificate Program. Also, Kiara was a Ronald McNair Research Scholar, where she completed a thesis on disparities in lead in drinking water within the Los Angeles Unified School District. Additionally, she received the Outstanding Service Award from the Institute of the Environment and Sustainability at UCLA in 2023.

Further, Kiara is about to embark on the journey to complete a Master’s degree in Environmental Health Sciences from the Fielding School of Public Health. There, she plans to continue researching environmental disparities in Los Angeles County to create change by supporting community-based organizations and policymakers to facilitate the creation of equitable and critical environmental justice in South Los Angeles

Neyda Quintanilla was born and raised in South Los Angeles, having experienced racial and social injustice growing up influenced her decision to follow a career in politics and law. The housing crisis of 2010 personally impacted her life, which led to her volunteering with the Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment (ACCE), where she learned about the speculative housing market, and the effects of predatory lending and banking. During her time at ACCE, she participated in direct action organizing strategies that helped bring attention to the housing crisis and inequality experienced by South Los Angeles residents. Ms. Quintanilla has professional experience as an Immigration Paralegal and retail manager.

In 2012, Ms.Quintanilla earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science from California State University, Northridge. Ultimately in 2016, her focus on law led her to obtain a Paralegal Studies Certificate. She brings a diverse background and experience that led her to become an Emergency Rental Assistance Program (ERAP) Manager at T.R.U.S.T South LA. Ms.Quintanilla and her ERAP teammates have helped award 2.5 million dollars to South LA tenants impacted by Covid-19. In addition, she has helped community members access and navigate legal resources to address illegal evictions. Ms. Quintanilla is invested in seeing South Los Angeles residents thrive to reach self-determination.

In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with her loved ones at concerts, amusement parks and exploring new places that Los Angeles offers.