Santana, chair of Whittier College's Board of Trustees, is also President & CEO of the Weingart Foundation, which partners with Southern California communities and organizations to advance racial, social, and economic justice. He also chairs the Committee for Greater L.A. and, previously, designed Los Angeles' first comprehensive homeless strategy as the city administrative officer.
Speaking with Zócalo/KCRW, Santana discussed the homelessness crisis and L.A., among other topics.
"If I look at the trajectory of my career—really, my adulthood—the one issue that I have consistently worked on is the issue of homelessness," Santana told Zócalo.
A first-generation student and a Bell Gardens native, Santana was inspired to get involved with student government and his community while attending Whittier. He volunteered at a homeless shelter until eventually running the shelter himself by the time he graduated.
"When I was at the county, I was responsible for administering the homeless program and piloted ideas like Housing First, which weren’t really known at the time," Santana said in his talk with Zócalo. "And when I was at the city, I worked on the first strategic plan for the unhoused."
His comprehensive homeless strategy resulted in a $1.2 billion voter-approved housing bond and a doubling of the City’s general fund investment on programs to address homelessness.
Read more of Santana's interview with Zócalo.
Santana has a B.A. in sociology and Latin American studies from Whittier College and a master’s degree in public administration from Harvard University.
