While elected officials are a significant part of the legislative process, advocacy organizations help determine what issues are important to create policy on. Join this panel of LBJ alumni working in advocacy roles to learn more about this component of lawmaking. Lunch will be provided!
Location: LBJ School of Public Affairs, B10 (basement classroom by Bass Lecture Hall)
Panelists
Awais Azhar, MPAff
Executive Director, HousingWorks Austin
Awais has been a respected leader in the Austin community for more than a decade in various capacities, including supporting multiple Austin Affordable Housing bond programs, Project Connect’s anti-displacement strategies, the Affordability Unlocked program, and the Home Options for Mobility and Equity (“HOME”) Initiative. He is a member of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas Community Advisory Council, has been chair of the Project Connect Community Advisory Committee, and is in his fourth term on the City of Austin Planning Commission, for which he was recently recognized as the Hardest-Working Planning Commissioner by the Austin Chronicle. Awais is also a Community and Regional Planning Ph.D. Candidate at The University of Texas at Austin School of Architecture.
Maritza Kelley, MPAff, MA in Latin American Studies
Director of External Affairs, PFM Financial Advisors
Maritza brings over fifteen years of multi-sector experience at the local, state and federal levels of government to her role as director of external affairs at PFM. In this capacity she serves as an engagement manager across the organization to build and maintain strategic relationships and identify opportunities to improve external impact.
Maritza began her career in public finance, working at the Texas Legislature in school finance. Following her time at the Texas state capitol, she moved to Washington, DC where she created and managed external affairs initiatives for corporations and NGOs including Samsung, Verizon, AARP and the National Education Association. She currently serves on the Greater Austin Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and has previous experience working with Pay Our Interns and AVANCE, Inc.
Peggy Kemp, MPAff
Operations and Strategic Initiatives Specialist, Meadows Mental Health Policy Institute
An expert in the field of child and family policy, Peggy has contributed to several initiatives at the Meadows Institute, including the mental and behavioral health roadmap and toolkit for schools and leading a team to complete the Region 18 Education Service Center mental health strategic framework. She also completed the brain story certification, served as a facilitator with two groups in central Texas, and supported schools in the Texas Coordinated Access to Recover Emotionally in Schools (CARES) and CARES Training programs The American Red Cross funded. Additionally, she was instrumental in the roll out of education learning communities in Dallas, Tarrant, and Northeast Texas and aided in the completion of school-based assessments in Nueces, El Paso, and Hays counties.
In her current role at the Meadows Institute, Peggy is actively assisting Institute team members in researching, implementing, and utilizing technology and platforms by identifying and championing best practices. She also serves on the Institute’s health equity workgroup and is a member of the women and girls subcommittee.