Wonky Wednesday is a program designed specifically for folks who want to dig deeper to understand cultural policy, state budget, and legislative processes. Join us on the second Wednesday of every month at noon for a lunchtime, casual meeting with our CEO, Julie Baker, and special guests throughout the summer, including staff, board members, legislators, lobbyists, and issue area experts. Got a question on how to advocate effectively locally or a problem you think legislation should solve, or just want to ask what’s up with funding for the arts in California, this is your chance to ask and engage monthly in arts advocacy. Recordings will also be made available.
Join us for a Wonky Wednesday lunchtime hour on June 12, 2024 from 12 - 1:30 pm.
As the CEO of California’s statewide arts advocacy organizations since 2018, Julie has worked to increase the legislative clout and visibility of the arts and culture communities by building coalition across the for and non-profit sectors of California’s creative industries, producing a month-long arts awareness and advocacy campaign every April, and fighting for resources and legislation to serve and protect artists and cultural workers. She was recently appointed to the Board of the Western States Arts Federation (WESTAF).
Julie has served as the California State Captain to Americans for the Arts’ National Arts Action Summit, as the recent co-chair of the Western Arts Advocacy network for WESTAF, as well as co-chair of the creative economy working group at the CA Economic Summit. She is the Board President of California Heritage: Indigenous Research Project and was elected to the Nevada County school board in November of 2020. She is also an appointed member of the State of California’s 2022 Entrepreneurship & Economic Mobility Task Force (EEMTF) and the Creative Economy Working Group under the California Arts Council. Julie is the recipient of the 2021 Americans for the Arts Alene Valkanas State Arts Advocacy Award that honors an individual at the state level whose arts advocacy efforts have dramatically affected the political landscape.
Over the years, Julie has owned a fine arts gallery for emerging artists, co-founded Flow art fair — a satellite to Art Basel Miami Beach — opened a consulting firm, Julie Baker Projects, and curated an annual music series at the Crocker Art Museum. Earlier in her career she was President of her family’s arts marketing firm in New York City and worked at Christie’s Auction house before moving to California in 1998. Julie also served for eight years as the Executive Director of The Center for the Arts, a non-profit performing arts venue and California WorldFest, an annual music and camping festival located in Grass Valley, CA. She is also the recipient of the inaugural Peggy Levine Arts & Community Service Award from the Nevada County Arts Council.
Priscilla Quiroz joined the Shaw Yoder Antwih Schmelzer & Lange team as a Legislative Advocate in 2019 following four years of service in the California State Legislature.
Prior to joining the firm, Priscilla worked as a Legislative Aide in State Senator Nancy Skinner’s’ office, serving as the principal staff member assigned to the Senate Committee on Environmental Quality and the Joint Climate Change Committee. In this role, Priscilla engaged with stakeholders, provided research support, and advised on policies ranging from clean mileage standards for Transportation Network Companies, to drafting and passing legislation related to clean vehicle fleets. In addition to her policy work, Priscilla also led the office’s internship program, handling all hiring, training and management.
Previously, Priscilla served as an assistant to Assembly Speakers Anthony Rendon and Toni Atkins, supporting administrative and other duties. Priscilla received her Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of California, Davis.
Eduardo Martinez has spent nearly 20 years in California politics and public service, bringing a passion and strategic thinking to various roles in and around the Capitol. He currently serves as a Legislative Advisor for the Government Practice team in the Manatt Sacramento Office. In this role, he advises clients on a wide range of issues including health care, labor and employment, and the state budget.
Prior to joining Manatt, Eduardo served as the Legislative Director and Chief Lobbyist of the California Labor Federation. In that capacity, he has lead a coalition of affiliated labor unions on a wide range of policy priorities, including two successful efforts to pass broad-based COVID-19 supplemental paid sick leave, protections for workers subject to labor disputes, and legislation to combat wage theft.
Eduardo has significant trade association experience, having worked for the California Medical Association from 2013 to 2016. As an Associate Director for Government Relations, Eduardo was the lead lobbyist on budget-related matters, with particular focus on increasing California’s poor Medi-Cal provider reimbursement rates. In 2016, Eduardo worked with a coalition of providers to restore cuts to provider rates and secured state dollars for graduate medical education cuts.
