Week six with CLA was packed with people, places, and experiences. We began our Monday at the Arcadia Police Department, where Captain Dan Crowther generously volunteered his time giving us a tour of the department and a detailed description of everything that goes on between the city of Arcadia and its police division. We were given a tour of essentially every wing of the department building, and Captain Crowther answered our many questions quite thoughtfully. As a cohort, we engaged him in many fruitful conversations about public policy in the city of Arcadia and how its police department is always improving upon, adapting, and adjusting to it. Whether we were speaking about the Black Lives Matter movement, gun control, the recent tragedy in Monterey Park, or otherwise, Captain Crowther gave intelligent and knowledgeable answers about his department’s role in all of it. It definitely made me feel better about Arcadia’s policy division, a city I personally spend a considerable amount of time in. I’m glad we got the opportunity to branch into law enforcement as a topic as well, which is something we haven’t yet spent a lot of time discussing thus far.
Captain Crowther from the Arcadia Police Department giving a tour to CLA Interns
After talking with Captain Crowther and the Arcadia Police, we got the chance to meet Paul Cheng, Mayor of Arcadia. Mayor Cheng spoke with us about the importance of bipartisanship and political leadership, emphasizing the need for more politicians and elected officials to engage in discussions that truly reflect the perspectives of their constituents. Meeting Mayor Cheng was a great chance to once again pick the brain of an elected official from a new area, observing how a given environment determines the voice of its political leaders. Again, as someone who spends time in the city of Arcadia and has family members who live there, I’m glad I got the chance to learn so much about the people who are responsible for them.
Following our time in Arcadia, the cohort moved on to the City of Alhambra where we met with City Councilmember Jeffrey Maloney. Councilmember Maloney was yet another very intelligent and thoughtful public servant who was able to share advice about navigating educational and career paths, rising through the ranks of local government, and serving as mayor of a city. He gave us a tour of Alhambra’s City Hall, a unique building very much catered to the specific needs of its constituents, featuring prominent parks and recreation, city planning, and infrastructure departments. Councilmember Maloney was undoubtedly one of the most genuine members of the CAUSE network that we have had the pleasure of meeting so far, and I look forward to staying in contact with him and the City of Alhambra moving forward.
Finally, we finished the week on Friday in Pico Rivera at the offices of SoCal Gas. With vice president of customer relations Don Widjaja and many other members of the SoCal Gas CAPE community, we learned about the intersections between private sector players like SoCal Gas and public policy in Los Angeles. This was a great chance to experience more of the internal workings of large companies in the context of policy, law, and climate change, while also learning about where my gas comes from as a resident of Southern California!
The views and opinions expressed in this publication are those of the author and do not reflect the views or positions of CAUSE or the CAUSE network.
Written by Liam Chia, Leadership Academy 2023 Intern.
The CAUSE Leadership Academy (CLA) for students is a nine-week, paid, internship program that prepares college undergraduates to lead and advocate for the Asian Pacific Islander community on their campuses and beyond.