Three notable Portland civic leaders from the fields of law enforcement, education and public health will share the podium at this year’s PWA Expo Breakfast on Tuesday, March 13, 2018, at the Oregon Convention Center.
Portland Police Chief Danielle Outlaw, Portland Public Schools Superintendent Guadalupe Guerrero and Dr. David Bangsberg, founding dean of the OHSU-PSU School of Public Health, are confirmed speakers at the event on the morning of the NW Youth Careers Expo.
The annual breakfast attracts about 400 business leaders and educators, as well as some inspiring high school students from across the city who are developing their college-and-career aspirations.
The trio of speakers may draw on their personal experiences in delivering a message of support for young people trying to find their way to a rewarding career.
Danielle Outlaw
Outlaw became the city’s top cop in October 2017 after an 18-year career with the Oakland (Calif.) Police Department, where she rose through the ranks from Explorer to patrol officer to deputy chief. She is the first African American woman to serve as chief in Portland, leading a 950-member force, and only the third chief hired from outside the city.
Chief Outlaw credits a formative career-learning experience as having a profound influence on her career path. As a 14-year-old, she went on a two-week “career exploration” that allowed her to interact with officers outside their uniforms and also go along on ridealongs.
She became an Oakland police explorer and then a paid cadet as a college senior. She was hired full-time in 1999 and now speaks on many critical topics in policing, including community relationships, race, use of force, and women in law enforcement. (Click here for her official bio and here for a recent profile in The Oregonian.)
Guadalupe Guerrero
Guerrero, also from northern California, was appointed superintendent of Oregon’s largest school district in August 2017. He previously served as a deputy superintendent in the San Francisco Unified School District, overseeing instruction, innovation and social justice. He is a classically trained violinist, a former school principal and a former bilingual elementary school teacher
Guerrero is the district’s first Latino superintendent, overseeing 49,000 students in 78 schools and 7,600 employees. The district has expanded CTE programs and community-based career exploration as part of a strategic effort to raise graduation rates and prepare more students for college-and-career success.
Guerrero’s own path began as an English Language Learner. A music teacher in elementary school sparked his interest in music education. He participated in sports and student government as a teenager and worked as a camp counselor as a college student, experiences that ignited a passion for public education and community service. (Click here for his official bio.)
David Bangsberg
Dr. Bangsberg heads the joint School of Public Health at Oregon Health & Science University and Portland State University. A Portland native, he began his healthcare studies in neuroscience, but his career path took a turn when he realized he wanted to focus on public health and community impact.
Working in Harlem and San Francisco, his early research centered on poverty, mental illness, substance use, HIV and homelessness, infectious disease and AIDS prevention. He later became director of global health at Massachusetts General Hospital, the largest teaching hospital of the Harvard Medical School, overseeing programs in medical technology innovation, global disaster response and cancer care, among others.
As a global health innovator now tackling problems closer to home, Bangsberg leads a staff of more than 150 faculty at OHSU and Portland State. He was appointed the founding dean in September 2016. (Click here for his official bio.)
Get involved
Tables and tickets are still available for the student-centered PWA Breakfast celebration, but they are going fast. Last year’s event sold out.
Our early Breakfast Sponsors include Tonkon Torp, Providence Health Plan and Barran Liebman. Click here to learn more and register, and please contact Sherri Nee (sherri@portlandworkforcealliance.org) with questions.
Careers Expo HQ
- View early exhibitors and sponsors
- See a video and photo gallery from the 2017 Expo
- See our teacher resources
- See our exhibitor tips
Thank you to our early sponsors of the 2018 NW Youth Careers Expo!
