Shawn Landres

Recent Major Appointments

City of Santa Monica Planning Commission – Commissioner & Past Chair
2018-present

  • Chair (2020-2021)
  • Vice Chair (2019-2020)
  • Member, Economic Recovery Task Force: Co-Lead, Philanthropy Working Group; Member, Communications & Outreach, Job Training & Local Hire, and Community & Economic Development Working Groups (2020-)
  • Member, Housing Stability Technical Working Group (2020-2021)
  • Member, Promenade 3.0 Task Force (2019)

UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs – Senior Fellow
2015-present

  • Civil Society Fellow (2015-16)

Los Angeles County Quality and Productivity Commission – Commissioner & Chair Emeritus
2013-present

  • Commission Chair (2017-2019), Immediate Past Chair (2020-2021), Chair Emeritus (2022-)
  • Chair, Strategic Learning Committee (2023-); Chair, Productivity & Quality Awards Committee (2022); Chair, Productivity Investment Board (2016, 2020; Vice Chair, 2017-2019); Chair, Strategic Foresight Working Group (2015); Co-Liaison, Quality & Productivity Managers Network (2014-15)
  • Engagement Working Group Lead, ProsperLA: Gathering Ideas to Rebuild our Economy (Board of Supervisors COVID recovery
    initiative, 2020- )
  • Member, ad hoc Procurement Committee (2021-) 
  • Member, ad hoc Board Report Working Group: “Digital by Default”: Leveraging Software as a Service for Accessibility and Impact (2015)

Jumpstart (Jewish Jumpstart / Jumpstart Labs) – Co-founder & Co-Chair, Board of Directors
2008-present

  • CEO & Director of Research (2008-2015); Senior Fellow & Co-Chair, Board of Directors (2015-)

University of California, Santa Barbara
2002-2010

  • Program Director, Project Co-Director, Academic Relations Coordinator, U.S. State Department-UCSB Study of the United States Institute on “Religion in the United States: Pluralism & Public Presence”

Synagogue 3000
2005-2008

  • Director of Research

American Jewish University (formerly known as University of Judaism)
2002-2005

  • Research Fellow, Sigi Ziering Institute
  • Lecturer, Department of Jewish and Western Civilization

Matej Bel University Banská Bystrica, Slovak Republic
1998-1999

  • Research fellow and faculty member, Institute of Social and Cultural Studies, Faculty of Humanitie

Recent Advisory & Community Leader Positions

Jewish Council for Public Affairs
2023-present

  • Member, Board of Directors

LA vs. Hate (County of Los Angeles Human Relations Commission)
2022-present

  • Co-chair, United Against Hate Week 2022
  • Co-chair, Strategic Partnership Work Group (2022-)

Jewish Public Affairs Committee of California
2022-present

  • Member, Board of Directors

UA Support Teams (UAST) – Founder & Lead
2022-present

Human Relations Council (HRC) Santa Monica Bay Area
2016-present

  • Member, Board of Directors

City of Santa Monica
2015-present

  • Commissioner & Chair (2015-2018), Social Services Commission
  • Chair, Innovation Technology Task Force, Santa Monica Public Library; co-author, ITTF Strategic Planning Recommendations (2015)

Southern California Grantmakers

2015-present

  • Member, Public Policy Committee (2015-)
  • Member, Public Policy Conference Advisory Committee (2016-)

Jewish Federation of Greater Los Angeles
2013-present

  • Organizing Team Lead, CIVruta (2019- )
  • Designer & Facilitator, Civic Engagement Seminar (2015)
  • Member, ChangeMaker Challenge Advisory Board (2015- )
  • Member, New Leaders Project Steering Committee (2013-2018),

Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District
2013-2023

  • Member, Financial Oversight Committee (2017-23)
  • Member, Grant School Site Council (2013-17)

Future of Cities: Leading in LA – Senior Advisor
2015-2018

  • Facilitator, Leading in LA Summit (2015)

Association for the Social Scientific Study of Jewry
1996-2018

  • Member, Applied Religious Studies Committee (2015-2019)
  • Chair, Civic Engagement Task Force (2014)
  • Member, Program Committee (2011-14)
  • Co-Chair, Anthropology of Religion Group (2004-10)
  • Co-chair, Religion in Central and Eastern Europe Consultation (1998-2004)
  • Student Member, Board of Directors, AAR Western Region (1996)

Association for the Social Scientific Study of Jewry
2013-15

  • Member, Board of Directors (2013-15)
  • Chair, Management & Audit Committee (2015)

Liberty Hill Foundation
2013-present

  • Member, Changemaker Committe (2019- )
  • Member, Advisory Council (2013-2019)

Spark Neuro, Hub Connective, TherOzone, Tala, The Mother Company,
2011-present

  • Former non-executive manager (Hub Connective, Spark Neuro)
  • Advisor (TherOzone, Tala, The Mother Company)

Nexus (Global Youth Summit on Philanthropy & Social Entrepreneurship)
2012-present

  • Advisor; Co-Convenor, Nexus C2 (Cities+Civic) Lab

Bill, Hillary, and Chelsea Clinton Foundation
2013-14

  • Charter Co-Chair at-large, Millennium Network Leadership Council

Keshet/Jewish Mosaic (research, training, community building, and advocacy for LGBT dignity & inclusion)
2006-12

  • Member, Keshet Board of Directors (post-merger
  • Chair, Jewish Mosaic Advisory Board (pre-merger)

Education

University of California, Santa Barbara 2013
  • Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Religious Studies
University of Oxford 1997
  • Master of Studies (MSt, with Distinction), Social Anthropology
University of California, Santa Barbara 1995
  • Master of Arts (MA), Religious Studies
Columbia University 1994
  • Bachelor of Arts (AB, cum laude with Departmental Honors), Religion

Certifications & Training

The Harwood Institute for Public Innovation 2016
  • Harwood Public Innovators Lab
Southern California Leadership Network 2015-16
  • California Connections Fellowship
Annenberg Alchemy 2013-2015
  • Alchemy Leadership Seminar 2013 Class 4; Alchemy+ 2014-15
Center for Leadership Initiatives / ROI Community 2012
  • Certified Facilitator
Executive Service Corps of Southern California 2011-2012
  • Wells Fargo New Executive Directors Institute
21/64 2008, 2011
  • Consultant & Trainer (2008)
  • Advanced Trainer (2011) in Multigenerational Family Philanthropy

Select Recent Honors & Fellowships

Southern California Leadership Network 2017
  • 30-in-30 Outstanding Alumni Honoree
Liberty Hill Foundation 2013
  • NextGen Leadership Award
World Council of Jewish Communal Service / Jewish Communal Service Association 2012
  • Ted Comet Exemplar Award
ROI Community (Charles & Lynn Schusterman Family Foundation) 2011
  • ROI Community VI
Edmond de Rothschild Foundation, Columbia Business School, and Cambridge University 2009
  • Ariane de Rothschild Fellowship: Dialogue & Social Entrepreneurship
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