Community Partners and Advisory Board

• Ernesto Portillo, City of Tucson Housing and Community Development

  • Ernesto Portillo is the public information officer for the City of Tucson’s Department of Housing and Community Development. Previously he worked in the Ward 3 City Council office. Prior to joining the City of Tucson, Ernesto spent nearly 40 years in newspaper journalism, half of that time as a Metro News columnist for the Arizona Daily Star. He is a native of Tucson.

• Laurice Walker, City of Tucson, Office of Equity

  • Laurice Walker is the City of Tucson’s first chief equity officer. She brings more than 10 years of experience working with national leaders to define best practices around the understanding and application of equity, social justice, and accessibility in local government. Prior to being hired by the City of Tucson, Laurice served as the inaugural diversity, equity, and inclusion manager for the City of Plymouth, Minnesota.

• Tina Johnson, African American Museum of Southern Arizona

  • Tina L. Johnson is the president of the Stella Mann Neighborhood Association and serves on the Advisory Board of the African American Museum of Southern Arizona. At the University of Arizona, she is  the Organizational Development Specialist with the Data Science Institute.

• Jacque Barnes Price, African American Museum of Southern Arizona

  • Jacquenese (Jacque) Barnes Price is a proud African American native of Tucson having lived in two of the four black neighborhoods, Dunbar Springs and Sugar Hill. Having seen and experienced all types of people, while continuing to know herself, she is a lifelong learner. Being inquisitive, valuing family and the strength and unity within, she continues to have faith and resolve that have brought not only her, but others through difficult times to assist them see their greatness that will in turn improve their lives, families, communities and the world as a whole.

• Delano Price, African American Museum of Southern Arizona

  • Delano Price is a a sixty-four year resident of Tucson by way of Gary, Indiana. Growing up in Gary and Tucson, there were several situations where his family had experience with racially restrictive covenants. He had a thirty-five year career in public education along with service on several advisory boards and committees, most recently, the African American History Museum of Southern Arizona.

• Lynn Davis, Tucson Jewish Museum and Holocaust Center

  • Lynn Davis directs the Jewish Community Relations Council for Tucson & Southern Arizona. She has spent the bulk of her career in nonprofit arts administration and Jewish communal life, creating values-based, experiential programming that amplifies the work of local artists, engages audiences, and celebrates the diversity of Southern Arizona. She is a powerful convener and collaborator who believes firmly in the power of partnerships in building community.

• Liane Hernandez, Tucson Jewish Museum and Holocaust Center

  • E. Liane Hernandez is a staff member of the YWCA Southern Arizona in Tucson, AZ. Trained at the University of Arizona and Pima Community College as an art historian, chef, and cultural anthropologist she is a student of the questions of what community is, who gets to participate, when, and how. She currently sits on the Bond Oversight Commission at the request of the City Manager and serves on the board of directors of Just Communities Arizona as Secretary and the Tucson City of Gastronomy member at large. Liane served with Tucson Meet Yourself Festival as the City of Gastronomy Culture Kitchen Coordinator between 2014-2020, was a 2016 Fellow of the Tucson Voices OpEd Project, a Commissioner with the Pima Tucson Women’s Commission, and part of the Latino Graduate Training Seminar on Qualitative Methodology at the Smithsonian Institute. A native of Arizona, she lives in her beloved city of Tucson, Arizona with her two dogs, Molly and Mr. Magoo. 

• Sandy Chan, Tucson Chinese Cultural Center

  • Sandy Chan has a Master of Library Science and was a faculty librarian with Pima Community College for 25 years, was president of the Arizona State Genealogical Society, is a published author and has a website devoted to the history Tucson’s Chinese community. As a Tucson Chinese community historian, she has done numerous speaking engagements, worked on a variety of projects, and has appeared in several videos.

• Stewart Chan, Tucson Chinese Cultural Center

  • As was his mother, Stewart Chan was born and raised in Tucson, he graduated from the University of Arizona, and worked at Hughes Aircraft/Raytheon for over 30 years before his retirement. Since his retirement he has been involved in a variety of projects with Tucson’s Chinese community. Currently, he volunteers with the Tucson Chinese Cultural Center supporting grade school field trips where students gain an understanding of Chinese culture and local history.

• Liane Wong, San Gabriel Neighborhood Association

• Austin Puca, At-Large Board Member

  • Austin Puca serves as the City of Tucson’s Human Services Manager in the Housing and Community Development Department’s Planning and Community Development Division. In this role, Austin oversees the City’s responsibilities as Lead Agency for the Tucson Pima Collaboration to End Homelessness as well as the non-profit grantmaking. Prior to her employment at the City of Tucson, Austin served in management roles in local non-profit and healthcare organizations working to address housing insecurity, homelessness, gender and sexual violence, infectious disease, and harm reduction.

• Ed Diego, At-Large Board Member

  • Ed Diego is a Senior Principal Systems Security Engineer with over 15 years of experience in the Department of Defense. He is also the CEO of L2P LLC, a construction company with over 20 years of experience in custom home building and renovations. With a passion for turning clients' dreams into reality, Ed brings expertise in both security engineering and construction to his work.