The California Partners Project and The Representation Project welcome you to tonight’s private screening of First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom’s newest film, Fair Play, at the California Museum.
5:00 p.m. Reception
6:00 p.m. Opening Remarks & Film Screening
7:30 p.m. Panel Discussion
Becky Beland McNaughtBecky Beland McNaught is the Senior Vice President of Communications and External Affairs at the Sacramento Kings where she leads strategic communications and messaging across the organization. In this role, Becky is responsible for directing the business and basketball media relations, social responsibility, and DEI departments.
Becky previously served as California First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom’s chief of staff for the first three years of the Newsom Administration, establishing the First Partner’s policy agenda, creating statewide initiatives to advance gender equity and children’s wellbeing, and developing comprehensive communications strategies to position the First Partner as a thought leader and top surrogate for Governor Newsom.
Prior to the Governor’s Office, Becky was the Democratic Counsel for the U.S. Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee where she served as the lead advisor on government contracting, technology, and cybersecurity issues. Before that, she was the Counsel to U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer, whom she advised on civil rights, immigration, law enforcement, and other policy issues. Becky was a longtime aide to Maria Shriver and served as the deputy managing editor of The Shriver Reports, a series exploring the transformational role of women in American life. Becky earned her B.A. from New York University and a J.D. from American University’s Washington College of Law.
Becky currently serves on the board of Jennifer Siebel Newsom’s nonprofit, the California Partners Project. She lives in her hometown of Sacramento with her husband, John, and their son Sebastian.
Pamela WuPamela Wu is Director of News and Media Relations for UC Davis Health, one of the nation’s leading academic health centers. She previously served as Executive Director of Marketing and Communications at UC Davis School of Law. Pamela joined UC Davis in 2009, after more than a decade as a television news anchor and reporter. During her news career, she reported on stories ranging from presidential elections to red carpet events in Hollywood. Pamela continues her career in broadcasting as a contributor for Capital Public Radio, Sacramento’s NPR member station. She is the substitute host for Insight, the station’s daily public affairs program. She hosted a Cap Radio health care documentary that won the 2012 Edward R. Murrow Award. She is an active member of the Asian American Journalists Association (AAJA), where she has served on both the national and chapter boards. She is the founding co-director of AAJA’s Media Institute, leading a team of award-winning journalists to train thought leaders to become valuable sources to the media. Pam holds a degree in Rhetoric and Communication from UC Davis, where she was a member of the prestigious Integrated Studies Honors Program.
Jennifer Siebel NewsomJennifer Siebel Newsom is the First Partner of California, an award-winning filmmaker, and an influential advocate and thought leader on gender equality. As First Partner, Jennifer is a voice and partner to working moms and families throughout the state — committed to creating a California for ALL Women and California for ALL Kids.
In 2019, Jennifer launched #EqualPayCA, a statewide initiative to turn the strongest equal pay laws in the nation into the smallest pay gap in the nation. Committed to supporting whole child development, she joined the California Department of Education and State Board of Education in 2020 to launch “Advance SEL California,” a campaign to support children’s social emotional learning. In partnership with the California Department of Food and Agriculture, Jennifer successfully led efforts to expand access to local farm fresh meals in schools by launching California’s first-ever farm to school grant program. Jennifer shepherded the creation of two historic programs, the California State Park Adventure Pass and the California State Library Parks Pass, to increase equitable access to California’s vast state parks system for young people and their families.
Jennifer serves as honorary chair of the California Volunteers Commission, co-chair of the Governor’s Advisory Council on Physical Fitness and Mental Well-Being, and co-chair of the California Farm to School Working Group. Jennifer was also a member of the bi-partisan national Women’s Suffrage Centennial Commission. Building on her work as First Partner, Jennifer co-founded the California Partner’s Project (CPP), a nonprofit dedicated to promoting gender equality and child wellbeing. CPP has produced several influential reports analyzing the impact of California’s landmark legislation requiring women’s representation on public company boards. Their 2020 report, Are the Kids Alright, detailed California teens’ mental health experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2021, Jennifer and CPP engaged in a listening tour with parents across California to better-understand how they and their adolescents are navigating social media and gaming. These conversations were the foundation for a collection of toolkits and best practices to help support parents with responsive recommendations.
A California native, Jennifer graduated with honors from Stanford University, where she earned a Bachelor’s degree in Latin American Studies and a Minor in Human Biology. Soon after graduating, she traveled the world with Conservation International (CI) helping women in Africa and Latin America start their own environmentally sustainable enterprises. It was through her work with CI board member and spokesperson Harrison Ford that she realized the power of media to effect change. After returning to Stanford for her Masters in Business Administration, Jennifer moved to Hollywood to pursue a career in the entertainment industry. Recognizing that mainstream media and culture contribute to the under-representation of women in positions of power and influence, she started her own production company to center women’s stories.
Jennifer then wrote, directed, and produced the critically-acclaimed documentaries Miss Representation, The Mask You Live In, and The Great American Lie. Jennifer also executive produced the Emmy Award-winning and Academy Award-nominated documentary The Invisible War, the Emmy Award-winning documentary The Hunting Ground, and the acclaimed documentary On the Record. Following the success of her first film, Miss Representation, Jennifer founded The Representation Project, a nonprofit that challenges limiting gender stereotypes and norms by shedding light on the role they play in all forms of oppression. The Rep Project is known for its social activism campaigns #NotBuyingIt, #AskHerMore, and #RepresentHer which have reached over 800 million people. Her latest film, Fair Play, takes a deep look at domestic inequity, making visible the invisible care work historically held by women. Her films and social activism campaigns always aim to inspire a more balanced and equitable future.
Jennifer is married to California Governor Gavin Newsom and the mother of their four young children.
Pam ChuehPam Chueh was appointed as California’s first State Chief Equity Officer by Governor Gavin Newsom in August 2022. Pam is a collaborative leader with three decades of government and public service career in advancing equity for all Californians. As State Chief Equity Officer, Pam is responsible for establishing a statewide equity and inclusion framework to facilitate California’s ability to develop a diverse workforce that can administer fair and equitable services to all Californians. She provides leadership and consultation on diversity, equity and inclusion to all state departments, with a focus on those that have a direct impact on state operations, human resources, procurement, and information technology.
Driven by her personal experience as the parent of a child with multiple disabilities, Pam most recently led Sacramento non-profit organization, WarmLine Family Resource Center, as its Executive Director to serve families of children with disabilities. Prior to this role, Pam served the State Assembly and Sacramento State University as Director of the prestigious Jesse M. Unruh Assembly Fellowship Program for a decade. As its longest serving director overseeing 12 fellowship classes, Pam prepared and mentored over 200 Assembly and Senate Fellows for leadership and public service careers, increasing legislative staff diversity to reflect the racial, gender, and geographic diversity of the State.
Pam emigrated from Taiwan at the age of nine to settle in Southern California. She began her public service career as a welfare-to-work case manager and job developer for Los Angeles County’s Department of Public Social Services. Pam’s experience as an immigrant and work in uplifting women and their families from poverty to self-sufficiency inspired her to further advocate for underserved communities through government and policy making. Working as a field representative and legislative aide for the State Assembly led Pam to the California Asian Pacific Islander Legislative Caucus as its founding staff, where she helped to create the Caucus’ infrastructure, agenda, and priorities. Pam also held the role of Special Assistant under Assembly Speakers Karen Bass and John Perez in the Assembly’s International Office of International Relations and Protocol. Her other professional experiences include serving as a legislative advocate for Los Angeles County’s Department of Public Social Services and Community and Government Relations Manager for Kaiser San Jose.
Pam holds a B.A. in Economics from the University of California, San Diego, and resides in Sacramento with her family.
Natalie PalugyaiNatalie Palugyai was appointed Secretary of the California Labor & Workforce Development Agency by Governor Newsom on July 14, 2021. Secretary Palugyai is the first Latina to serve as California Labor Secretary.
In her role, Secretary Palugyai serves as the Governor’s cabinet advisor on labor issues and employment programs for workers and businesses throughout California. Secretary Palugyai oversees the state departments and boards that enforce labor laws, including minimum wage and occupational safety standards, provide state disability and unemployment insurance benefits, fund workforce training and apprenticeship programs, combat wage theft, protect injured workers, and arbitrate public sector contract disputes.
Natalie is a nationally recognized thought leader in public sector business transformation, strategy, and implementation with over 20 years of experience in federal government and higher education. She has spent almost half of her public service career within the U.S. Department of Labor where she served first as a compliance officer with the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs and most recently as a Senior Management Advisor for the Secretary of Labor under President Barack Obama’s Administration. In addition to her work on worker protection and enforcement strategy, Natalie launched and formalized the department’s first integrated performance management accountability system, resulting in concrete improvements to both operational performance and organizational engagement.
Prior to leading the Labor & Workforce Development Agency, Natalie served as Senior Advisor for Strategic Initiatives at Johns Hopkins University, where she led the university’s Global Operations Initiative, establishing both governance frameworks and corporate structuring strategies in support of academic and research expansion globally.
Natalie is a native of Miami, Florida and the proud daughter of Uruguayan immigrants.