Mayor

Meet our Team

Shawna Stevens, Chief of Staff

Shawna Stevens is an experienced legislative, government, and health professional with 18+ years in the public and nonprofit sectors. As Chief of Staff, Shawna plans and directs the operational and strategic aspects of the Mayor's office, coordinates the execution of programs and strategic initiatives, and works to ensure our City's initiatives and programs align with Mayor Richardson’s priorities.

Prior to joining Mayor Richardson's team, Shawna worked for the Long Beach Department of Health and Human Services for 10 years, overseeing chronic disease prevention programming and placed-based initiatives. She was also principal of her firm SHS Connections, a consulting business providing guidance, services, and connections in project management, policy analysis, grant writing and capacity building to clients in all sectors.

Shawna holds a BA in Sociology from UCLA and a Master's in Public Administration from California State University, Long Beach. She is a proud soccer and dance mom who is raising her two daughters in Long Beach with her husband Michael.

Rashina Young, Deputy Mayor of Operations

Ms. Young has spent her career fighting for social justice and economic justice. In her pervious role as the Southern California Regional Director for Service Employee International Union’s Committee of Interns and Residents, (CIR/SEIU); a national, labor organization in the healthcare sector comprised of the resident physicians, interns, and fellows who have served on the frontlines throughout the COVID-19 global pandemic involved much more than supervising staff and bargaining contracts. When CIR members working at public and private hospitals and medical centers wish to shape statewide and federal policy to preserve reproductive rights, prevent gun violence, and provide a path to citizenship for immigrants, she directed the work of the organizing, political, and communications departments as well.

Ms. Young is also active in her community. Through her pervious role in labor, she has worked to coordinate Job Fairs in the City of Compton and Carson as well provide families in the City of Watts, Compton and Long Beach with Toys during the holiday season.

She was a founding member and President of the Black Women’s Democratic Club for Black Women and also serves as a member of the Los Angeles County Democratic Central Committee for the 65^th assembly district.

Ms. Young received her B.A. from California State University, Dominguez Hills in Public Administrative Management and completed her Master Degree in Public Administration with a focus in Urban Affairs at California State University, Long Beach.

She is also a proud member of Delta Sigma Theta, Sorority Incorporated.

Lucius Martin, Deputy Mayor of Economic Development

Lucius Martin grew up in the Greater Long Beach Area where his mother worked in education and his father worked for the State of California. Upon graduating from high school, he attended Long Beach City College where he was active on campus organizing events and participating in student government.

Utilizing the foundation provided by the amazing faculty at Long Beach City College he finished his undergraduate education at the University of California, Los Angeles. While at UCLA he worked with other student leaders to organize weekly community outreach activities to promote access to higher education through tutoring and peer mentoring throughout Los Angeles County.

In his over decade and half career in economic development Lucius has worked within state, tribal and local municipal management building strategic partnerships that have led to countless opportunities for others. Lucius has worked for the City of Long Beach for ten years where he began his career working within the Youth Opportunity Center; he would go on to leading business engagement efforts at the city administered workforce development board Pacific Gateway. While serving in non-management roles for the city Lucius was active within his union, the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAMAW) where he served as a Shop Steward for his division.

Lucius maintains professional membership in the California Association of Local Economic Development as well as the National Security Space Association and was recently selected for the inaugural cohort of Coro Workforce Fellows.

Lucius lives in Los Angeles County with his lovely wife and two children whom he spends a lot of time visiting with family in Long Beach and exploring the many neighborhoods and restaurants that make Long Beach the best destination to live, work and play.

Connor Lock, Deputy Mayor of Housing

Connor Lock is an experienced government innovator and policy implementer who enjoys breaking down complex challenges and designing holistic approaches to improve people’s quality of life and fairness in society.

Mr. Lock most recently served as Chief of Staff for Long Beach Vice Mayor Cindy Allen. Prior to his current tenure in Long Beach, Connor served from 2019 - 2020 as the first Chief of Staff for Katrina Foley, then-Mayor of the City of Costa Mesa.

Deputy Mayor Lock also currently serves on the Housing Advisory Committee for the County of Los Angeles and on the Boards of Walk Long Beach and Partners of Parks. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Foreign Service in International Political Economics from Georgetown University and a Master of Arts in Public Administration from California State University, Long Beach.

Mr. Lock lives in Long Beach with his wonderful wife, son and two dogs, and enjoys doing DIY home remodel projects.

Loren Simpson, Director of Communications

A Southern California native, Loren Alexis Simpson is currently the Director of Communications for the mayor of Long Beach. Previously, she was the celebrity stylist and Director of Digital Communications for the Long Beach Convention and Visitors Bureau, where she oversaw the digital strategy for Visit Long Beach, including content marketing, social media, public relations and eCommunications.

Additionally, she has worked under a top celebrity stylist assisting on both cover shoots and red carpet looks for celebrities including Blake Lively, Ashlee Simpson, Molly Sims, and has styled Gwyneth Paltrow’s cookbook, “My Father’s Daughter.” Simpson began her fashion career as a Fashion Assistant for both Marie Claire and Domino Magazine.

Loren is a mother of four children ranging 4 – 16. Since childhood, her father instilled the importance of being an active member of her community. From planting gardens and community cleanups in her neighborhood as an adolescent to mentoring teens as a young single mom, she now encourages her children to be active community members.

As part of the PBS SoCal Community Advisory Board, Loren stands as a representative of families raising children check-to-check, striving to provide the best lives they can for their families and improve their communities.

Paul Barragan-Monge, Director of Policy and LGBTQIA+ Liaison

Paul Barragan-Monge is a policy expert with more than a decade of experience leading legislative advocacy and community organizing efforts at the local, state, and federal levels. Most recently, Paul served as the Director of Mobilization at the UCLA Latino Policy and Politics Institute where he led state budget and legislative campaigns, statewide coalition-building efforts, and strategic communications to promote equitable policy outcomes and improve the living and working conditions of communities of color.  

Previously, Paul worked for the San Francisco Board of Supervisors where he led the design and implementation of citywide programs and policy interventions, and advised on legislative strategies to advance educational equity, immigrant rights, worker protections, small business sustainability, and the city’s public health response to COVID-19.  

Between 2016-2018, Paul also served as an appointed member of the University of California Board of Regents, advocating for the needs of more than 270,000 undergraduate and graduate students throughout California. Paul is the proud son of Salvadoran immigrants. He was the first in his family to go to college and earned a BA from UC Santa Barbara, an MPP from Harvard University, and a law degree from the UC Berkeley School of Law.  

Jeff Williams, Director of Community Engagement

Jeff Williams recently served as the Interim Director of the Long Beach Center for Economic Inclusion (LBCEI) to help launch a new nonprofit Community Development Corporation focused on bringing inclusive economic opportunities to underserved communities in Long Beach. Previously, Jeff served for 10 years as the Executive Director of Leadership Long Beach, the preeminent community leadership organization in our city.  Jeff has extensive experience in nonprofits, community development, program management and leadership development.

Jeff co-founded the Long Beach Community Internship program at CSULB and has launched several community events including the MLK Day of Service and the Long Beach Mardi Gras. Brought to California as part of the Teach For America program, Jeff is passionate about community and providing opportunities for young people to find their path. Jeff married up to Ellen Williams and they have two amazing kids, Trent and Violet.

Maria Banegas, Administrative Officer

Maria Banegas is the Administrative Officer for the City of Long Beach, Mayor’s Office with over eight years of experience serving the City of Long Beach and its constituents. Mrs. Banegas has over ten years of progressive Human Resources experience in both the public and private sectors. Her professional career encompasses managing various human resources matters within office management, supervision, and budget forecasting. She has extensive experience in training/employee development, employee relations, employee recruitment and retention, and interpreting and implementing policies. Her expertise and knowledge assist in cultivating a positive environment to help drive the goals and initiatives of the Mayor’s Office.

Maria received a bachelor’s degree in Management of Human Resources from California State University Dominguez Hills. She enjoys spending quality time with her husband and three children. She loves exercising and hiking.

Nicole Grigsby, Scheduler and Secretary

Nicole Grigsby is a legal professional with experience in both the corporate and non-profit sectors. Prior to joining the City of Long Beach, she worked as a fraud analyst and risk management analyst for five years and as a paralegal for three years. Currently, her role is scheduler and secretary to Mayor Rex Richardson.

Before joining the City of Long Beach, Nicole earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Public Administration with a concentration in Criminal Justice at California State University, Dominguez Hills, and a Graduate certificate in Paralegal Studies at the University of California, Los Angeles.

Nicole is a patron of the arts and spends her time enjoying the many world class museums, theaters and musical venues throughout Los Angeles County, other hobbies include traveling and gardening.

Christian Cambridge, Financial Services Officer

Christian Cambridge is a Human Resources Officer at the City of Long Beach. Prior to his current role, he served as a Senior Human Resources Analyst where he assisted City Management in Labor Relations through conducting classification and compensation studies, analyzing labor cost, and representing the City in negotiations and meet and confer meetings.

Before joining the City of Long Beach, Christian earned dual Bachelor’s degrees in Political Science and Sociology from the University of California, Berkeley and a Master’s degree in Public Policy at the University of Southern California, with a focus on health policy. His practicum project under the California State Treasurer’s office involved a financial evaluation of existing retail food markets in Los Angeles in effort to increase healthy food access amongst low income communities- specifically in areas consisting of a high density of 0 to 5 child populations.

Christian spent two years in the non-profit sector as a site coordinator and instructor for the Youth Policy Institute. His key commitments focused on grant writing, after-school programming, and the development of an arts curriculum for inner-city youth, providing mentoring and training to students.

Montserrat Pineda, Community Engagement Deputy and Youth Liaison

Montserrat Pineda is a North Long Beach native who grew up in the Ramona Park Neighborhood and is the proud daughter of Salvadoran immigrants. She was the first in her family to attend college and graduated from the University of Redlands with a BA in Political Science.

While at Redlands, Montserrat championed other first-generation students through Students Together Empowering Peers, led the social justice and diversity-focused siblinghood WRW, organized efforts around civic engagement, advocated for Cal Grant increases with the Association of Independent California Colleges and Universities, and was chosen as the Commencement Speaker for her class. 

Pineda remained dedicated to her local community by interning for Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia, Vice Mayor Rex Richardson, and Congressman Alan Lowenthal, working at the Long Beach Center for Economic Inclusion, and organizing food distribution drives and civic engagement activities in Long Beach. Soon after graduating, Montserrat joined Rex Richardson’s Mayoral campaign as a Volunteer Coordinator and then Campaign Organizer. Pineda is proud to represent her community at the Mayor’s office and begin her career in Public Service.

Dorian Bonner, Communications Deputy

Dorian is a creative professional with experience navigating both public and private sector communications. Prior to joining the City of Long Beach, he spent two years working with firms representing statewide and national nonprofit organizations and outreach campaigns, including Amnesty International and California's Vaccinate All 58 program while also working as a freelance photograher. Dorian also served as Communications Coordinator during Mayor Richardson's term as Vice Mayor.

Dorian studied at California State University, Long Beach, with a dual specialization in Music Performance and Music Education. His hobbies and interests include photography, creative design, archery, hiking, cooking, and spending time outdoors.