Steven J. Golightly, Ph.D.

"The Importance of Mentorship for Leadership Skills”

Dr. Golightly’s 45-year public sector and nonprofit career focused on programs and agencies that provided services to low-income children and families. Steven retired in 2020 as Director of the Los Angeles County Child Support Services Department (CSSD) with responsibility for over 1500 employees and 300,000 child support cases worldwide.

Prior to directing the CSSD, he was interim director of the County’s Department of Public Social Services, the local welfare agency. Before working in Los Angeles County, Dr. Golightly was the Regional Administrator for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (Administration for Children and Families), based in Atlanta, Georgia. There he was the senior federal official for all poverty programs in the eight southeastern states. He also spent 12 years as Vice President for Human Service programs at the National Alliance of Business in Washington, DC.

Steven has a BS degree in business management, a Master of Public Administration (MPA) degree, and a Ph.D. in Public Policy and Public Administration. Dr. Golightly has taught in the MPA programs at California State University Dominguez Hills and Northridge for over 15 years as adjunct faculty.

He is the recipient of the California Child Support Directors Association (CSDA) Truly B. Knox award for leadership in the California child support community, the Clarence Dykstra Excellence in Government award from the American Society for Public Administration, and the Los Angeles County Productivity and Quality Commission’s Excellence in Leadership award.

Steven serves as Chair of the Wolf Connection in Acton, California, and is a past member, and Chair of the board of directors for the National Child Support Enforcement Association. He has served as President of his neighborhood association and as Chair of the California Child Support Directors Association.

Steven has three grown children and five grandchildren. He and his husband Douglas live in Beverly Hills.

Dean Gialamas, General Manager, ISD

"Courageous Communication"

Dean is a successful entrepreneur, certified high-performance coach and an energetic keynote speaker. He has over thirty-four years of progressively responsible success in government positions and private industry with over twenty of those years in high-level executive management. Since 2006, he has been a sought after and highly regarded mentor for executive managers from all across the US and from six continents. He still works an executive manager for Los Angeles County. He is responsible for enterprise development, accountability, and innovation for an entity supporting 40+ county departments with over 5,100 employees and contractors with a budget of approximately $1 Billion.

Cynthia McCoy-Miller, MSW

Senior Deputy Director and Executive Leader

LA County Executive Panel

Cynthia McCoy-Miller has been employed with LA County since 1980 and has over time leveled her way up the ranks to become third in command as Senior Deputy Director since 2012 for the largest child welfare agency in the nation. She effectively leads and manages the largest and most complex administrative bureau within the Department, the Mega Bureau. She also has extensive experience in performance-based management and leadership development and oversees the administration of the following operations: Contracts Services, Finance and Administration, Information Technology (IT), Administrative Support, Operational Support and Equity.

As Senior Deputy Director and Executive leader over the Mega Bureau, Ms. McCoy-Miller is committed to ensuring better outcomes for our children, families, staff and the communities we serve by enabling optimum support through infrastructure, administrative, programmatic, and IT services using an equity lens.

Ms. McCoy-Miller holds an MSW degree from USC, a BSW degree from Cal State Poly Pomona, and an AA in Social Work degree from Los Angeles Southwest College.

Ms. McCoy-Miller is an active community member who uses her professional platform to help elevate, inspire and enhance both the professional and personal growth of others through advocacy, coaching and mentoring, skill-building, and empowerment. She is actively involved in many County-wide initiatives and events such as the Anti-Racism, Diversity and Inclusion (ARDI) Initiative, March of Dimes and March for Babies. She is also a longstanding Executive Advisor with the LA County African American Employee Association as well as a former Board and current member of the LA County Chicano Employee Association. As a newly published author, Ms. McCoy-Miller aspires to continue using her experience, voice and platform to educate, inspire and level up others to leadership excellence.

Daniel Rojas, DPA, PHR

Administrative Services Manager DPH-HR

Seminar Host

Dr. Daniel Rojas is currently assigned as the Administrative Services Manager II over the Performance Management section for the Department of Public Health, Human Resources Division. As a County employee, he has held a variety of assignments across County departments, including Public Social Services and Mental Health. He received his Master of Public Administration and Doctor of Public Administration degrees from California Baptist University in Riverside, CA. He holds a Professional in Human Resources certificate (PHR) and is actively pursuing leadership and accounting certifications to enhance his abilities in future senior or executive-level positions. His passion for public service is only rivaled by his love for learning, family, and leadership. He is a proud husband, father, leader, friend, coach, mentor, ex-management fellow, and advisor.

****Participation is limited to the first 60 registrants.  Members will be notified if they are on the waitlist.****