Senior Staff

Dixon Slingerland

Dixon Slingerland is the Executive Director of the Youth Policy Institute (YPI), a nonprofit agency providing education, technology, and training services to lift Los Angeles families out of poverty. Since 1996, Dixon has directed YPI as it has grown from an annual budget under $1 million to the current annual budget of $34 million, with at least 50% annual growth in each of the past six years. Dixon leads more than 1,100 staff serving over 30,000 youth and adults each year at 95 program sites in Los Angeles. Key YPI programs include the San Fernando Valley Poverty Initiative, the Full-Service Community Schools program in Pico Union, the Hollywood FamilySource Center, afterschool programs at 56 school sites, job training for 800 clients in health careers, a federal GEAR UP college preparation program, AmeriCorps, Family Technology Project, summer youth employment, tutoring, and many others.

Beginning in 2004, Dixon led efforts to open two community-based charter middle schools that have outpaced area schools in student academic achievement. Bert Corona Charter School in Pacoima serves 370 predominantly Latino and low-income families, while Monsenor Oscar Romero Charter School has an enrollment of 325 students in Pico Union.  Dixon is Board President for the schools, and is also leading efforts to open the San Fernando Institute for Applied Media Pilot School in September 2010. Awarded by the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) in their groundbreaking Public School Choice process, this pilot school will be the first in LAUSD operated by an external agency.

Dixon served on President Obama’s National Finance Committee (NFC) and Education Policy Committee during the 2008 Presidential campaign. He is now a member of the NFC for the Democratic National Committee. Dixon was an Honored Guest at the 2008 Democratic National Convention, Election Night in Grant Park (Chicago), and the Presidential Inauguration in January 2009.

Dixon is a graduate of Stanford University. Dixon’s wife Suzanne Steinke is a partner with the law firm of Mitchell Silberberg & Knupp. They have two children.

Eugene D. Straub

Gene Straub is the Chief Operating Officer/ Chief Financial Officer of the Youth Policy Institute. With a Bachelor of Arts degree in Finance from Michigan State University, Gene has extensive experience working in the financial and nonprofit fields over the past twenty years. He has been the Chief Financial Officer for IMMS, Inc, which provides marketing and management tools for independent insurance agents. Prior to this, he was Chief Operating Officer of Break the Cycle, Inc., where he was responsible for all financial activities, as well as providing executive oversight of development, program implementation, and public policy.

Gene previously served as Senior Vice President- Studio Operations for Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation, where he was directly responsible for the daily operational activitiy of the 54+ acre studio facility as well as oversight of the $85 million operating budget. Areas of responsibility included construction, maintenance, administrative services, risk management, purchasing/strategic sourcing, real estate, environmental affairs, and production services. 

Gene has served on the Board of Directors for Larchmont Charter School in Los Angeles and has received a Diplôme de Cuisine with honors from Le Cordon Bleu in Paris, France. He lives in Los Angeles with his wife and two children.

Iris Zuniga-Corona

Iris Zuniga-Corona is Chief of Staff for the Youth Policy Institute. In this role, she oversees the daily operations of education and training services throughout Los Angeles that assist 25,000 youth and adults each year at 95 sites. Prior to this, Iris was YPI Director of Youth Services where she was responsible for the management of afterschool programs providing tutoring and enrichment services at 56 school sites throughout the city. She oversaw a program with an annual budget of $12 million that assisted more than 6,300 K-12 students each school day.

Before coming to YPI, Iris served as Education and Health Field Deputy for California State Senator (now Los Angeles City Councilmember) Richard Alarcon. In this capacity she oversaw the development and implementation of education and health community programs to support community residents, including the Valley Education Collaborative, Write it Right!, Got College?, Insuring our Kids Future, and Plan ASAP for your SAT. While working as Deputy, Iris also served as an Assistant Education Consultant to the Senate Select Committee to Develop a Master Plan to End Poverty in California.

Iris received her B.A. from UCLA in Sociology and Chicano/a Studies, and a Masters of Public Administration (MPA) from California State University, Northridge. A member of HOPE and Comision Femenil, Iris mentors high school students in her spare time.

Mario Matute

Mario Matute is the Director of Valley Operations for the Youth Policy Institute. In this role, he works with program coordinators and community leaders to implement collaborative solutions to the challenges facing low-income families in the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles.

Previously, Mario was Director of the Pacoima Workforce Development Initiative. He has also worked as Director of the Community Service Center at San Fernando Gardens in Pacoima, the only public housing site in the San Fernando Valley.  Mario has Bachelor and Masters’ degrees in Clinical Psychology, and holds a CDC (Chemical Dependency and Family Counseling Credential). He has counseled people suffering from emotional and psychological distress at Gateways Mental Health Hospital, Hillview Mental Health Center, and Northridge Medical Center.

Mario serves as a member of the Board of Trustees for Pacifica Hospital of the Valley, and as Vice-President for the Pacoima Chamber of Commerce. He is a member of the Advisory Boards for the Pacoima Skills Center and for the North Valley Occupational Center, as well as a member of the Santa Clarita Chamber of Commerce. Mario serves as a Bert Corona Charter School Board member and as Director of Government Relations for the El Salvador Chamber of Commerce-California.