Cheryl is a Senior Mediator with the Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office, where she conducts mediation sessions between Community Members and Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) Officers whenever a suitable complaint is filed. She is also a Mediator/Community Facilitator with the Institute of Non-Violence, facilitating dialogues with LAPD Police Academy recruits. In the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic, and the civil unrest that ensued after the killing of George Floyd, Cheryl created and convened the virtual Leaning In Dialogue series in partnership with Mediators Beyond Borders International (MBBI). With the assistance and participation of selected facilitators/mediators located within the US, Peru, and Australia, she developed a virtual forum used for discussing issues related to race. Cheryl also works with Police2Peace, convening listening sessions with students at high schools and universities nationwide to discuss how to improve the relationship between students and campus police and community police departments. Cheryl traveled to Pasquotank, North Carolina to meet with a divided community as a result of an unarmed black man killed by local sheriff’s deputies, and convened community meetings and listening sessions. She served on a virtual team that trained Ukrainian mediators in holding trauma-informed spaces for the refugees in Ukraine, Belarus, and Poland.
Cheryl is a retired as a Child Welfare Administrator from the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services, with 27 years of service. Cheryl is a registered FINRA Arbitrator and holds certifications in Reflective Structured Dialogue and Interfaith Dialogue obtained in Bali, Indonesia. Cheryl is currently pursuing her Master’s in Dispute Resolution (MDR) at the Straus Institute of Dispute Resolution at Pepperdine University’s Caruso School of Law.