BEVERLY HILLS—Programs such as Team Beverly Hills allow citizens the ability to become more involved and informed about their city and community. Since the program’s creation in 1996, over 600 residents have completed Team Beverly Hills and gone on to become leaders and volunteers throughout the city.

The program has announced the appointment of its 21st class of team members for the 2016-2017 season.

According to a press release from the city of Beverly Hills, the BH City Council appointed 42 new members that will partake in the six-month leadership and educational program that provides a hands-on look at how local government works through nine class sessions and interactive experiences with various city departments. Team Beverly Hills begins its 21st installment in October.

“Residents want to learn more about how their City operates and how they can get involved in City government. This program provides that opportunity. We have been offering this program for 20 years now and it continues to be extremely popular. The City receives a high number of Team Beverly Hills applications each year, making it difficult to select candidates. We had over 75 applications this year and had an amazing pool of resident applicants to choose from. We are excited for our future leaders and volunteers who will participate in this unique, informative and interactive experience,” said Community Services Administrator, Gisele Grable,

At present, 69 percent of Commissioners serving on one of the City’s 11 Commissions are Team Beverly Hills alumni members and over 100 members regularly volunteer their time at city events, programs and even directly assist city departments.

The 21st class of Beverly Hills Team Members are listed below:

Richard Baron
Matti Bialer
Trisha Bodaghi
Monica-Leah Kertesz Brener
Laren Grace Escobar
Joseph Fletcher, III
Allana Friedman
Judy Friedman
Daniela Haber
Sharon Ignarro
Thomas Javor
Rose Kaiserman
Steven Kamara
Theresa Kaplan
Carmen Kobor
Jacqueline Kraus
Paul Lerner
Donald Light
Joshua Lobel
Harold Markowitz, M.D.
Mitchell Miller
Jessica Moghaddam
Sara Okum
Benjamin Parnassi
Asher Pergament
Kip Perlson
Meredith Chunyi Qian
Ronald Richards
Nicholas Rimedio
Emily Rothstein
Joy Schneider
Jennifer Schreiber
Elliot Shirwo
Artin Sodaify
Seth Soloway
Paul Supnik
Susan Tamir
Charlie Tercek
Jodi Bell Ticknor
Dorothy Weiss
Bahare Yektafar
Herb Young

To learn more about Team Beverly Hills or to fill out an application online, visit www.beverlyhills.org/teambeverlyhills or call (310) 285-1023. The next application period will occur in April 2017.