National Convening Program Books 2016 YEO National Convening Program Book | Page 74

YEO Bios
NATALIA RUDIAK City Councilwoman
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Natalia Rudiak, a two-term City Council member, was born and raised in South Pittsburgh.
She earned her bachelor’s degree from George Washington University and the London School
of Economics through scholarships awarded from the Pennsylvania and national AFL-CIO
before completing her graduate degree at Carnegie Mellon University. On Council, she serves
as the chair of the Committee on Finance and Law. Rudiak has worked to balance the city’s
books in the face of state financial oversight and has improved the city’s credit outlook. She has
been a trailblazing legislator who advocates tirelessly for quality early childhood education for
all children. She is steadfast in her commitment to supporting families, introducing and passing
family-friendly legislation for the workplace, and advocating for livable wages. Rudiak is currently
a board member of the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh. She is also the head of the Pennsylvania
Young Elected Officials Network. @nataliarudiak

RYAN RUELAS School Board Trustee
Anaheim, California

Ryan Ruelas was born and raised in the city of Anaheim. He has a B.A. in politics from the
University of California, Santa Cruz and an M.A. in History from California State University,
Fullerton. Ruelas has been teaching history at Anaheim High School for the last 11 years. He is a
part of the executive board for the Anaheim Secondary Teachers Association and is a California
Teachers Association state delegate. He is the advisor to BROS, a student run organization that
focuses on increasing the amount of Chicano/Latino male students at the university level. In
2012, Ruelas was named AUHSD Teacher of the Year, as well as an Orange County Teacher
of the Year semi-finalist. This year, Ruelas received the Apple of Gold “Excellence in Teaching”
award from the Hispanic Education Endowment Fund. Ruelas was recently elected as trustee of
the Anaheim City School Board.

JACQUELYN RYAN School Committee Member
Sturbridge, Massachusetts

Jacquelyn Ryan was elected to the Tantasqua Regional School Committee to represent the town
of Sturbridge, Massachusetts in April of 2014. During that time she has fought against the
expansion of charter schools within Massachusetts and was the only member of her committee to
lead the successful fight against a proposed charter school in her community. She has also stated
her opposition to the use of high-stakes testing and sponsored a resolution to reevaluate this
system. Ryan has the honor of being the first openly transgender elected official in Massachusetts
and has been a strong LGBTQ organizer. She also serves as the diversity director representing the
LGBTQ Caucus for her party. Finally she serves as a member of the Board of Directors for the
AIDS Project Worcester, a non-profit that provides medical services and resources to the LGBTQ
community and to those suffering from drug addiction. @JacobJRyan

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YEO BIOS