Speaker-Designate Robert Rivas Announces Jennifer Laine as Assembly District 29’s Woman of the Year

Sacramento, CA—Today, in honor of Women’s History Month, Speaker-Designate Robert Rivas (D-Salinas) and the California State Assembly recognized Jennifer Laine as Woman of the Year for the 29th Assembly District.

Laine has served as the Executive Director of the San Benito County Arts Council for over 13 years and currently serves on the Board of Californians for the Arts, advocating for increased arts and cultural equity in both positions. In 2022, she was part of a regional effort to secure over $5 million in state funding for individual artist grants and the new California Creative Corps Program, a workforce development program that employs artists as critical messengers in public health, climate resilience, social justice and civic engagement campaigns.

“I am proud to recognize Jennifer as Assembly District 29’s 2023 Woman of the Year,” said Speaker-Designate Rivas. “Her work in the arts has had an incredible impact on our region and our communities. As Executive Director of the San Benito County Arts Council, Jennifer has created enrichment opportunities for some of our most vulnerable youth in San Benito County. I am grateful for Jennifer’s service and commitment, and I look forward to see how she continues to elevate the arts throughout our local community as well as across California.”

“The Woman of the Year award is an honor in so many respects,” said Jennifer Laine. “First, it is wonderful to be recognized alongside other inspiring women leaders in California; secondly, it really motivates me to keep up, and step up, my work in the arts. This award makes me especially grateful for all the wonderful, funny, smart, and supportive women in my life—from my close colleagues, my mom, my sister, my daughter, friends and neighbors—who continue to inspire and support me daily, and I hope to do the same for them.”