Gianina Irlando is new to the San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District’s Office of the Independent Police Auditor (BART OIPA).  Since 2019, Ms. Irlando was the Principal at Irlando Consulting, LLC where she worked with jurisdictions in Colorado and California to enhance law enforcement oversight infrastructure with an emphasis on stakeholder engagement.

As the former Community Relations Ombudsman with Denver's Office of the Independent Monitor, Gia spearheaded the development of the Youth Outreach Project, Bridging the Gap: Kids and Cops. She is proud of this proactive approach to stakeholder engagement and law enforcement accountability, and with federal grant funding, she oversaw the development of the curriculum, convened an expert advisory committee to guide the process, and supervised programming for over 5 years.  Officers receive training on racial and ethnic disparities and adolescent development; youth are trained on their constitutional rights and their responsibilities when in contact with law enforcement; and community members are trained to facilitate productive discussion between youth and officers during five-hour forums.  The project was independently evaluated by the University of Colorado and demonstrated notable effectiveness with a significant change in perceptions for youth and law enforcement towards each other in Denver. 

Gia is a 2014 fellow of the National Hispana Leadership Institute and a graduate of the Executive Leadership Program at the Harvard Kennedy School. Gia has served on the Board of Directors for the National Association for Civilian Oversight of Law Enforcement since early 2018 and was elected President in 2021.  She is also one of the founding members of the Colorado Working Families Party and a former co-chair of the Colorado Latino Forum.

Gia attended the University of California, Berkeley and California State University, Hayward, focusing on politics, communications, and ethnic studies. She has worked for numerous non-profits and labor organizations, and has continuously endeavored to increase diverse political representation in elected office. Gia has had the great opportunity to work for state, municipal and community leaders and is considered an innovator in politics for candidates and issues important to low-income communities of color.

Gia has three grown children and four grandchildren.  She also is the parent of two Ridgeback pups who insist they are human and her favorite children so far.