LT in Action – Ben Zdeba

Leadership Tomorrow Class of 2019 alumni Ben Zdeba values his experiences an LT class member, connecting with a group of like-minded professionals looking for a 30,000-foot view of Orange County. He joined the LT Board of Directors three years ago to support the continued success of the program for others. As the Principal Planner and Zoning Administrator for the City of Newport Beach, he currently helps plan LT’s Housing and Transportation Workshop and the Government Day Workshop.

During his time as a class member, all nine LT workshops raised his awareness of many “opportunities to lead, serve, and donate energy for a better community,” says Ben. In particular, Business Day and its speakers helped him better understand the private sector and what it means to operate a business in Orange County. The workshop sparking a greater interest in learning more, and Ben decided to pursue an Executive MBA at UC Irvine’s Paul Merage School of Business. As a current graduate student in the Class of 2024, he serves as one of the student representatives.

Enthusiastic about helping LT class members get more involved in the local community as a result of their workshop experiences, Ben shares: “As a public servant working in local government, seeing LT participants lean in and learn more about how they can become engaged citizens is incredibly exciting!”