Glenn Gritzner

Glenn Gritzner is a Managing Director of Mercury in the Los Angeles office. Mr. Gritzner joins Mercury after a nearly two decade career at the intersection of policy, politics, and business in Southern California and throughout the State of California. Mr. Gritzner joins Mercury from the Public Law & Policy Strategies Practice Group of Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal. He advises corporations, nonprofits, and local governments on an array of government matters and legislative efforts. He specializes in political outreach, policy analysis, communication and media strategy, education, and urban planning and development issues, maintaining a specialty in the Southern California political environment. Previously, Mr. Gritzner was Special Assistant to the Superintendent and Director of External Affairs for the Los Angeles Unified School District, with primary responsibility for political, messaging, outreach, and communication strategy. As the closest aide to the Superintendent, he was responsible for the District’s relationships with state and local elected officials, and for shepherding complex, high profile projects. Mr. Gritzner was also the District’s point person for the four largest local school bond campaigns in U.S. history, raising over $16 billion to construct and repair schools. Mr. Gritzner co-founded the Southern California Transportation and Land Use Coalition (since renamed the Transportation and Land Use Collaborative). He was also Editor of The Planning Report and Metro Investment Report, two of Southern California’s leading publications on local policy and political issues. Mr. Gritzner is also involved in many civic organizations. He serves on the Board of City Year Los Angeles - City Year was President Clinton’s inspiration to form the AmeriCorps program. He also serves on the Board of Heart of Los Angeles Youth, an after school youth development and education program, and is past President of the Los Angeles County Young Democrats. He is also a City Council Appointee to the Citizens’ Unit for Participation in Housing and Community Development, providing citizen oversight for over $165 million in annual Community Development Block Grant money for the City of Los Angeles. And, he is helping found a charter school, Prosper Academy, which will offer room and board along with education for foster children. Mr. Gritzner was a member of the City of Los Angeles Affordable Housing Crisis Task Force, which led to the creation of the City’s $100 million Housing Trust Fund, and is an alumnus of the American Council of Young Political Leaders. He was recently named a member of “Generation Next: The 35-and-Under Movers and Shakers Shaping Politics” by LA Downtown News.