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BCI's Award-Winning Staff:
Each staff member brings his or her own unique experience to the BCI team, including expertise in the areas of news reporting, feature and editorial writing, interviewing, photography, public relations, marketing, video production and graphic design. This combination of abilities and experiences is unique in the labor communications world.
And our staff is 100 percent union. We have had a collective bargaining agreement with United Food and Commercial Workers Local 324 since 1946.
Ellen Anreder, President and CEO, is the leading independent spokesperson for union members in the United States. During the Southern California supermarket strike of 2003-04, she was quoted throughout the world as the strikers' primary presenter of information and opinion. BCI products created under her leadership have won dozens of awards for excellence in writing and graphics. Anreder is founding president of the Coalition to Advance Working Women, a trustee of a Taft-Hartley Benefits Trust, and a board member for the Loveall Foundation for Children in Northern California and the Kadima Academy in Los Angeles. She also chairs two Union Scholarship Committees. Early in her career, Anreder worked in marketing for Columbia Pictures Television, coordinating special events and creating promotional materials. She holds a bachelor's degree in sociology from University of California at Santa Barbara.
Frank Casciato, Executive Vice President, joined BCI in 1994 from the California Democratic Party where he learned first-hand the crucial role labor unions play in the political arena at all levels of government. His writings have garnered many journalism awards for our clients. He holds a B.A. in Government from St. Mary's College in Moraga California.
Dan Brin, Managing Editor and Senior Writer, has had a 30-year career as a professional journalist. He began on the police beat for the legendary City News Bureau of Chicago. After returning to his home state of California, he became editor-in-chief of the Heritage chain of Jewish newspapers, serving in that capacity for more than 25 years. Brin had his formal education at Brandeis University and the University of California Graduate School of Journalism at Berkeley.
Jay Schuster, Staff Writer and Video Producer, has more than 33 years of experience in the areas of news reporting, feature and editorial writing, ad copywriting, video production and public relations for government agencies and non-profits. In addition to his award-winning professional skills, he possesses a wealth of experience in the union movement. For 26 years he served Local 800 of the American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) as a Steward, Executive Board member, Chief Steward, Vice President, and for six years, as President. Schuster holds a degree in Communications from Temple University in Philadelphia.
Bob Bleiweiss, Chairman, has written hundreds of articles for Education and Labor publications over the past 40 years. During that time, he has been honored with hundreds of awards in labor and educational journalism. Bleiweiss is an accomplished author and lecturer and travels the country speaking about topics of national and international significance. He also served as Editor and Publisher for Jewish Spectator magazine, one of the most prestigious Jewish intellectual journals in the English language. Bleiweiss holds degrees in literature and the arts from Colgate University and USC.
