NEWSMAKERS

Accounting and Consulting

Stephen A. Stewart is the new vice president and managing principal for the Pacific Southwest Region Financial Valuation Group of American Appraisal Associates Inc. Stewart has 14 years of experience in valuation analysis and M & A; advisory work and was Partner In Charge of Appraisal Valuation Services of the Pacific Southwest Region for Arthur Andersen.

Advertising & Public Relations

Angelica Urquijo has joined United Teachers Los Angeles, the union representing teachers in the L.A. Unified School District, as public relations/communications consultant. She was most recently the lead anchor for KVVU, the Fox affiliate in Las Vegas.

Lindsay Lawrence, Dawn Pace, Michelle Raluy, Melissa Dryburgh and Ryan Hayden have joined Cerrell Associates, a political and public affairs consultant. Lawrence had been a lobbyist with Cassidy & Associates, Pace was a PR specialist at Valerie Martinez Associates. Both are account executives at Cerrell. Raluy, an assistant account executive, comes from the MAK Group; Dryburgh and Hayden are account coordinators.

Architecture

Janice Shimizu is the newest associate in the Los Angeles office of SmithGroup, an architecture, engineering and planning company. As project designer, she will head up the company’s renovation of Bovard Auditorium at the University of Southern California. Shimizu, formerly with Guthrie and Buresh Architects of West Hollywood, is a guest instructor in architecture at the University of Southern California and Otis College of Art and Design.

Banking and Finance

Daniel Harrow, a former partner at distressed company advisors Chanin & Co., has joined Seidler Cos. as managing director. In his new position, Harrow will head a new group providing restructuring services to companies with revenues of $50 million to $500 million.

Business Services

Daphne van der Kieft has joined Aquent as an account manager, responsible for day-to-day talent management and client services. Most recently, van der Kieft served as an account manager with Robert Half International in Westwood.

Health Care

Clarke Underwood is the new senior vice president of finance at California Hospital Medical Center in Los Angeles where his responsibilities will include fiscal services, reimbursement, patient accounting and registration, materials management and information systems management. Most recently, he was vice president of Alta Healthcare System LLC, a Los Angeles hospital management company.

Insurance

Joey Behrstock has joined Gilbert-Krupkin, an insurance and estate planning firm is Beverly Hills, as an advisor on estate planning, wealth transfer and insurance matters. A CPA, he had been with Arthur Andersen.

Law

Graig Woodburn has joined the Quisenberry Law Firm as associate and head of its class action practice group. He had previously been with Milberg Weiss Bershad Hynes & Lerach.

Marketing

Joe Navarro has joined Westlake Davvar Corp. International as vice president, sales and marketing. Westlake Village-based Westlake Davvar is the parent of Go-West event productions and Digital Spectrum Film and Video Productions. Navarro was previously a vice president at WellPoint/Blue Cross of California specializing in special events, communications, training and promotions.

New Media

David Placier has been named vice president of customer marketing and analysis for the Walt Disney Internet Group, directing marketing strategy and execution. He comes from McKinsey & Co., where he managed a significant customer relationship marketing consulting project for WDIG.

Non-Profit

Naz Keynejad has been named to the board of the American Heart Association and will serve as chair of its fund development committee. She is president of Western Direct Inc.

Lesa Slaughter, a litigation associate with Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom, has been elected to a two-year term on the board of the Los Angeles Convention & Visitors Bureau. She is also a vice president of the Los Angeles Convention Center Board of Commissioners.

Kenneth W. Murtishaw has been elected chairman of the Greater Antelope Valley Economic Alliance in Lancaster. Murtishaw served as the organization’s vice chairman for two years. He is the senior executive in charge of the Antelope Valley for Kaiser Permanente and vice president and chief financial officer for Applied Web Engineering, a Web design and Internet management company in Lancaster.

Publishing

John P. Loughlin has been named president of Pasadena-based Gemstar-TV Guide International Inc.’s new TV Guide Publishing Group. The unit contains all of TV Guide’s print and online businesses, including the TV Guide Magazine Group and TV Guide Online. Loughlin was with Primedia Inc., where he was president and chief executive of Primedia Consumer Media and Magazine Group.