Hilary McLean

Chief Executive Officer,

ALZA Strategies

Hilary McLean is the chief executive officer at ALZA Strategies. She is a public affairs expert who works to improve public policy and advance system change in California. She has extensive experience promoting impactful practices and managing high-stakes communications programs for statewide elected officials, organizations and campaigns, including CORE Districts and Early Edge California. McLean has served as communications director for the California Department of Education, where she developed and managed communications strategies on a wide variety of political and public policy issues. She has also served as press secretary for both Governor Gray Davis and State Superintendent Jack O’Connell. McLean earned her degree in communications from California State University, Chico.

updated 2025

Contributing topics

College access & postsecondary success

Publications by Hilary McLean

April 2012

California’s Early Assessment Program

Its Effectiveness and the Obstacles to Successful Program Implementation

The Early Assessment Program (EAP) is a national model for increasing the number of students who are prepared for college and careers upon graduating high school. It has been recognized by two national consortia as the model for designing new high…