It just kind of happened, the siblings say.
Arminé Chaparyan MPA ’01 and Aram Chaparyan MPA ’03 not only earned their master’s degrees from the USC Price School, but in May 2021, they achieved a rarity in municipal governance: a brother and a sister both serving as city managers in Los Angeles County.
An employee of the City of Torrance since 2001, Aram rose through the ranks to become city manager in October 2020 – one year before his sister was named city manager of South Pasadena.
It wasn’t planned, they insist.
But all their lives, they’ve shared parallel experiences.
Both attended John Muir High School in the Pasadena Unified School District after their parents emigrated from their homeland, Armenia.
Both were Associated Student Body presidents at John Muir High.
Both earned their undergraduate degrees in political sciences at University of California schools: Aram at UC Irvine (’99) and Arminé at UCLA (’00).