Governor Newsom Announces Appointments 8.30.24
SACRAMENTO – Governor Gavin Newsom today announced the following appointments:
Michelle Radmand, of Roseville, has been appointed Chief Deputy Director at the California Arts Council. Radmand has been Deputy Director of the California Office of the Small Business Advocate at the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development since 2021 and was Small Business Specialist, Northern Regional Advisor there from 2020 to 2021. She was Program Manager at the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development from 2019 to 2020 and a Small Business Analyst there from 2018 to 2019. Radmand was International Special Projects Coordinator at the Los Rios Community College District from 2013 to 2018. She earned a Master of Business Administration degree from California Southern University and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from the University of California, Davis. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $160,668. Radmand is a Democrat.
Gregory Leung, of San Francisco, has been appointed to the California Acupuncture Board. Leung was a Health Facilities Evaluator Nurse at the California Department of Public Health from 2020 to 2023, a Health Facilities Evaluator Supervisor there
from 2013 to 2016 and a Health Facilities Evaluator Nurse there from 2001 to 2013. He was a Medical Nurse at Alta Bates Summit Medical Center from 2000 to 2001. Leung was a Medical Charge Nurse at Willow Tree Convalescent Hospital from 2000 to 2001. He was a Home Visit Nurse at Corinthian Medical Services from 1990 to 2001. Leung was an Assistant to the Nurse Director at Parc Pacific Convalescent Hospital from 1998 to 1999. He was a Nurse Assistant at Chinese Hospital from 1997 to 1998. Leung was a Nurse Assistant at Jesuit Community Infirmary from 1993 to 1996. He is a member of the Chinese American Democratic Club and the Lions Club. Leung earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Accounting from San Francisco State University and a Bachelor of Science degree in Nursing from the University of San Francisco. This position requires Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Leung is a Democrat.
Shannon Coe, of Davis, has been appointed to the State Rehabilitation Council.
Coe has been a Community Parent at WarmLine Family Resource Center since 2018. She was a Program Coordinator at the California Foundation for Independent Living Centers from 2011 to 2015. Coe was a Consultant at Humanity & Inclusion in 2009. She was an Urban Youth Development Worker for the U.S. Peace Corps from 2004 to 2006. Coe was a Mentor at the Youth Empowerment Project in 2003. She was Acting Program Coordinator at Fulfillment Fund Teen Access Program from 2002 to 2003. Coe is a member of the State Independent Living Council. She earned a Master of Public Administration degree in International Management from the Middlebury Institute of International Studies and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Mass Communications from the University of California, Berkeley. This position does not require Senate confirmation and there is no compensation. Coe is a Democrat.
Eli Gelardin, of Benicia, has been appointed to the State Rehabilitation Council. Gelardin has been Chief Executive Officer at the Marin Center for Independent Living since 2008. He is a co-founding board member of the Marin Aging and Disability Institute, co-chair of the Aging and Disability Resource Connection Advisory Committee, and a member of the Marin In-Home Supportive Services Public Authority. Gelardin earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from the University of California, Berkeley. This position does not require Senate confirmation and there is no compensation. Gelardin is a Democrat.
Gregory Meza, of Napa, has been appointed to the State Rehabilitation Council. Meza has been a Work-Based Learning Specialist at the Napa Valley Unified School District since 2018. He was a Job Placement Specialist at the Napa Valley Unified School District from 2015 to 2018. Meza is a member of WorkAbility1. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Interdisciplinary Studies from Western Oregon University. This position does not require Senate confirmation and there is no compensation. Meza is a Democrat.
Ivan Guillen, of San Diego, has been reappointed to the State Rehabilitation Council, where he has served since 2020. Guillen has been a Client Assistance Program Advocate at Disability Rights California since 2012, where he has held several positions since 2005, including Administrative Assistant and Referral Advocate. He was a Caregiver at Genesis Developmental Services from 2002 to 2004. Guillen earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Law and Society from the University of California, Santa Barbara. This position does not require Senate confirmation and there is no compensation. Guillen is a Democrat.
Yuki Nagasawa, of Bay Point, has been reappointed to the State Rehabilitation Council, where she has served since 2023. Nagasawa has been Senior Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor at the California Department of Rehabilitation since 2009. She was an English Language Program Departmental Assistant at California State University, Los Angeles from 2007 to 2009. Nagasawa earned a Master of Science degree in Rehabilitation Counseling, a Master of Arts degree in Musicology and a Master of Music degree in Piano Performance from California State University, Los Angeles. She earned a Bachelor of Music degree in Piano Performance from the Osaka College of Music. This position does not require Senate confirmation and there is no compensation. Nagasawa is not registered to vote.
La Trena Robinson, of Hercules, has been reappointed to the State Rehabilitation Council, where she has served since 2023. Robinson has been a Medical Social Worker III at Kaiser Permanente since 2009. She was a Social Worker in the United Kingdom from 2008 to 2009. Robinson is a member of the Executive Board of the Service Employees International Union-United Healthcare Workers, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc. and the Democratic Party of Contra Costa County. She earned a Master of Public Health degree from Touro University, a Master of Social Work degree from Grambling State University and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Government from California State University, Sacramento. This position does not require Senate confirmation and there is no compensation. Robinson is a Democrat.
Cathryn Rivera, of Sacramento, has been appointed to the Cannabis Control Appeals Panel. Rivera served as Appointments Secretary in the Office of Governor Gavin Newsom from 2019 to 2024. She was a Member of the California Agricultural Labor Relations Board from 2002 to 2019. Rivera was Chief Deputy Cabinet Secretary in the Office of Governor Gray Davis from 1999 to 2002. She earned a Juris Doctor degree from the University of California, Berkeley and a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from Arizona State University. This position requires Senate confirmation and the compensation is $180,845. Rivera is a Democrat.
Xiaolan “Lan” Zhou, of Irvine, has been appointed to the Orange County Transportation Authority Board of Directors. Zhou has served as District 12 Director at the California Department of Transportation since 2024, where she has held several roles since 2001, including District 12 Deputy Director of Planning and Local Assistance, Senior Transportation Planner, Associate Transportation Planner and Transportation Engineer. She was Principal Transportation Planner/Traffic Engineer at Northeastern Indiana Metropolitan Planning Organization/Allen County Planning from 1995 to 1999. She earned a Master of Science degree in Civil Engineering from Michigan State University, a Master of Science degree in Urban Planning from Tongji University and a Bachelor of Science degree in Urban and Regional Planning from Nanjing University. This position does not require Senate confirmation and there is no compensation. Zhou is a registered without party preference.
Jason Elliott, of Sacramento, has been appointed to the California Transportation Commission. Elliott has been President of Versus Solutions since 2024. He was Deputy Chief of Staff in the Office of Governor Gavin Newsom from 2022 to 2024, where he served as Senior Counselor from 2019 to 2022. Elliott was Chief of Staff to San Francisco Mayors Ed Lee, London Breed, and Mark Farrell from 2017 to 2018. He previously held several positions in Mayor Lee’s administration from 2011 to 2016, including Deputy Chief of Staff and Legislative Director. Elliott was Policy Advisor in the Office of San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom from 2008 to 2010. Elliott earned a Master of Public Policy degree in Social Policy from the Harvard Kennedy School and a Bachelor of Arts degree in American Studies from Columbia University. This position requires Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Elliott is a Democrat.
Josh Fryday, of Davis, has been appointed Director of the Governor’s Office of Service and Community Engagement. Fryday has been Chief Service Officer at California Volunteers since 2019. He was President of Golden State Opportunity from 2016 to 2019. Fryday had multiple roles at the City of Novato from 2015 to 2019, including Mayor and City Councilmember. He was Chief Operating Officer at NextGen Climate from 2013 to 2016. Fryday served at the rank of Lieutenant in the U.S. Navy from 2008 to 2016. He was a Judge Advocate General for the U.S. Navy from 2009 to 2013. Fryday was a Legal Clerk at the San Francisco District Attorney’s Office in 2008 and at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of California in 2008. Fryday was Northern California Director for John Edwards for President from 2006 to 2008. He was Chief Operations Officer at DCS Congressional from 2004 to 2005. Fryday earned a Juris Doctor degree and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science and Philosophy from the University of California, Berkeley. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $231,720. Fryday is a Democrat.
Samuel Assefa, of Sacramento, has been appointed Director of the Governor’s Office of Land Use and Climate Innovation. Assefa has been Director of the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research since 2021. He was Director of the Seattle Office of Planning and Community Development from 2016 to 2021. Assefa was Senior Urban Designer at the Department of Community Sustainability and Planning for the City of Boulder from 2010 to 2016. He held multiple roles for the City of Chicago from 2004 to 2010, including Director of Land Use and Planning Policy for the Department of Planning and Development and Deputy Chief of Staff for Economic and Physical Development in the Mayor’s Office. He was Director of Special Projects for the San Francisco Department of Planning and Development from 1999 to 2002. Assefa was Senior Urban Designer for SMWM Architecture and Planning from 1993 to 1999. Assefa earned a Master of City Planning degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a Bachelor of Architecture degree from the University of Illinois-Chicago. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $231,720. Assefa is a Democrat.
Gary Tsai, of Los Angeles, has been appointed to the Mental Health Services Oversight and Accountability Commission. Tsai has been Director of the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health’s Substance Abuse Prevention and Control Bureau since 2019, where he was Medical Director and Science Officer from 2014 to 2019. He was Lead Psychiatrist in the San Diego County Emergency Psychiatric Unit from 2013 to 2014. Tsai is a member of the Board of Directors of the National Alliance on Mental Illness California, County Behavioral Health Directors Association, California Health and Human Services Agency Behavioral Health Task Force, and California Department of Health Care Services Behavioral Health Stakeholder Advisory Committee. He earned a Doctor of Medicine degree from the University of California, Davis School of Medicine and a Bachelor of Science degree in Biopsychology from the University of California, Santa Barbara. This position does not require Senate confirmation and there is no compensation. Tsai is a Democrat.
Victoria Brash, of Los Angeles, has been appointed to the California Architects Board. Brash has been a Lead Project Architect at Target since 2022. She was a Senior Design Project Manager for Whole Foods Market from 2020 to 2022. She was a Principal Architect at Victoria Brash Consulting from 2013 to 2020 and a Senior Designer at 5+ Design from 2006 to 2013. Brash earned a Bachelor of Architecture degree from Woodbury University. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Brash is a Democrat.
Erika Castile, of Chula Vista, has been reappointed to the California Commission on Aging, where she has served since 2020. Castile has been Vice President of Operations at Cogir Senior Living since 2023. She was Executive Director at Brookdale Carmel Valley from 2018 to 2020. Castile is a member of the California Association of Health Facilities San Diego Chapter and the National Center for Assisted Living. She earned a Master of Science degree in Gerontology from California State University, San Diego. This position does not require Senate confirmation and there is no compensation. Castile is a Democrat.
