Governor Newsom announces appointments 6.21.24

SACRAMENTO – Governor Gavin Newsom today announced the following appointments:

Derek Kirk, of Sacramento, has been appointed Senior Advisor for Economic Policy at the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development. Kirk has been Assistant Deputy Secretary of Climate Economy at the California Labor and Workforce Development Agency since 2023. He was  Community-Based Solutions Supervisor at the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development from 2022 to 2023, where he was Regional Business Development Specialist from 2020 to 2022. Kirk was Director of Community Engagement and Advocacy for Visit SLO CAL from 2019 to 2020. He was President and Chief Executive Officer of the Atascadero Chamber of Commerce from 2018 to 2019. Kirk was Director of Community and Government Relations for the North Orange County Chamber of Commerce from 2016 to 2017. He earned a Master of Arts degree in Social Justice and Community Organizing from Prescott College and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from Point Loma Nazarene University. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $155,796. Kirk is a Democrat. 

Poonum Rashmikant Patel, of Hayward, has been appointed Deputy Director of Business Development at the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development, where she has been Assistant Deputy Director of Business Investment Services since 2020 and has served in several positions since 2013, including Senior Business Development Specialist, Senior Permit Assistant, Permit Assistant Specialist and Senior Project Specialist. Patel served as Special Assistant to Appointments in the Office of Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. from 2011 to 2013. She earned a Master of Business Administration degree 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 $133,608. Patel is a Democrat.

Kayla Ungar, of Sacramento, has been appointed Deputy Director for Strategic Program Planning at the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development. Ungar has been Interim Director of California for All Women and Mental Health Programs in the Office of Governor Gavin Newsom since 2024 and served as Chief Deputy Director at the California Arts Council from 2023 to 2024. She was Special Advisor for Climate, Water, and Drought at the California Department of Food and Agriculture from 2022 to 2023. Ungar served as an Assistant Deputy Cabinet Secretary in the Office of Governor Gavin Newsom from 2019 to 2022. She was Chief of Staff for SGR Consulting from 2016 to 2019 and Finance Associate there from 2014 to 2015. Ungar earned a Master of Public Policy and Public Administration degree from Northwestern University and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from the University of California, Berkeley. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $144,204. Ungar is a Democrat.

Zahirah Mann, of Pasadena, has been appointed to the California Transportation Commission. Mann has been President and Chief Executive Officer at the South Los Angeles Transit Empowerment Zone (SLATE-Z) since 2021. She held several roles at The Ralph M. Parsons Foundation from 2017 to 2021, including Senior Program Officer and Program Officer. Mann was a Program Officer at the Annenberg Foundation in 2016. She was a Home For Good Program Manager at the United Way of Greater Los Angeles from 2013 to 2016. Mann was an Attorney for Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles from 2010 to 2012. She was self-employed as a Consultant from 2009 to 2010. Mann was an Associate at Strumwasser & Woocher LLP from 2004 to 2008. She was an Attorney at the Natural Resources Defense Council from 2002 to 2004. Mann is a member of the Center for Nonprofit Management Board, the Chandler School Board of Trustees and the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco’s Community Advisory Council. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from Vassar College and a Juris Doctor degree from Tulane Law School. This position requires Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Mann is a Democrat. 

Mark Krausse, of Clarksburg, has been appointed to the California Public Employment Relations Board. Krausse has been Director of State Agency Relations for Pacific Gas and Electric since 2007. He was Executive Director of the Fair Political Practices Commission from 2000 to 2007. Krausse was Director of Government Relations for the Doctors Company from 1996 to 1997 and Senior Consultant in the California State Senate from 1994 to 1996. Krausse was Senior Consultant in the California State Assembly from 1991 to 1994 and an Associate Consultant in the California State Senate from 1988 to 1990. Krausse earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Government from California State University, Sacramento and a Juris Doctor degree from the University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law. This position requires Senate confirmation and the compensation is $175, 578. Krausse is a Democrat.