SACRAMENTO – Governor Gavin Newsom today announced the following appointments:
Christina W.H. Wong, 54, of Chico, has been appointed to the Board for Professional Engineers, Land Surveyors and Geologists. Wong has been Senior Program Coordinator at the Glenn County Health and Human Services Agency since 2002. She was a Mental Health Therapist at the Butte County Probation Department from 2008 to 2020. Wong was a Master of Social Work Coordinator for the School of Social Work at the University of Alabama from 1993 to 1997. She was Dean of Student Affairs at Hong Kong Shue Yan University from 1993 to 1997. Wong earned a Master of Social Work degree from the University of Hull. She is a member of the National Association of Social Workers. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Wong is a Democrat.
Magali Flores Núñez, 29, of Los Angeles, has been appointed to the Structural Pest Control Board. Flores Núñez has been ReadyNation California Deputy State Director at the Council for a Strong America since 2019. Flores Núñez was Executive Outreach Associate at The Children’s Partnership from 2016 to 2017. She was Constituent Advocate at the Office of Los Angeles City Councilmember Mike Bonin in 2016. Flores Núñez was a Community Health Outreach Coordinator at Mission City Community Network from 2014 to 2015. She was College Advisor at the East Bay Consortium from 2011 to 2013. Flores Núñez earned a Master of Public Health degree from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Flores Núñez is a Democrat.
Harold Ashe, 58, of Lincoln, has been appointed to the State Council on Developmental Disabilities. Ashe has been an In-Home Provider since 2016, providing care to his 11-year-old son with Down Syndrome and his 8-year-old son with Autism. He was a Correctional Officer at San Quentin State Prison from 1990 to 2001. Ashe is a Foundation Board Member for UCP. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Ashe is a Democrat.
Viviana Barnwell, 52, of San Jose, has been appointed to the State Council on Developmental Disabilities. Barnwell has been a Parent and Education Disability Advocate since 2017. She held multiple positions in the San Jose Unified School District, including Family Engagement Instructional Coach, Curriculum and Instructional Coach and Bilingual Teacher from 2006 to 2021. She is a member of the DS Task Force Services Access and Equity Workgroup, the Racial Disparities Reduction Committee, the MIND Institute LEND Program and the Association of University Centers on Disabilities. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Barnwell is registered without party preference.
Shawn Costello, 59, of Dublin, has been appointed to the State Council on Developmental Disabilities. Costello has been a Game Tech at Chuck E. Cheese, Dublin since 2018, where he has worked since 2001. He is Vice President of People First Oakland, Vice Chairperson of the Dublin Human Services Commission and a member of the Paratransit Advisory and Planning Commission Oakland, Consumer Advisory Committee for the Regional Center of the East Bay and the California Department of Developmental Services Consumer Advisory Committee. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Costello is registered without party preference.
Michael Ellis, 43, of Sanger, has been appointed to the State Council on Developmental Disabilities. Ellis was an Emergency Medical Technician for American Ambulance from 2012 to 2016. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Ellis is registered without party preference.
Harold Fujita, 62, of Glendora, has been appointed to the State Council on Developmental Disabilities. Fujita has been Human Resources Director for the City of Los Angeles Department of Recreation and Parks since 2000. He was Director of Human Resources for the City of Los Angeles Information Technology Agency from 1996 to 2000. Fujita earned a Master of Public Administration degree from California State University Dominguez Hills. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Fujita is a Democrat.
Cathay Liu, 54, of Alhambra, has been appointed to the State Council on Developmental Disabilities. Liu has been Training Coordinator for the Chinese Parents Association for the Disabled since 1990. She is a member of KEEN LA. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Liu is registered without party preference.
Leticia Alejandrez, 61, of West Sacramento, has been reappointed to the Private Investigator Disciplinary Review Committee, where she has served since 2017. Alejandrez has been Director of Telehealth and Human Services for the California Emerging Technology Fund since 2020. She was Director of Communications for The California Endowment from 2013 to 2019. Alejandrez was Executive Director for the California Family Resource Association from 2005 to 2012, a Program Director for the Foundation Consortium for California’s Children and Youth from 1999 to 2005, an Associate Consultant for the California School Boards Association from 1991 to 1997 and a Committee Consultant for the California State Assembly from 1989 to 1991. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Alejandrez is a Democrat.
Janet Henson, 45, of Oak Hills, has been reappointed to the Private Investigator Disciplinary Review Committee, where she has served since 2018. Henson has been Owner and President at Ideal Investigations Inc. since 2011. She has been a Contracted Workers Compensation Surveillance Specialist at the U.S. Postal Service, Office of Inspector General since 2018 and was a Contracted Workers Compensation Analyst there from 2012 to 2015. Henson was a Field Supervisor at Enlightened Investigations from 2008 to 2011. She was a Supervisor and Lead Investigator at Titan Professional Investigations from 2007 to 2011. She is a member of the Professional Investigators of California. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Henson is a Republican.
Armando V. Lopez, 72, of Los Angeles, has been reappointed to the Private Investigator Disciplinary Review Committee, where he has served since 2018. Lopez has been a Contracted Private Investigator for the Los Angeles County Superior Court and Owner of Enterprise Evaluation Services since 1987. He was a Public Defender Investigator for the County of Ventura in 1999, Security Director at Miramar Sheraton Hotel from 1987 to 1999 and retired as a Police Detective from the City of Santa Monica Police Department in 1986. Lopez is a member of the Criminal Courts Bar Association of Los Angeles. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Lopez is registered without party preference.
Maggie M. Soleimani, 58, of Beverly Hills, has been appointed to the Private Investigator Disciplinary Review Committee. Soleimani has been an Sole Practitioner since 1989. Soleimani has been Chair of the Los Angeles County Assessment Appeals Board since 2015. She has been a Public Arbitrator at the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority since 2017. Soleimani earned a Juris Doctor degree from Polytechnic of North London School of Law. She is a member of the Los Angeles County Commission on Disabilities and the State Bar of California. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is a $100 per diem. Soleimani is registered without party preference.
Collin W. Wong, 63, of Orinda, has been reappointed to the Private Investigator Disciplinary Review Committee, where he has served since 2013. Wong has been Qualified Manager, Vice President and Chief Operating Officer at Star Protection Agency and Owner at Collin W. Wong Investigations since 2009. He was a Labor Compliance Investigator for the Northern California Carpenters Regional Council from 2008 to 2009 and a Police Officer at the Oakland Police Department from 1982 to 2008. Wong is a member of the American Society for Industrial Security International, California Association of Licensed Security Agencies, Guards, and Associates, Oakland Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and the Oakland Chinatown Chamber of Commerce. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Wong is a Democrat.
###