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Category: California News

Sacramento, California - Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. today announced the following appointments:

Kim Craig, 41, of Sacramento, has been appointed deputy cabinet secretary in the Office of the Governor. Craig has served as special assistant in the Office of California State Assembly Speaker Toni G. Atkins since 2014. She was an advocate at KP Public Affairs from 2012 to 2014, chief of staff in the Office of California State Assemblymember Toni G. Atkins from 2010 to 2012 and deputy chief of staff in the Office of California State Senator Denise Moreno Ducheny from 2005 to 2010. Craig served as senior policy adviser in the Office of San Diego City Councilmember Toni G. Atkins from 2000 to 2005 and field representative in the Office of California State Assemblymember Denise Moreno Ducheny from 1996 to 2000. She earned a Master of Public Administration degree from San Diego State University. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $159,276. Craig is a Democrat.

Gina Plate, 46, of San Diego, has been reappointed to the California Advisory Commission on Special Education, where she has served since 2012. Plate has been senior adviser for special education at the California Charter Schools Association since 2009. She was director of education at the Seneca Center for Children and Families from 1996 to 2010. Plate earned a Master of Education degree in special education from the University of San Diego. This position does not require Senate confirmation and there is no compensation. Plate is a Democrat.

Mariano Sanz, 53, of Long Beach, has been reappointed to the California Advisory Commission on Special Education, where he has served since 2012. Sanz has been a school counselor for the Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified School District since 2001. He served as a school counselor for the Long Beach Unified School District from 1994 to 2001 and for the Paramount Unified School District from 1990 to 1994. Sanz was an elementary school teacher at the Los Angeles Unified School District from 1987 to 1990. He is a member of the Harbor Regional Center Board of Trustees. He earned a Master of Science degree in school counseling from National University and a Master of Science degree in school psychology from Universidad Complutense de Madrid. This positon does not require Senate confirmation and there is no compensation. Sanz is a Democrat.

Lucas Espericueta, 28, of Bakersfield, has been appointed to the 15th District Agricultural Association, Kern County Fair Board of Directors. Espericueta has been vice president at Farm Credit West since 2011. He is a member of the Kern County Farm Bureau Board, Kern County Basque Club and the Buttonwillow Lions Club. This position does not require Senate confirmation and there is no compensation. Espericueta is a Republican.

Julia Durand, 52, of Granite Bay, has been appointed to the 20th District Agricultural Association, Gold Country Fair Board of Directors. Durand was director at the San Francisco City and County Employees' Retirement System from 2013 to 2014. She was the director of defined contribution solutions at the California State Teachers’ Retirement System from 2007 to 2013 and held several positons at the California Public Employees’ Retirement System from 1988 to 2007, including call center supervisor and account manager. She is a member of the International Foundation for Retirement Education Board of Directors. This position does not require Senate confirmation and there is no compensation. Durand is a Democrat.

Lucas Parnell, 35, of Auburn, has been reappointed to the 20th District Agricultural Association, Gold Country Fair Board of Directors, where he has served since 2007. Parnell has been a vice president, manager and commercial loan officer at Community 1st Bank and owner and chief financial officer at Parnell Dickinson Inc. since 2007. He was a commercial banking officer at Comerica Bank from 2004 to 2007. This position does not require Senate confirmation and there is no compensation. Parnell is a Republican.

Keri Scott, 54, of Lincoln, has been appointed to the 20th District Agricultural Association, Gold Country Fair Board of Directors. Scott has been a secretary at Custom Grading Inc. since 2014. She served as a deputy probation officer at the Placer County Probation Department from 1985 to 1998 and from 2007 to 2014. This position does not require Senate confirmation and there is no compensation. Scott is a Republican.

Kevin Chappell, 51, of Elk Grove, has been appointed to the Board of Parole Hearings. Chappell has been a correctional administrator retired annuitant at California Correctional Health Care Services since 2015. He served as warden at San Quentin State Prison from 2012 to 2014 and held several positions at Folsom State Prison from 2010 to 2012, including chief deputy warden and associate warden. Chappell was chief of the Classification Services Unit at the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation from 2009 to 2010, where he was facility captain from 2006 to 2008 and a correctional administrator in the Division of Adult Institutions from 2008 to 2009. He was a lieutenant at the Richard A. McGee Correctional Training Center from 2004 to 2006, served in several positions at the California Medical Facility, Vacaville from 1995 to 2004, including lieutenant, counselor and sergeant, and was a correctional officer at Folsom State Prison from 1987 to 1995. This position requires Senate confirmation the compensation is $137,956. Chappell is a Democrat.