Sacramento, Conference - Governor Gavin Newsom today announced the following appointments:
Yumi Sera, 60, of Elk Grove, has been appointed deputy director of statewide initiatives at the California Complete Count – Census 2020. Sera has been lead regional program manager at Census 2020 since 2019. She was a consultant for the International Fund for Agricultural Development from 2018 to 2019. She was director of partnerships and communications at the Disability Rights Fund from 2016 to 2018, where she was operations director from 2010 to 2013. She was director of philanthropic initiatives at Amplifier Strategies from 2013 to 2014, program officer at the Sacramento Region Community Foundation from 2008 to 2010 and operations officer at the World Bank from 1998 to 2006. Sera was program manager for the Peace Corps from 1995 to 1998, executive director at the Gateway Pacific Foundation Earth Train from 1992 to 1994 and a Peace Corps volunteer in Senegal from 1983 to 1985. She is co-chair of the International Funders for Indigenous Peoples Board of Directors, a trustee of the World Affairs Council of Northern California and a member of the APIs Rise Fund. She earned a Master of Arts degree in public and private management from the Yale School of Management. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $132,000. Sera is a Democrat.
Cameron Erin Shaw, 37, of Los Angeles, has been appointed deputy director of the California African American Museum. She was executive director of Pelican Bomb from 2012 to 2019 and became its founding editor in 2011. Shaw has been a freelance arts writer since 2008, publishing in the New York Times, Art in America, Bomb Magazine, the Times-Picayune, the Los Angeles Review of Books, East of Borneo and other periodicals and books. Shaw held multiple positions with David Zwirner from 2005 to 2008, including research manager and assistant to the gallery director. She was a curatorial intern of photographs with the National Gallery of Art from 2004 to 2005 and was an intern at the J. Paul Getty Museum and the Yale Center for British Art. Shaw is a member of the Common Field Board of Directors. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $121,044. Shaw is a Democrat.
Oscar Gonzales, 51, of Davis, has been appointed to the California Horse Racing Board. Gonzales has been vice president of government and community relations at Aura Financial Corporation since 2017. He was a consultant for the Cal State Los Angeles Dreamers Resource Center in 2017. Gonzales served in several positions at the U.S. Department of Agriculture from 2009 to 2017, including state executive director at the Farm Service Agency, deputy chief of staff in the Office of the Secretary, deputy assistant secretary for administration and deputy director of intergovernmental affairs. He was associate director of the United Farm Workers Foundation from 2007 to 2009. Gonzales is a cofounder and member of Rural Forward. This position requires Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Gonzales is a Democrat.
Wendy Mitchell, 48, of Los Angeles, has been appointed to the California Horse Racing Board. Mitchell has been principal of WM Consulting Inc. since 2006. She served on the California Coastal Commission from 2011 to 2016 and the Los Angeles South Valley Area Planning Commission from 2009 to 2011. Mitchell was vice president of public policy at the National Association of Women Business Owners from 2008 to 2010 and a member of the Board of Directors of the California League of Conservation Voters from 2007 to 2018 and the Women’s Political Committee in 2018. She was chief of staff in the Office of California State Senator Denise Ducheny from 2003 to 2005. Mitchell earned a Master of Public Administration degree from the University of Southern California. This position requires Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Mitchell is a Democrat.
Jose “Moke” Simon III, 47, of Middletown, has been appointed to the State Board of Fire Services. Simon has been district 1 county supervisor for Lake County since 2017. He has served as tribal chairman at the Middletown Rancheria of Pomo Indians of California since 1997. This position does not require Senate confirmation and there is no compensation. Simon is a Democrat.
