SACRAMENTO – Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. today announced the following appointments:
Jennifer Johnson, 43, of Sacramento, has been appointed deputy legislative secretary in the Office of Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. Johnson was manager of the education strategic initiative group at Apple from 2011 to 2016. She was an education programs consultant at the California State Board of Education from 2008 to 2011, an external affairs project manager at the Oakland Unified School District from 2007 to 2008 and a law clerk at Cannata, Ching and O’Toole LLP from 2006 to 2007. Johnson was a substitute teacher for the Marysville Joint Unified School District from 2005 to 2006, a consultant for the California Department of Education from 2004 to 2005 and a government affairs representative in the Office of the California State Superintendent of Public Instruction from 2003 to 2004. Johnson is a founding member of the Sacramento Latina Leaders Network and a member of the National Women’s Political Caucus. She earned a Juris Doctor degree from the University of California, Hastings College of the Law. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $126,000. Johnson is a Democrat.
Jeana Ericksen, 47, of Santa Rosa, has been appointed to the California State Council on Developmental Disabilities. Ericksen was a warehouse worker at Redwood Empire Industries from 1992 to 1994. She is a member of the City of Santa Rosa Paratransit Users Group. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Ericksen is a Republican.
David Connolly, 52, of Alameda, has been reappointed to the Board of Pilot Commissioners for the Bays of San Francisco, San Pablo and Suisun, where he has served since 2013. Connolly has been vice president of the Sailors’ Union of the Pacific since 2000. He was an operator at the San Francisco Bar Pilots from 1996 to 2000 and an able seaman at Chevron Shipping Company from 1991 to 1996. Connolly is a trustee of the Sailors’ Union of the Pacific Welfare Plan and a delegate and former president at the Alameda Labor Council. This position requires Senate confirmation and there is no compensation. Connolly is registered without party preference.
David Hoppes, 65, of San Francisco, has been reappointed to the Board of Pilot Commissioners for the Bays of San Francisco, San Pablo and Suisun, where he has served since 2016. Hoppes has been a representative at the Pacific Merchant Shipping Association since 2017. He held several positions at the Matson Navigation Company from 1989 to 2015, including senior vice president of ocean services, general manager of sales and operations manager. He was principal at Cargo Handling Specialists from 1985 to 1989. Hoppes held several positions at the Marine Terminals Corporation from 1978 to 1985, including general manager, operations manager and director of safety. He was a loss-prevention specialist at the Pacific Maritime Association from 1976 to 1978. Hoppes earned a Master of Business Administration degree in finance from the University of California, Los Angeles. This position requires Senate confirmation and there is no compensation. Hoppes is a Democrat.
Einar Nyborg, 50, of Ukiah, has been appointed to the Board of Pilot Commissioners for the Bays of San Francisco, San Pablo and Suisun. Nyborg has been a pilot at the San Francisco Bar Pilots since 1995. He was a harbor tug captain at Crowley Maritime Services from 1991 to 1995, tank vessel deck officer at the Keystone Shipping Company from 1989 to 1993 and first officer and deck boss for Arctic Alaska Seafoods in 1988. This position requires Senate confirmation and there is no compensation. Nyborg is a Republican.
Zach Friend, 38, of Santa Cruz, has been appointed to the California Film Commission. Friend has been supervisor for Santa Cruz County, District Two since 2013. He was a press information officer at the City of Santa Cruz Police Department from 2005 to 2013, press secretary at Obama for America in Pennsylvania in 2008 and deputy director of special projects for the Democratic National Committee in 2004. Friend is a board member of the American Red Cross, Central Coast and was chair of the Santa Cruz County Democratic Party from 2005 to 2011 and a member of the Democratic Policy Committee for the U.S. Senate in 2004. This position does not require Senate confirmation and there is no compensation. Friend is a Democrat.
Jerry Ketcham, 63, of Westlake Village, has been appointed to the California Film Commission. Ketcham has been senior vice president at Walt Disney Pictures since 1999. He is a member of the Directors Guild of America. This position does not require Senate confirmation and there is no compensation. Ketcham is registered without party preference.
Debra Langford, 53, of Marina del Rey, has been appointed to the California Film Commission. Langford has been assistant dean for diversity and inclusion at the University of Southern California Marshall School of Business since 2015, where she was assistant director of diversity in 2013. She was corporate vice president of business diversity and inclusion at NBC Universal from 2009 to 2011. She is board vice president of Colour Entertainment and a member of the United Service Organizations Digital Advisory Council and the W. K. Kellogg Foundation Truth, Racial, Healing and Transformation Committee. This position does not require Senate confirmation and there is no compensation. Langford is a Democrat.