SACRAMENTO – Gov. Jerry Brown on May 31 announced the following appointments to the California Commission on Asian and Pacific Islander American Affairs.
• Rajan Gill, 20, of Yuba City, has been a student at UC Davis since 2012 and has served as managing partner at Gill Ranches since 2010. He was lead researcher at Kesar Singh Dhillon Ghadar Memorial Trust in 2012. Gill is vice president of Phi Alpha Theta, Davis Chapter. He is a Republican.
• Phong La, 36, of Fremont has been an attorney at the Law Office of Phong H. La since 2008. He has been vice president and general counsel at PTR Manufacturing Inc. and general counsel at Sai La Family LP since 2004. La was an adjunct professor at San Jose City College from 2007 to 2011 and a trial attorney at Kimball Tirey and St. John LLP from 2005 to 2006. La is treasurer of the Newark Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors, co-president of APA Democratic Caucus of Alameda County and a member of the City of Fremont Human Relations Commission. He is a board member of Bay Area Women Against Rape, Asian Pacific Islander Americans for Public Affairs Association and Asian Americans for Good Government Political Action Committee. La earned a J.D. from the University of California, Hastings College of the Law. La is a Democrat.
• Kirin Macapugay, 35, of Chula Vista has been director of marketing and business development at Operation Samahan Community Health Centers since 2012. She was resource development manager at the Jacobs Center for Neighborhood Innovation from 2010 to 2012, director of development at Operation Homefront from 2007 to 2010, development manager at the Union of Pan Asian Communities from 2006 to 2007, and a foundation manager at Paradise Valley Hospital from 2001 to 2006. Macapugay is a board member of the San Diego Association of Nonprofit Professionals, National Asian Pacific Women’s Forum San Diego, Break the Silence Against Domestic Violence, BIBAK San Diego and Kalingas North America Network. She earned her MSW from CSU San Diego and is a CFRE International-certified fundraising executive. Macapugay is a Democrat.
• Catherine Mann, 62, of Elk Grove has been a case manager at Turning Point Community Programs Northgate Point Regional Support Team since 1998. She is president and founder of the To’utupu ‘oe ‘Otu Felenite Association and a board member of Health for All, Pacific Rim Foundation, Council of Asian Pacific Islanders Together for Advocacy and Leadership and Asian Pacific Islander American Public Affairs Association. Mann is registered “decline to state.”
• Tamiko Wong, 38, of San Francisco recently became executive director of the Oakland Asian Cultural Center and has been an independent consultant since 2010. She was the conference planning consultant for the 2011 Advancing Justice Conference and is a board member of the Japanese Cultural and Community Center of Northern California, Asian Business League of San Francisco, OCA San Francisco and Cherry Blossom Alumnae. Wong is a Democrat.
These positions do not require Senate confirmation and there is no compensation.
The mission of the commission on is to elevate the political, economic, and social issues of Asians and Pacific Islanders by contributing to and strengthening how state government addresses the needs, issues, and concerns of the diverse and complex Asian and Pacific Islander American communities.
Former Assemblymember George Nakano (D-Torrance) authored AB 116 in 2002 to establish the commission, with members of the Asian Pacific Islander Legislative Caucus co authoring the bill. The commission, which has been operating since January 2004, consists of 13 leaders, appointed by the governor and the Legislature, from different vocations, backgrounds, and regions of the state.
On the Web: http://caapicommission.org/cms/
