SACRAMENTO – Governor Gavin Newsom today announced the following appointments:
Elizabeth A. Heidig, 62, of Sacramento, has been appointed Deputy Director at the Office of Administrative Law. Heidig has been Assistant Chief Counsel at the Office of Administrative Law since 2016, where she was Senior Counsel from 2011 to 2016 and Staff Counsel from 2006 to 2008 and 2009 to 2011. She was Staff Counsel III at the State Teachers’ Retirement System from 2008 to 2009. Heidig was an Associate at Kuykendall Simas LLP in 2005. She was an Associate at the Law Office of Michael J. Rand from 1986 to 1989. Heidig earned a Juris Doctor degree from Thomas M. Cooley Law School. She is a member of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul and Family Promise of Sacramento. This position requires Senate confirmation and the compensation is $178,932. Heidig is registered without party preference.
Michael A. Moodian, 44, of Rancho Mission Viejo, has been reappointed to the California Commission on Judicial Performance, where he has served since 2015. Moodian has been a Lecturer at Chapman University since 2007 and a Lecturer for Chapman’s Attallah College of Educational Studies since 2011. He served in the Army National Guard from 1993 to 1999. Moodian earned a Doctor of Education degree in organizational leadership from Pepperdine University and a Master of Arts degree in communications from California State University, Fullerton. Moodian is a member of the UC Irvine Olive Tree Initiative Board of Directors and Santa Margarita Catholic High School Consultative School Board. This position does not require Senate confirmation and there is no compensation. Moodian is a Democrat.
Victor E. Salazar, 74, of Fresno, has been reappointed to the Commission on Judicial Performance, where he has served since 2020. Salazar has been a Sole Practitioner since 1993. He was County Clerk for the County of Fresno from 2001 to 2012. Salazar was Managing Attorney at Central California Legal Services from 1998 to 2001. He was an Attorney at Forrest and McLaughlin from 1997 to 1998. Salazar was Assistant General Counsel at the Agricultural Labor Relations Board from 1995 to 1997 and Staff Counsel for the Department of Fair Employment and Housing from 1993 to 1995. Salazar is a member of the State Bar Pro Bono Program. He is a member of the board of directors for Poverello House Inc., Proteus Inc., and the Central California Employment Round Table. Salazar earned a Juris Doctor degree from the San Joaquin College of Law. This position does not require Senate confirmation and there is no compensation. Salazar is a Democrat.
Beatriz E. Tapia, 50, of Whittier, has been appointed to the Commission on Judicial Performance. Tapia has been Department Chair at East Los Angeles College since 2019 and a Professor since 2007. She was Adjunct Faculty for the Women’s Studies Program at Santiago Canyon College in 2007. Tapia held several positions at California State University, Fullerton from 2005 to 2007, including Adjunct Professor for the Women and Gender Studies Department, Chicana and Chicano Studies Department and Sociology Department. She was a Lecturer for the Chicana/o Studies Department at California State University, Los Angeles from 2001 to 2003. Tapia earned a Master of Arts degree in ethnic studies from the University of California, Berkeley. She is a member of the National Association of Chicana and Chicano Studies. This position does not require Senate confirmation and there is no compensation. Tapia is a Democrat.
Priscila Ocen, 41, of Los Angeles, has been appointed to the Committee on the Revision of the Penal Code. Ocen has been a Professor of Law at Loyola Law School since 2012. She was Critical Race Studies Law Teaching Fellow at the University of California, Los Angeles from 2010 to 2012. Ocen was Thurgood Marshall Fellow at the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights of the San Francisco Bay Area from 2008 to 2010. She was a law clerk for Judge Eric L. Clay of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit from 2007 to 2008. Ocen was a Jesse M. Unruh Fellow at the Office of Assemblymember Mark Ridley-Thomas from 2003 to 2004. She earned a Juris Doctor degree from the University of California, Los Angeles School of Law. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Ocen is a Democrat.
Richard A. Bookwalter, 61, of San Francisco has been reappointed to the California Board of Occupational Therapy, where he has served since 2014. Bookwalter has been an Occupational Therapist for Durable Medical Equipment and Rehabilitation Outcomes for Kaiser Foundation Hospitals Inc. since 2008. He was Supervisor of Outpatient Rehabilitation at the California Pacific Medical Center from 2006 to 2008, Occupational Therapist and Program Manager at the Institute on Aging from 1996 to 2006 and a Home Health Occupational Therapist at the University of California, San Francisco Medical Center Home Health Care from 1998 to 1999. Bookwalter was an Occupational Therapist at the Davies Medical Center from 1995 to 1997, a Development Associate at the Manpower Demonstration Research Corporation from 1988 to 1993 and a Manager in Development Communications at the Columbia University Teachers College from 1986 to 1987. He is a member of American Occupational Therapy Association and Occupational Therapy Association of California. Bookwalter earned a Master of Science degree in occupational therapy from San Jose State University. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Bookwalter is a Democrat.
Tonya Fairley, 49, of Pasadena, has been appointed to the Board of Barbering and Cosmetology. Fairley has been Owner of Strandz on Grand Inc. since 2017, TS Fairley Leadership and Personnel Development Co. since 2015 and Strandz Hair Studio since 2013. She is a member of the John Maxwell Team and the International Association of Women. This position requires Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Fairley is a Democrat.
Sandra D. Sims, 52, of Los Angeles, has been appointed to the State Board of Optometry. Sims was Principal Analyst and Policy Human Resources Analyst at the Los Angeles County Department of Human Resources from 2007 to 2016. She was a Civil Service Advocate at the Department of Children and Family Services from 2006 to 2007. Sims is a member of SAG-AFTRA. 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 $100 per diem. Sims is a Democrat.
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