SACRAMENTO — Governor Gavin Newsom today announced the following appointments: Joe Stephenshaw, 47, of Sacramento, has been appointed Senior Counselor on Infrastructure and Fiscal Affairs in the Office of the Governor. Stephenshaw has been Staff Director for the Senate Budget and Fiscal Review Committee since 2017. He has held several positions in the California Legislature since 2008, including serving as a Policy Consultant in the Office of the Senate President pro Tempore, a Special Advisor to the Speaker of the Assembly, and as a Budget Consultant for both the Assembly Budget Committee and the Senate Budget and Fiscal Review Committee. Stephenshaw was a Budget Analyst for the California Department of Finance from 2005 to 2008. He earned a Master of Business Administration degree from California State University, Sacramento. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $200,196. Stephenshaw is a Democrat.M. Dhakshike Wickrema, 49, of Los Angeles, has been appointed Deputy Secretary of Homelessness at the Business, Consumer Services, and Housing Agency. Wickrema has been Senior Deputy for Homelessness and Housing for Los Angeles City Council District 10 since 2020. She was Senior Deputy for Homelessness and Mental Health for Los Angeles County Supervisorial District 2 from 2015 to 2020. Wickrema was a Senior Project Manager at the Shelter Partnership Inc. from 2007 to 2015. She earned a Master of City Planning degree from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $176,580. Wickrema is a Democrat.Kimberly Plummer, 59, of Lemon Grove, has been appointed to the California Global Education Project Advisory Board. Plummer has been Director of Product Marketing EL, ELD and Spanish for Benchmark Education Company since 2021. She held several positions at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt from 2003 to 2020, including Sales Strategy Director and Consultant Manager. Plummer was English Language Learner and Intervention Specialist at Savvas Learning Company from 2009 to 2014. She was a Consultant and Curriculum Specialist for Language Arts and Social Studies at McGraw Hill from 2001 to 2003. Plummer was a Teacher for the San Diego Unified School District from 1984 to 2001. She earned a Master of Arts degree in Teaching and Learning from Point Loma Nazarene College. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Plummer is a Democrat.Mark Burri, 49, of Burlingame, has been appointed to the California Apprenticeship Council. Burri has been Business Manager, Treasurer and Financial Secretary at Plumbers & Pipefitters Local Union 467 since 2016. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Burri is a Democrat. Thomas Adams, 61, of Davis, has been appointed to the California History-Social Science Project Advisory Board. Adams has been a Board Trustee for Davis Joint Unified School District since 2014. He was Deputy Superintendent of the Teaching and Learning Support Branch at the California Department of Education from 1998 to 2019. Adams earned a Doctor of Philosophy degree in History from the University of California, Davis. This position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Adams is a Democrat.
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