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Conference of Minority Transportation Officials (COMTO) Host Scholarship Dinner

Published

6 years ago

December 15, 2017

Left to Right: Beverly Greene, Schatzie Allen Jefferson and Dana Lang celebrate at the COMTO Scholarship Dinner.

The Conference of Minority Transportation Officials (COMTO) of Northern California held its 14th Annual Holiday Dinner and Scholarship Awards Program at the Marriott Hotel in downtown Oakland on December 8th. The event brought together individuals and organizations making outstanding contributions in transportation while furthering the goal of supporting young people of color who wish to enter transportation-related careers. Leaders from AC Transit, BART, among others joined elected officials in the celebration.

“The COMTO NorCal Annual Scholarship and Industry Awards Dinner is a perfect opportunity for transportation professionals to come together to support emerging transportation professionals, honor transportation officials of color, and acknowledge agencies that have demonstrated a commitment to excellence, equity, and inclusion,” said COMTO President Beverly Greene. “In this season for giving we are happy to continue to be able to provide scholarships to deserving students.”

According to Greene, the organization has awarded over $225,000 in financial support to bay area students of color who are pursuing transportation related careers over the last 13 years. “This year, scholarships we awarded seven deserving students seeking careers in transportation,” said Greene. Greene also said that many of the COMTO’s former honorees are now employed as professionals at SFMTA, BART and AC Transit, Parsons Brinckerhoff and other transportation companies.

The 2017 honorees included, Schatzie Jefferson, President of The Allen Group who was presented the Private Agency of the Year Award. Ed Reiskin, Director of Transportation, SFMTA was awarded the Public Agency of the Year Award and the Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Dr. Beverly Scott, CEO, Beverly Scott Associates, LLC. Melanie Crotty, MTC’s Director of Operations, was also awarded posthumously and David Crotty received the award on his sister’s behalf.

Scholarships were presented to college students; Jason Luke, Berkeley City College, Jayda Preyer, College of Alameda, Joseph Clisagne, University of the Pacific student, and UC Berkeley Students; Marie Pichay and Yeabsra Habtegebriel. Donna Ramirez-Cruz, Sonoma State and Sabastian Rico, Mendocino College were also awarded scholarships.

Presenters included Shelia Evans, Vice President, COMTO Norcal, Rayburn, V.P. BART Board of Directors, Mark Williams, AC Transit Board, Candace A. Sue, Director of Communications ad Marketing, SFMTA, Linda Crayton, Vice President, Airport Commission, SFO, Raymond Odulami, MTC, Dana Lang, SFO, Jesus Vargas, VSCE, Inc. and Leslie Rogers, FTA Regional Administrator.
For more information visit: Comtonorcal.org

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Oakland Post: Week of April 24 – 30, 2024

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of April 24 – 30, 2024

Published

5 days ago

April 26, 2024

Oakland Post

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Alameda County

DA Pamela Price Stands by Mom Who Lost Son to Gun Violence in Oakland

Last week, The Post published a photo showing Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price with Carol Jones, whose son, Patrick DeMarco Scott, was gunned down by an unknown assailant in 2018.

Published

1 week ago

April 22, 2024

Oakland Post

District Attorney Pamela Price with Carol Jones

Publisher’s note: Last week, The Post published a photo showing Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price with Carol Jones, whose son, Patrick DeMarco Scott, was gunned down by an unknown assailant in 2018. The photo was too small for readers to see where the women were and what they were doing. Here we show Price and Jones as they complete a walk in memory of Scott. For more information and to contribute, please contact Carol Jones at 510-978-5517 at morefoundation.help@gmail.com. Courtesy photo.

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City Government

Vallejo Welcomes Interim City Manager Beverli Marshall

At Tuesday night’s Council meeting, the Vallejo City Council appointed Beverli Marshall as the interim city manager. Her tenure in the City Manager’s Office began today, Wednesday, April 10. Mayor Robert McConnell praised Marshall’s extensive background, noting her “wide breadth of experience in many areas that will assist the City and its citizens in understanding the complexity of the many issues that must be solved” in Vallejo.

Published

1 week ago

April 22, 2024

Oakland Post

Beverli Marshall began her first day with the City on April 10. ICMA image.

Special to The Post

At Tuesday night’s Council meeting, the Vallejo City Council appointed Beverli Marshall as the interim city manager. Her tenure in the City Manager’s Office began today, Wednesday, April 10.

Mayor Robert McConnell praised Marshall’s extensive background, noting her “wide breadth of experience in many areas that will assist the City and its citizens in understanding the complexity of the many issues that must be solved” in Vallejo.

Current City Manager Michael Malone, whose official departure is slated for April 18, expressed his well wishes. “I wish the City of Vallejo and Interim City Manager Marshall all the best in moving forward on the progress we’ve made to improve service to residents.” Malone expressed his hope that the staff and Council will work closely with ICM Marshall to “ensure success and prosperity for the City.”

According to the Vallejo Sun, Malone stepped into the role of interim city manager in 2021 and became permanent in 2022. Previously, Malone served as the city’s water director and decided to retire from city service e at the end of his contract which is April 18.

“I hope the excellent work of City staff will continue for years to come in Vallejo,” he said. “However, recent developments have led me to this decision to announce my retirement.”

When Malone was appointed, Vallejo was awash in scandals involving the housing division and the police department. A third of the city’s jobs went unfilled during most of his tenure, making for a rocky road for getting things done, the Vallejo Sun reported.

At last night’s council meeting, McConnell explained the selection process, highlighting the council’s confidence in achieving positive outcomes through a collaborative effort, and said this afternoon, “The Council is confident that by working closely together, positive results will be obtained.”

While the search for a permanent city manager is ongoing, an announcement is expected in the coming months.

On behalf of the City Council, Mayor McConnell extended gratitude to the staff, citizen groups, and recruitment firm.

“The Council wishes to thank the staff, the citizens’ group, and the recruitment firm for their diligent work and careful consideration for the selection of what is possibly the most important decision a Council can make on behalf of the betterment of our City,” McConnell said.

The Vallejo Sun contributed to this report.