Mayor Quan announces new staff appointments

As Mayor Jean Quan begins her term in office as Oakland’s 49th mayor, she announced Tuesday who will be on her staff. With nine appointments in the various city government departments, Quan picked people to work with her on the budget, in education, federal relations, public safety and more.

“My mayoral office staff is purposefully small,” said Quan in a press release issued by her office. “As a strong mayor, I plan to better integrate the city administrator and mayor’s offices into an executive office to provide more cohesive leadership.”

She appointed Sabrina Landreth, former legislative analyst to the Council Finance and Management Committee, as the transition coordinator and budget director; Lewis Cohen, former assistant superintendent for government, policy and legislation at the Oakland Public Schools, as the senior policy analyst for education; Richard Cowan who served as Quan’s District 4 chief of staff during her two terms as councilmember, as her special assistant for boards and commissions appointments; Maisha Everhart, formerly a senior consultant to Assemblyman Sandre Swanson, as her special assistant for federal relations; Reygan Harmon, formerly complaint investigator with the Citizen’s Police Review Board, as the senior policy analyst for public safety; Sue Piper, formerly a policy analyst for Quan when she was a councilmember, as her special assistant for communications; and Ellen Dillard who served as Quan’s administrative assistant and scheduler while she was a councilmember to work in the same capacity in the mayor’s office.

There are two remaining positions—senior policy analyst for economic development and senior policy analyst for intergovernmental affairs—that are still being decided. Quan also has two advisers; Arturo Sanchez, who works for the City Administrator’s Special Business Permits and Nuisance Abatement Division, will advise on public safety; and John Flores, former Emeryville city manager, has volunteered to advise on the budget and economic development in the City Administrator’s office.

The Alameda County Board of Supervisors also swore in two new board members during a special meeting on Monday—Wilma Chan and Nadia Lockyer. During this meeting, the new board elected Supervisor Nate Miley to serve as board president for 2011 and 2012 and Supervisor Keith Carson to serve as vice president.