The following are the bios of the 2012 - 2013 Executive Board members.  In addition, each Board member's contact information can be viewed in the attachment at the bottom of this page.  We encourage you to contact the members if you have any questions or comments about SCPMA-HR.

2012 - 2013 SCPMA-HR Executive Board Members

Deborah Jansen

PRESIDENT

Deborah Jansen currently works at Los Angeles Unified School District as senior human resources analyst. Her work in the second largest school district in the nation combines her passion for education and human resources. At the District, she is responsible for executive level recruitments, finding the best talent to do the business of school business. She sees all employees as assets, supporting students’ success.

Prior to coming to the District, she worked at Santa Monica Community College as a human resources generalist. In her volunteer work with SCPMA-HR she has served as a President-Elect, Treasurer, Vice President- Membership, and Director. Volunteering with SCPMA-HR has been an excellent way for her to stay current and connected with the public human resources profession. She highly recommends it.

Ms. Jansen received her Bachelor’s in Politics from University of California, Santa Cruz, and her Master's in Public Administration from California State University Northridge. She holds a Human Resources professional certification from UCLA Extension and the IPMA-CP designation. A believer in continuous life long education and training she stays current in the human resources field by attending conferences, workshops, classes as well as self study.

She is currently serving her second term as a Personnel Commissioner on the Santa Monica College, Personnel Commission.

Ashley Stracke

PRESIDENT-ELECT

Ashley Stracke is an employee of the City of Los Angeles Personnel Department, where she has worked for the past four years. Her initial assignment was with administration of the City’s Deferred Compensation Plan. Ms. Stracke has also worked with the Department's Classification division to help coordinate and process the first City layoffs in over twenty years. Most recently, she has been working in the Department's EEO/Employee Development Section coordinating the development of the City's first Online Training Academy.  She is passionate about public administration and has a particular interest in making government personnel practices and civil service systems more responsive to the changing public service landscape of the 21st century.  In her spare time, Ashley is a docent for the Los Angeles Conservency and is the Editor of the Los Angeles League of Women Voter's newsletter.

Kandice Taylor-Sherwood

VICE-PRESIDENT OF PROGRAMS

Kandice Taylor-Sherwood has Bachelors degree in Psychology and a Master’s degree in Industrial Organizational Psychology. She has been working in the field of Human Resources and Education for over thirteen years. She currently is the Deputy Director of Human Resources for the City of Anaheim. She has also gained valuable experience serving as the Employment/Recruitment and Organizational Development/Training manager for the City of Anaheim. Kandice has also worked for Los Angeles Unified School District as the Principal Human Resources Specialist, managing a team of training and development specialists. Kandice values learning and education and has taught as a part-time instructor for California State University, Long Beach.  She also owns her own consulting business. Sherwood Consulting, and has provided training services, organizational development interventions, and key note speeches in both the public and private sector.

Kandice is certified as a trainer with several training organizations such as Achieve Global, Leadership Strategies, Franklin Covey, ASTD, etc. She is certified to train topics such as Project Management, FOCUS: Time Management, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People/ Managers, the Four Disciplines, Leadership, and others. Kandice is certified in process facilitation, INSIDE OUT Coaching, the DiSC personality inventory, and Myers Briggs, which allows her to perform one of her passions, which is helping teams to work and play well together.

Jennifer Allen

VICE-PRESIDENT OF MEMBERSHIP

Jennifer Allen is currently a Supervising Human Resources Analyst in Employment Services with the Sanitation Districts of Los Angeles County. The Employment Services Section focuses on recruitment, selection, classification, and compensation. Prior to joining the Sanitation Districts, Jennifer worked in Human Resources for the City of Tustin and the Los Angeles Unified School District. She holds a B.A. in Psychology from Chapman University and an M.A. in Industrial/Organizational Psychology from California State University, Long Beach. Jennifer is an avid traveler, and enjoys adventurous locations like Thailand and India.

Terri Steele

SECRETARY

Terri Steele is currently a Management Analyst with the City of Pasadena. She helps internal clients navigate the hiring process to avoid legal pitfalls and find the right candidates. She has over 14 years of experience in Human Resources which includes working for the private sector in the retail industry and public sector in education and municipalities. She holds a B.S. in Psychology from the California State University, Fullerton and M.S. in Human Resources Management from Chapman University.

Jaymie Liu

TREASURER

Jaymie Liu is currently a Human Resources Analyst with the City of Huntington Beach. Her prior experience includes working for the private sector in automotive manufacturing and employee benefits consulting. She holds a B.S. and MBA in Human Resources and Finance from California State University, Long Beach.

Jennifer Ramos

Director of Communications

Jennifer Ramos is currently a Human Resources Analyst at Montebello Unified School District.  Prior to her current role, she was a Human Resources Specialist with the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) for over four years.  During her tenure at LAUSD Ms. Ramos worked in the Talent Acquisition and Selection Branch and the Workforce Management Classified Training Branch.  Ms. Ramos also has experience in private sector Human Resources.  She helped staff three retail stores in Northern California, which included supervising, recruiting, training, and evaluating employees for two years.  Ms. Ramos holds a B.A. in History and Business Administration from the University of California at Berkeley.

Randal T. Karraker

IMMEDIATE PAST PRESIDENT

Randy Karraker, 2012 – 2013’s Immediate Past President, completed his 2011-2012 term as President, and previously served three terms as Secretary and has served on six Annual Conference Committees. He is a Certified Professional with the International Personnel Management Association for Human Resources (IPMA-HR) and was one of our chapter’s first Developing HR Competencies trainers. Randy is employed by the County of Los Angeles’ Department of Human Resources, eHR division, which has just completed the roll-out of a new county-wide enterprise Human Resources Management suite and replacing the County’s 20-year-old personnel system. He helped train 2,000 County HR staff in preparation for the roll-out.

Before the County, Randy was with the City of Burbank, starting as a labor relations analyst and over his nine plus years there rotated to other sections, including recruitment and selection, citywide training, ADA, classification, youth employment and workforce development. He was the first City employee to graduate from the Leadership Burbank program.

Randy came to the public sector after over 20 years in emergency medical services; in college he was an Emergency Medical Technician and Sheriff’s Search and Rescue deputy in San Luis Obispo County. He moved back to Burbank and became a Mobile Intensive Care Unit Paramedic based in Glendale, including three years supervising recruitment and training for the county’s largest private paramedic provider. He has a Ryan Designated Subjects Vocational teaching credential and has taught Emergency Medical Technician- 1A, Hazardous Materials - First Responder, CPR and first aid courses.

He received his Bachelors of Science in Journalism from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and an A. A. from LA Valley College. He also served 10 years on the Board of the Family Service Agency of Burbank which provides low-cost-no-cost professional clinical and psycho-educational services.

Brigitte Charles

PAST PRESIDENT

Brigitte Charles is a Principal Human Resources Analyst with the City of Huntington Beach and manages the City’s Benefits and Employee Development Division. Prior to coming to "Surf City," she was the Human Resources Director for the City of Rialto and served briefly as Human Resources Director for Classified Personnel with the Orange Unified School District. Other previous positions include Assistant to the City Manager in La Palma and Senior HR Analyst with Santa Ana.

Her positions on the SCPMA-HR Board of Directors have included serving as Immediate Past President, President, President-Elect, Director-at-Large, Vice President/Membership, Vice President/Programs and Newsletter Editor.  Brigitte is also a member of PELRAC and the Southern California Public Employers Labor Council.

Brigitte originally hails from Arizona, where she worked for the City of Phoenix for ten years and taught for 2 years, which explains her passion for employee/organizational development. She has a Master of Arts degree in Education from Arizona State and an MBA from CalState Long Beach. She and her husband live in Irvine and are the proud "parents" of two Irish setters.

Bill Osness

HISTORIAN

William Osness has over 35 years of human resource experience in public agencies. He retired in 2002 after serving 16 years as the Human Resources Director for the City of Huntington Beach. Prior to that he worked for the City of Santa Ana and the WestminsterSchool District.

He received a BA Degree in Political Science from the Pacific Lutheran University and a Masters of Public Administration from theUniversity of Southern California. He enlisted in the US Army and was commissioned an officer in 1967.

He has been a board member, officer, and workshop presenter for several Personnel/HR associations. He served as President of SCPMA-HR in 1996-97. He received the SCPMA-HR Emery Olson Achievement Award; and. was also awarded SCPMA-HR’s Honorary Lifetime Membership.

Mr. Osness continues to assist and mentor individuals and organizations in Southern California. A daily runner and weekly golfer he remains physically active. In his spare time, he enjoys reading about the US Civil War and has visited over a dozen civil war battlefields.

Melinda George

DIRECTOR AT LARGE

Melinda is currently the Deputy Director of the City of Long Beach Civil Service Department. She received a bachelor’s degree in psychology from California State University-Long Beach and has over 30 years experience working with employment related issues and the administration of employment examinations. She has spent her entire professional career in the Employment Services Division of the Civil Service Department where she began as a Student Intern and worked as an Assistant Examiner, Personnel Analyst and Employment Services Officer before her promotion to Deputy Director in 2008. Melinda is a true fan of the City of Long Beach and enjoys her work there.

Helen Lee

DIRECTOR AT LARGE

Helen Lee has over 25 years of experience in the Human Resources field in both the public and private sector.   Helen returned to public service after serving in various leadership roles in private industry, including Director of Recruitment with Kaiser Permanente Southern CA, one of the nation’s largest HMO.   She worked with the City of Los Angeles for ten years and after a twelve year career with Kaiser Permanente, Helen started her own consulting practice.   Six years ago, the County of Los Angeles contacted her regarding a HR project involving a County hospital which launched her career back into local government.  

Today she serves as the Supervisor for the Executive Recruitment Division and is responsible for identifying and hiring key executives for the entire spectrum of County services and administering the performance management program for County leaders.

Helen earned her Master’s Degree in Counselor Education and has her SPHR certification.  She is a conference presenter and taught college-level human resources courses.   As a lifelong community advocate, Helen has served on numerous Boards for community and education organizations.   She is forward-thinking and lives by the following credo “The best way to predict the future is to invent it.”

Ruth Perry

DIRECTOR AT LARGE

Ruth Perry is a human resources professional with almost 30 years of training and experience beginning in 1982 when she served in the US Army as a Personnel Records Specialist. She has been employed by the City of Los Angeles for over twenty years working for various departments including Water and Power, Public Works, and the City Clerk’s Office where she also assisted the Mayor's, Council's, and Chief Legislative Analyst's Offices. During her City service, Ms. Perry has held classifications from Clerk Typist to Senior Management Analyst II and she currently serves as the Los Angeles City Employees’ Retirement System (LACERS) Departmental Personnel Director where she is responsible for all aspects of human resource services.

Paula Adams

DIRECTOR AT LARGE

Paula Adams is the Director of Human Resources for the Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA), the Los Angeles City department that owns and operates three Southern California Airports:  Los Angeles International (LAX), LA/Ontario International (ONT), and Van Nuys (VNY).

Ms. Adams is responsible for managing LAWA’s Human Resources Division which covers the key areas of employee relations, equal employment opportunity, labor relations, training and development, staffing and compensation, records management, and rideshare.  The division provides human resources services to over 3,500 Los Angeles City employees at LAWA. 

Since receiving this appointment in 2007, Ms. Adams goal has always been to create a truly empowered Human Resources Division and facilitate the personal interaction among HR staff and all of LAWA employees.

Ms. Adams has held increasingly responsible administrative positions within three Los Angeles city departments – LAWA, Department of Water and Power (DWP), and the Department of General Services.  Prior to her appointment to Director of Human Resources at LAWA, she served as a utility administrator at DWP where she conducted internal investigations.

From 1999 to 2007, Ms. Adams also served in various positions within LAWA including labor relations manager, senior personnel analyst, and management analyst.  She also held dual roles at LAWA in which she served as both the Labor Relations Manager and the Equal Employment Opportunity Manager.

Ms. Adams has studied as an exchange student in Sao Paulo, Brazil.  She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of California, Santa Barbara; a Master’s Degree in Public Administration from California State University, Dominguez Hills; and a Certificate in Corporate Litigation from the University of California, Los Angeles Extension.

Ms. Adams is a Los Angeles resident and has two daughters, Meghan and Peyton.

Stacey Lewis

DIRECTOR AT LARGE

A dynamic and will-sought after “transformational” speaker and Human Resources professional, Stacey is a native of Southern California with Costa Rican roots. Looking to expand her horizons, she pursued her formal education at the prestigious University of the Pacific in Stockton, California. There Stacey received a Bachelor’s of Arts degree in Psychology with an emphasis in Organizational Development. After spending a semester in Italy, she began a challenging and rewarding career in Human Resources. With 20 plus years in the industry and a bite from the entrepreneur bug, Stacey established her own Human Resources consulting company.  As a true advocate of work life balance, Stacey is currently the Assistant Director of Human Resources for The Port of Long Beach.

In addition to being tenacious about her professional career and following her purpose and passion to encourage people, especially women to live their very best lives, Stacey currently serves as a Host on www.everywaywoman.com, a local cable and  internet talk-show committed to celebrating everyday women in every way. She is also a guest Host of a weekly internet radio/TV show -www.Broadtopicsradio.com As a wife and mother of three and a former P.T.A. President, Stacey had the opportunity to share advice and parenting tips as a special guest on The Rachael Ray Show. Her professional, relationship and parenting advice has been featured on several websites and publications.   After being everything to everybody for so long, Stacey took a step back and decided to spend some quality time wit and on herself. As a result of her amazing story and journey, she was selected as one of America’s Women Heroes for the ABC day-time talk show, The Revolution.

Yet, at the end of the day, when the business meetings and interviews have concluded and the cameras stop rolling, Stacey finds complete solace with the people who make every moment in her extraordinary life worthwhile; her husband of 19 years and their three children.

Jason Motsick

DIRECTOR AT LARGE

Jason Motsick is the Employee Relations Manager with the City of Anaheim and is responsible for managing the Human Resources’ Employee and Labor Relations, Classification and Compensation, and Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Divisions.  Prior to that Jason has worked in a variety of capacities including 8 years of labor relations experience.  Jason has also mediated Superior Court small claims casework and community-based disputes and as a Field Extern, he investigated and managed charges of unfair labor practices under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA).

Jason earned his Master’s Degree in Negotiation and Dispute Resolution from Creighton University and a BA in Political Science and Economics from The Evergreen State College.  He also served eight years in the U.S. Army and National Guard in the Infantry.  In his spare time,Jason is active with the American Legion and volunteers at the Ocean Institute.

William Weeks

DIRECTOR AT LARGE

Bill Weeks has worked in personnel administration for the City of Los Angeles for the last 26 years.  He started his career working a variety of personnel assignments with the City Personnel Department, served as Personnel Officer in the Community Development Department and was appointed Personnel Director with the City’s Department of Public Works in 1999.  In his current position, he is responsible for managing all aspects of the Department of Public Works’ labor relations program for over 5,000 employees.

He received his B.A. in Political Science from the Pennsylvania State University.  As part of his undergraduate education, he worked for the state of Pennsylvania’s Department of Education on the desegregation of Pennsylvania’s state supported institutions of higher education as well as serving in congressional offices in Pennsylvania and Washington, DC.

He is a current member of the California Public Employers Labor Relations Association (CALPELRA), the International Personnel Managers Association (IPMA) and the Southern California Personnel Management Association.

Attachments:

File	Description	File size
Board Member Contact Sheet		44 Kb