On Tuesday, the Long Beach City Council appointed 24 new commissioners to charter and non-charter commissions.
During their two to four-year terms, commissioners will be tasked with advising the council on a wide breadth of topics—like how to improve the lives of senior citizens and veterans in the city, or how Long Beach will face economic and technological challenges in the coming years.
Charter commissioners can propose recommendations for changes in the city’s charter, the highest law of the land for Long Beach. Non-charter commissions act as advisory groups for the council.
“Everybody’s like, ‘Wow these people are all incredible,’ which they are,” Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia said of the diverse commission appointments.
Here’s a bit about each of the commissioners, as dictated by Garcia:
Charter Commission Appointments
Citizens Police Complaint Commission (2-year term):
Rocio Torres—A District 1 resident, Torres is a former teacher and now school counselor for the Long Beach Unified School District. She’s been an avid volunteer and community leader in the AOC7 Neighborhood, serving on their board since 2011. She holds a bachelor’s degree in liberal studies and a master’s degree in school counseling from Cal State Dominguez Hills.
Ethics Commission (3-year term):
Raul Afiorve—Afiorve is a Council District 9 resident who works as a paralegal for the Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office, Safe Neighborhoods & Gang Division. He has been an active community member and volunteer previously serving on the Citizens Police Complaint Commission, Grants Committee Panel for the Arts Council of Long Beach and has been a Fellow with the Equality California Leadership Program. Raul has been inducted into the Equality Plaza at Harvey Milk Park and is a Leadership Long Beach graduate.
Parks and Recreation Commission (4-year term)
Christopher Chavez—Chavez is a Council District 7 resident. Chavez is currently employed as the Deputy Policy Director at Coalition for Clean Air, an environmental nonprofit organization. He is a member of the South Coast Air Quality Management District’s AB617 Community Steering Committee for Wilmington, Carson, and West Long Beach. He previously served as legislative staff for two California State Senators and served as the ASI President at California State University, Long Beach. Chavez holds a bachelor’s degree in political science with an emphasis in public policy and administration.
Silissa Uriarte Smith—Uriarte Smith is a Council District 1 resident. She is currently employed as the Interim Executive Director at Compound Long Beach, a nonprofit offering space and resources for local artists. Uriarte Smith is a HOPE (Hispanas Organized for Political Equality) Leadership Institute class of 2003 graduate and serves on the Board of Trustees for Stephens College. She holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from Stephens College in Columbia Missouri and a master’s degree in organizational leadership from Chapman University in Orange, California.
Sylvester “Duke” Givens—Givens is a Long Beach native who grew up in the 6th district. He attended Long Beach Poly High School and Long Beach City College where he was inducted into the Hall of Fame. Duke has served in the United States Airforce during the Desert Storm Conflict and was honorably discharged. He has received numerous awards and recognitions including: the NAACP Community Service Award, special recognition from the United States Congress for various community efforts and the African American Men’s Forum President’s award. Duke is the founder of Care Closet LBC, a nonprofit helping people experiencing homelessness in Long Beach.
Non-Charter Commission Appointments:
Airport Advisory Commission
Kenneth Brown—Brown is a District 5 resident. Brown is a retired engineer for Honeywell aerospace, and was formerly a commercially rated pilot and flight instructor. He now works as a substitute teacher for Long Beach Unified School District. Brown lives next to the airport and holds a bachelors’s degree in science from San Jose State and obtained a private pilot’s license at Long Beach Airport.
Board of Health and Human Services (2-year term)
Beth Lessen—Lessen is a District 5 resident and is currently the vice president of Student Affairs at Cal State Long Beach. Lessen holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology and child development, a master’s in education and a Ph.D in counseling and school psychology, all from the State University of New York at Buffalo.
Yair Katz—Katz is a Council District 5 resident and chief financial officer for the Long Beach Memorial Medical Center and serves on the board of directors for the California Conference for Equality and Justice. He also served as the assistant vice president comptroller for the University of Southern California and holds a bachelor of science degree in accounting from Touro University in Brooklyn, New York.
Rose Van Meeveren—Van Meeveren is a District 5 resident and a school nurse and program specialist for Student Health Services at the Long Beach Unified school District. She is a member of the National Association of School Nurses, California School Nurses Organization and the National Association of Hispanic Nurses.
Citizens Advisory Commission on Disabilities (2-year term)
Chaka Garbutt—Garbutt is a District 6 resident and a Dial-A-Lift administrator for Long Beach Transit, where she has worked for over 22 years. She also works in collaboration with Long Beach Transit’s regulatory and compliance office to ensure compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Title Six Programs.
Economic Development Commission (4-year term)
Nima Navin—Navin is a District 3 resident. He teaches as an adjunct professor at Cal State Long Beach at the Graduate School of Business. He is also an associate director at Ernst & Young, focusing on growth strategy and innovation. Navin holds a bachelor’s of science in business administration and a master’s of business administration from the University of Southern California.
Jayro Sandoval—Sandoval is a District 5 resident and currently works as a district representative for economic development for Senator Lena Gonzalez. He previously worked as a business liaison in the business development bureau of the Long Beach Economic Development Department. He has more than 16 years of experience with the culinary business industry, 10 years of business development experience and served on the board of the Arts Council of Long Beach.
Equity and Human Relations Commission (2-year term)
Keyona Montgomery—Montgomery is a District 1 resident. She currently works for the Gravitas Insurance Group as the executive operations coordinator and has previously worked in Long Beach’s legislative department. She holds a bachelor’s degree in women’s, gender and sexuality studies from Cal State Long Beach and is a Long Beach City College alumnus.
Dr. Eduardo Lara—Lara is a District 2 resident and a faculty member of the Sociology Department at Cal State Long Beach, where he has taught for the past 12 years. Lara holds a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice and a masters of education degree from George Washington University. He also holds a doctorate philosophy degree in social sciences and comparative education from UCLA.
Dr. Sharifa Batts—Batts is a District 8 resident who works in environmental social governance and safety as vice president for Ports America. She holds a bachelor of arts degree in political science from San Diego State University, a master’s in business administration from Pepperdine University Graziadio School of Business Management and an executive doctor of business administration degree from Pepperdine University.
Homeless Services Advisory Committee (2-year term)
Mary Simmons—Simmons is a District 6 resident and an avid volunteer, particularly for the unhoused in MacArthur Park. She has been a board member for the AOC7 Neighborhood Association, where she was a co-founder. She has served as a treasurer for Building Healthy Communities and is a graduate of the City’s neighborhood leadership program.
Marine Advisory Commission (4-year term)
Armando Morales—Morales is a District 3 resident. He is currently employed as a carrier account manager for C.H. Robinson where he helps oversee the company’s supply chain management and logistics. He has extensive maritime experience, working with a variety of vessels from Long Beach to Alaska. He has also served as the executive director of events and government relations for the regional Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.
Senior Citizen Commission (2-year term)
Dr. Norma Chinchilla—Chinchilla is a District 5 resident. She retired from Cal State Long Beach where she was a professor emeritus and served as chair of the Department of Sociology. She holds a bachelor’s degree in social sciences from the University of the Pacific, a law degree from the University of San Carlos in Guatemala, and a master’s degree and Ph.D in sociology from the University of Wisconsin.
Sustainable City Commission (4-year term)
Micaela Salatino—Salatino is a District 1 resident and current program director of Heart of Ida, a nonprofit assisting seniors with rental assistance, digital inclusion, grocery vouchers and other needs. She is also the program director for the Long Beach Time Exchange.
Technology and Innovation Commission (2-year term)
Javier Ortiz—Ortiz is a District 1 resident who works in software development and support as a software developer. He is a former small business owner in downtown Long Beach, where he and his wife operated the Kress Market for 12 years. He has a bachelor’s degree in computer science from Chapman University.
Jonathan de Armas—District 3 resident de Armas has lived in the city for over 20 years. He is currently the owner and solutions architect for Island Pitch LLC in Long Beach. He has been an avid volunteer at the LGBTQ Center and assisted many organizations with his IT experience, including the Long Beach Museum of Art, the LGBTQ Chamber of Commerce and the Long Beach Community Business Network. He is an alumnus of Harvey Mudd College where he studied computer science and has a certificate in digital asset management from Rutgers University.
The Long Beach Community Investment Company (2-year term)
Jasmine Esparza—Esparza is a realtor for EXP Realty of California and a downtown business owner. She was previously a congressional intern and has volunteered extensively for Habitat for Humanity, Meals on Wheels and Organizing for America. She is an alumnus of San Francisco State, Cerritos College and Cal State Northridge.
Alejandra Ramirez—Ramirez is a District 8 resident and an assistant manager of campus capital projects at Cypress Community College. She is an alumnus of Cal State Poly Pomona.
Veterans Affairs Commission (2-year term)
Felicia Wieser—Wieser is a District 3 resident. She currently works as an industrial security representative for Boeing. She served in the army as an intelligence analyst and security manager for the 82nd Airborne Division and has also served in Afghanistan. She holds a degree in general studies from Long Beach Community College and a bachelor’s of intelligence studies from the American Military University.
Correction: July 15, 11:30 a.m.: The name of Technology and Innovation Commissioner Jonathan de Armas was corrected. It previously identified de Armas as “D’Armas” due to a spelling error in the council agenda item.
