Oakland, CA -- July 9, 2010 -- The Oakland Board of Port Commissioners elected three new officers at the July 6, 2010 board meeting. The Port Board elected Commissioner James W. Head to serve as president of the board. Commissioner Pamela Calloway was elected to serve as 1st vice president and Commissioner Gilda Gonzales was elected 2nd vice president. The Port Board will pass a resolution officially ratifying the election at the next board meeting July 20, 2010. Board members thanked outgoing President Victor Uno for his leadership for nearly two fiscal years. Uno later stated, “We have come through one of the most difficult recessions in our nation’s history and are now seeing some modest signs of recovery at our seaport and airport. Additionally, I am pleased that my colleagues and I, along with Port staff and community stakeholders, focused on environmental projects that cleaned up the air and promoted public health.”

Following the election, Commissioner Head said, “It is an honor and a privilege to serve my esteemed colleagues, the Port staff and the public as president of the board. I am pleased to accept this position and I am fully committed to providing sound leadership as we move this organization forward over the next 12 months.”

James W. Head is Vice President of Programs at The San Francisco Foundation and has over 25 years of experience in the field of community and economic development. Mr. Head served as President of the National Economic Development and Law Center for 17 years before coming to the Foundation. A lawyer by training, Mr. Head has significant nonprofit management, programmatic, and legal experience and has worked on nonprofit legal issues, nonprofit finance issues, as a consultant to foundations, financial institutions, business, government, and as a professor of law. Mr. Head’s community service is extensive having been a member of numerous Foundation Advisory Boards, including the Open Society Foundation of New York, the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation of Michigan, and the Columbian Foundation of San Francisco. Head received his Juris Doctorate from the University of Georgia School of Law and has bar memberships in Georgia, Florida, and California.

Board members elected Commissioner Pamela Calloway to serve as 1st vice president. Pamela Calloway, principal of Calloway & Associates, is an attorney with expertise in developing and implementing creative private-public partnerships and initiatives for investment in workforce and economic development to meet business needs through governmental relations, human resources development and strategic planning. Previously, Ms. Calloway served as Vice-President and Director of the California Office for Public/Private Ventures (P/PV). P/PV, a social policy think tank with offices in Philadelphia, New York City and Oakland, tackles critical challenges facing low-income communities by seeking out and designing innovative programs, rigorously testing them and promoting solutions proven to work. Prior to work at P/PV, Ms. Calloway served as Chief of Staff for the Workforce Investment Board in San Francisco and as President of the Private Industry Council there. She is a graduate of Fisk University (BA) and Georgetown University Law Center (JD).

Commissioner Gilda Gonzales was elected second vice president of the Port Board. Ms. Gonzales is currently the Chief Executive Officer of the Unity Council and has a significant history of public service. During her fourteen-year career with the City of Oakland, she gained experience in municipal financing and budgeting, public policy, economic development and government relations. She served in many capacities from Budget Analyst, Special Assistant to the Finance Agency Director, Intergovernmental Affairs Director, and Chief of Staff to former City Manager Robert Bobb and former Mayor Jerry Brown. In 2004, Ms. Gonzales was named the Chief Executive Officer for the Unity Council. The Unity Council is a non-profit community development corporation committed to enriching the quality of life of families and individuals primarily in the Fruitvale District of Oakland.

About the Oakland Board of Port Commissioners
The Port of Oakland is governed by a seven-member Board of Port Commissioners. The Board oversees the use of income from Port properties, approximately 16,000 acres stretching from the borders of Emeryville in the north to San Leandro in the south. The commissioners are nominated by the Mayor of Oakland and appointed by the Oakland City Council. They are residents of the City of Oakland and serve staggered four-year terms without compensation. Their responsibilities are vast and require a great deal of their time, all donated to the Port.

About the Port of Oakland
The Port of Oakland oversees the Oakland seaport, Oakland International Airport and 20 miles of waterfront. The Oakland seaport is the fifth busiest container port in the U.S.; Oakland International Airport is the second largest San Francisco Bay Area airport, offering over 140 daily flights; and the Port’s real estate includes commercial developments such as Jack London Square and hundreds of acres of public parks and conservation areas. The Port of Oakland was established in 1927 and is an independent department of the City of Oakland. Please visit: www.portofoakland.com.

Media Contacts:

Marilyn Sandifur, Port Spokesperson
Port of Oakland Spokesperson
(510) 627-1193
Click here to contact Marilyn Sandifur