BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Mr. Thomas Richards is Chair and CEO of The Penstar Group,a Fresno-based real estate investment, development and construction company. His projects have extended from Santa Barbara to the Central Valley, from Sacramento to Bakersfield and in the Inland Empire from Corona to Victorville.

Nancy C. Miller, of Sacramento, is a Partner at the law firm of Renne Sloan Holtzman Sakai LLP. Ms. Miller has over 30 years of experience in providing legal services to numerous public agency and private clients, including cities, counties, local agency formation commissions (LAFCO), special districts, joint powers authorities, transportation commissions, and councils of governments.

Ernest Camacho, of Pasadena, founded Pacifica Services, Inc. in 1979 and currently serves as President and Chief Executive Officer. Pacifica Serves specializes in program, project and construction management services as well as civil and electronic engineering.

Emily Cohen is the Executive Vice President of United Contractors, overseeing organizational development, government relations, political advocacy, and communication strategy for California’s largest union-signatory construction trade association representing heavy civil engineering contractors.

Martha M. Escutia, former California State Senator, was appointed vice president for USC Government Relations, effective May 1, 2013. Ms. Escutia oversees the university’s federal, state and local government relations.

Henry Perea is a lifelong resident of Fresno, California. He spent 23 years in elected service in the heart of the state’s Central Valley. He served on the Fresno County Board of Education, the Fresno City Council and as a member of the Fresno County Board of Supervisors.

Lynn Schenk is an attorney and senior corporate advisor. She serves on the Board of Directors of Cambridge, Mass. based Biogen Idec,(NASDAQ BIIB), the Board of Trustees of the Scripps Research Institute, and the Board of the San Diego Consortium for Regenerative Medicine. In 2006, she completed her term as a commissioner of the California Medical Assistance Commission.

Anthony C. Williams is Managing Partner with Ballard Partners. He also serves as a Member of the Board of Directors of the California High Speed Rail Authority, and previously was Governor Gavin Newsom’s first Legislative Affairs Secretary. His legislative experience includes serving two California Senate Leaders: John Burton and Darrell Steinberg for whom he was Policy Director and Special Counsel. He has also been a legislative advocate for the Judicial Council of California and a Senior Executive and Chief Lobbyist for the State Bar of California.

Mr. Worthe leads Worthe Real Estate Group, a development firm with over 125 employees, that is focused on acquiring, developing, and refurbishing commercial office properties in the greater Los Angeles County.

Mr. Worthe was appointed by President Biden as a Public Delegate to the U.S. Mission to the United Nations for the 2023-24 Session and was appointed by Governor Newsom to the board of The California Privacy Protection Agency. He is also a founding board member of the UCLA Ziman Center for Real Estate, an LA Sports & Entertainment Commission Core Leadership Group member, and a 20+ year board member of Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, where he is the past Chair of the Board of Directors.

Senator Anna Caballero was elected to represent California’s 14th Senate District in November 2022, previously representing the 12th Senate District before redistricting. She represents the western portion of the Central Valley, including Merced, Madera, Chowchilla, Los Banos, Firebaugh, Mendota, Kerman, Coalinga, and portions of Fresno.

Assemblymember Juan Carrillo was first elected to the California State Assembly in November 2022 and re-elected in November 2024 to represent the 39th Assembly District. He represents portions of the northern Antelope Valley, including Palmdale, Lancaster, the eastern communities of Littlerock, Lake Los Angeles, and Sun Village, stretching into San Bernardino County to include Adelanto, Hesperia, Mountain View Acres and Victorville.

Ian Choudri was appointed as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) for the California High-Speed Rail Authority (Authority) by the Authority’s Board of Directors in August 2024. As CEO, Choudri is responsible for overseeing the planning, development, and delivery of the nation’s first true high-speed rail program in California.

Prior to joining the Authority, Choudri worked in over 18 countries implementing mega construction projects related to rail, telecommunications, highways, energy, defense, airports and seaports. He worked with leading American and engineering firms including Bechtel Corporation, HNTB and several other major firms from around the world.