California Governor Gavin Newsom has announced three reappointments to the Mount San Jacinto Winter Park Authority (MSJWPA), the governing board of the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway.
Brian Conley, of Laguna Woods, was originally appointed to the MSJWPA in 2018. He has been President and Chief Executive Officer at Community College Connections since 2012 and was a professor at Golden West College from 1975 to 2012. He was an elected member of the Governing Board of the Rancho Santiago Community College District from 1988 to 2012, serving four terms as Board President. The district, the seventh largest in California, served 60,000 students and employed 3,000. In 1999, Governor Gray Davis appointed Conley to the Board of Governors of California Community Colleges. In 2010, Conley was appointed to the California Student Aid Commission by Assembly Speaker John Perez where he served for five years, awarding California students $2.2 billion dollars in student aid during that time. Conley earned a Master of Arts degree in Higher Education and Humanities from California State University, Fresno and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Education from California State University, Sacramento. He has completed advanced studies at UCLA, Pepperdine University (Doctoral Program in Education) and Geneva School of Art & Design in Switzerland.
Sandra Magaña-Cuellar, of Corona, has been reappointed to the MSJWPA, where she has served since 2018. Cuellar has been Director of Government Affairs at Charter Communications since 2000. She was Project Director at Hispanas Organized for Political Equality from 1997 to 2000; Project Coordinator at the Contreras-Sweet Company in 1997; and an Intern at Consensus Planning Group from 1996 to 1997. Cuellar was an Assistant Account Executive at Oralia Michel Public Relations from 1995 to 1996 and Assistant Tour Publicist at Levine-Schneider Public Relations from 1994 to 1995. She is a member of the Hispanas Organized for Political Equality Board of Directors, the Greater Coachella Valley Chamber of Commerce and the Inland Action Board of Directors. Cuellar earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Mass Communication from the University of California, Berkeley and a Master of Arts degree in Communication Management from the University of Southern California.
Jeff Ohlfs, of Twentynine Palms, was originally appointed to the MSJWPA in 2018. He has been a Division Supervisor (Reservist) for the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Operations Division Response Directorate since 2017. He held several positions at Joshua Tree National Park from 1990 to 2016, including Chief Park Ranger, District Park Ranger and Park Ranger. He was a park ranger at Hot Springs National Park from 1987 to 1990 and at C&O Canal National Historical Park from 1985 to 1987. Ohlfs earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Natural Resource Planning (Law) from California State Polytechnic University, Humboldt.
According to Tramway General Manager Nancy Nichols, “The reappointment of our three Governor appointees was wonderful news. They, along with our other Authority Members, guide the Tramway’s strategic direction to ensure the Tram remains a viable and iconic Coachella Valley attraction.”
The four additional Authority Members are Jerry Ogburn and Nancy Stuart, appointed by the Palm Springs City Council, and Jonathan Hoy and Giovanni Virgen, appointed by the Riverside County Board of Supervisors.
