Ventura County Board of Supervisors Approves Four New Workforce Development Board Members

VENTURA, Calif. - Feb. 18, 2021 - PRLog -- Over the past year, the Ventura County Board of Supervisors approved the recommendation from the Workforce Development Board (WDB) to appoint four new WDB board members. Each will serve a three-year term.

New member Shaffiq Rahim is president/owner of Hi-Tech Engineering in Camarillo. His focus as a board member is the growth and economic development of local small businesses. "I want to leverage my experience and expertise to help inform and expand the investments that businesses, non-profits, and government entities are making to ensure high productivity and economic growth for the market," says Rahim.

Jeremey Shumaker is regional director of operations for American Medical Response in Moorpark and Gold Coast Ambulance in Oxnard. "I am excited and honored to be part of the Workforce Development Board," says Shumaker. "My focus will be to work diligently to ensure that we are meeting the workforce needs of all healthcare providers in Ventura County."

Bill Werner is the owner of Leadership Made Clear in Simi Valley. He has over 15 years of experience in healthcare management. "As a WDB board member, I want to make sure that the Ventura County healthcare industry has the needed, trained staff to serve the community," says Werner. "There is an ongoing shortage of professional healthcare staff that will only increase in the future. We have to be ready."

Sandy Smith is a project manager of Sespe Consulting, Inc. in Ventura. He is responsible for providing strategic analysis and counseling in land use planning and project planning. He is a former mayor for the City of Ventura."Huge sections of our workforce have been impacted by the coronavirus, especially in specific socio-demographic sectors," says Smith. "The virus further compounded the divide between the haves and the have-nots. The workplace is changing, and we must find ways to retrain workers to help the county reemerge economically."

"Our four new members represent a variety of technical backgrounds and expertise that will serve Ventura County workers and businesses well," says Rebecca Evans, WDB Executive Director. "During these challenging times, WDB is committed to providing the necessary resources for workers and businesses to recover from the pandemic and keep our local economy and communities strong."

The board also reelected Tracy Perez, market manager of Manpower, as WDB Chair, and Peter Zierhut, vice president, Motorsports Marketing at Haas Automation, as WDB Vice-Chair.

Members of the WDB include leaders from business, economic development, education, labor, government, and community-based organizations. http://workforceventuracounty.org