The First 5 San Mateo County Commission is charged with helping meet the vision of “success for every child” through strategic planning, guidance, and oversight. The Commission is made up of nine members, including one member of the Board of Supervisors, Chief of San Mateo County Health, Director of the County Human Services Agency, County Superintendent of Schools, and five members appointed by the Board of Supervisors.
© 2024 First 5 San Mateo County
Youth Commissioner
Adele Ryono is a student at Aragon High School in San Mateo. As a member of the San Mateo County Youth Commission, she is passionate about the importance of using one’s words and actions to create change on a local level. Adele has a particular interest in using intergenerational connections to decrease social isolation and build community. She lives in San Mateo with her parents and little sister.
The Hon. Papali’i Manufou Liaiga-Anoa`i, is a proud San Francisco native and first generation Samoan-American. She is a celebrated Samoan activist, revolutionary leader and visionary whose representation as a courageous advocate and public elected has opened doors not just for her Pacific Islander people, but for many marginalized, unseen, voiceless communities.
She hails from both Samoas with lineage in Lauli’i and Faga’itua, American Samoa; Sapapali’i and Salelologa, Savai’i, Samoa; Ta’u and Olosega, Manu’a and Vaiala and Falealili, Upolu, Samoa. A mother of six and wife to Muagututi’a Le’apai Ryan T Anoa’i Amituana’i.
A product of public education, she was elected in 2015 and continues to serve as Board Trustee on the Jefferson Elementary School District Governing Board in Daly City and is noted as the highest vote getter to date.
She currently serves as a Commissioner on the City of Daly City Personnel Board since 2018, Board Member of APAICS – Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies, Board Member of Junipero Serra High School Board of Regents. This past January she was appointed to a Commission seat on San Mateo County’s First 5 Commission that oversees early education for the region and was a accepted to the School Board Partners a National Cohort of 98 School Board electeds from across the country.
For the past ten years she has been a Commissioner to the San Mateo County and Past Vice President on the Commission of Status Women, is a Commissioner on the City of Daly City Arts and Culture Commission, Congresswoman Jackie Speier’s Asian Pacific Islander Caucus, Peninsula Conflict Resolution Center Board and Lowell High School Alumni Board of Directors, San Mateo County Arts Commission – District 5 Representative, Board Member to P.I.E.F.E.S.T. – Pacific Islanders Encouraging Fun, Engineering, Science & Technology, Committee Member of Regional Pacific Islander Health Task Force and on the Board of Directors for REACH San Mateo County.
Manufou served as the first Pacific Islander Liaison and District 11 Aide to former San Francisco Mayor Willie L. Brown, Jr. during his tenure. She was also a member of former Mayor Edwin Lee’s Asian Pacific Heritage Committee.
In May of 2019, State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond appointed her as Co-Chair to the Closing the Gap Initiative where she continues to advocate for equity, inclusion and access across California.
In 2009, she founded Pacific Islander Community Partnership whose mission is to “Engage, Educate & Empower Our Pacific Communities” and in 2011 created Camp Unity – Polynesian
Pacific Islander Summer Enrichment Program which has served 8,000 Bay Area students over the past ten years.
She has lent her voice and experience over the years as a keynote speaker, panelist and community advocate locally, nationwide and in her Oceanic communities abroad.
Her leadership has been recognized by the California API Legislative Caucus as a Civil Right Leader of Excellence, inductee of the San Mateo County Women’s Hall of Fame, Woman of the Year in the California Assembly, in the City and County of San Francisco by Mayors Willie Brown and Edwin Lee, San Mateo County Board of Supervisors and nationally through the White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders.
She is currently dedicating her time supporting women to run for office and mentoring a new generation of young emerging leaders.
As a career veteran of Genentech, a member of the Roche Group, Carla has 35 years of organizational leadership experience in engineering, manufacturing, procurement and site management. In her most recent role, she served as Senior Vice President, Head of Global Engineering and Facilities for Roche. There she was responsible for the design, construction, and life-cycle asset management for Roche’s global manufacturing network. From 2012-2019, Carla was the Vice President of Site Services and was accountable for Genentech’s corporate real estate portfolio of ~6 million sq ft, in addition to engineering & facilities management, environmental health & safety, security, and workplace services. In spring 2022, she retired from Genentech and embarked on the next phase of her career as an advisor and executive coach.
Carla is a passionate supporter of her community and local philanthropic efforts. She served on the Board of Directors for Bay Area Council, Junior Achievement of Nor. California, and as the Board Chair for the Genentech Foundation. She is currently on the Advisory Board for Power Speaking, Inc, an industry advisor for SPARK Program in Translational Research (Stanford School of Medicine), a Board director for Planned Parenthood Advocates Mar Monte, and a member of the International Women’s Forum. She has earned a well-deserved reputation as a thought leader and sought-after inspirational speaker. She is celebrated as a respected mentor at Genentech, in the industry and the local community.
In 2016, Carla was recognized by the San Francisco Business Times as one of the most influential women in business in the Bay Area, and in 2017 was named to their “Forever Influential” Honor Roll. She was also selected in 2017 as a Hall of Fame honoree for the Northern California Real Estate Women of Influence Awards. Carla has a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from U.C. Berkeley.
Youth Commissioner
Rikhav Shah is currently a student at Crystal Springs Uplands School in Hillsborough. He joined the San Mateo County Youth Commission at the start of his freshman year of high school because of his passion for social justice and youth leadership. Rikhav is a Youth Commission liaison to the First 5 San Mateo County Commission. He actively volunteers at several community service organizations and enjoys competing in many sports.
Rikhav was born in New York City and moved to San Mateo County in 2009. He lives with his parents, twin brother, and younger sister.
Pediatrician, Palo Alto Medical Foundation
Naveen Sultana Mahmood, MD, MPH, FAAP is a pediatrician at Palo Alto Medical Foundation-Sutter since 2002 and was a Staff Physician at Sequoia Hospital from 2006 – 2012.
She is also Adjunct Assistant Clinical Professor at Stanford University School of Medicine.
As a pediatrician the heart of Naveen’s job is ensuring children’s optimal growth and development, supporting families in providing the best possible care for their children and being an advocate for children and their families. In addition to teaching Stanford pediatric residents, Naveen has served on the YFES Board and has also established rural health clinics in Pakistan to provide basic healthcare, vaccinations, and health education for the underserved population. Additionally, Naveen has served on the PAMF-Quality Improvement Committee, led Parent Education Series for the San Carlos School district, and helped established and led a reading program for 4th grade gifted students at the Foster City Elementary School.
Associate Medical Director, Stanford Children’s Health
Sylvia Espinoza has been an Associate Medical Director of the 25 Stanford Children’s Health outpatient pediatric clinics in the Bay Area since September 2016. She was a Staff Pediatrician at San Mateo Medical Center and Medical Director at Sequoia Teen Wellness Center from August 1999 through August 2016, and was a Board Member at the YMCA for a 3-year term, ending in 2010.
Sylvia is a Pediatrician and originally from Venezuela. As an immigrant and a minority, Sylvia feels a deep sense of responsibility and civil duty to be able to give back, and serving on the First Commission is an opportunity to help address the needs of less privileged immigrants and low-income children and families.
Executive Director, CASA San Mateo County
Nkia Richardson is the Executive Director at CASA San Mateo County since 2018. Other roles she held prior were Senior Deputy City Attorney of City of San Jose, California from January 2012 – August 2018, and an Attorney of Dependency Court Legal Services (now dba Children’s Law Center of California) in Monterey Park, California.
Richardson is passionate about creating opportunities for all children to thrive and reach their full potential. She is a former attorney and current advocate for young people in the child welfare and juvenile justice systems as well as my lived experiences as a mother, school trustee (The Carey School in San Mateo and Menlo School in Atherton) and is resident of San Mateo County. She is interested in efforts to ensure the Commission is pursuing its goals through an equity lens and with an understanding of the significance of trauma and the role it plays in the lives of young people.
Supervisor for District 2
Noelia Corzo is San Mateo County’s newly elected District 2 Supervisor and has completed five years of elected service as a Board Trustee for the San Mateo-Foster City School District. She is the daughter of working-class immigrants, a single mother, a bilingual Spanish speaker, and believes that having a diverse coalition of representatives makes for a strong democracy.
Supervisor Corzo has lived in San Mateo County her entire life, and is a proud graduate of our local schools, and obtained a BA in Sociology from San Francisco State University. She has worked as a foster youth advocate, as a community organizer in support of affordable housing and immigrant rights, and as a social worker supporting children and adults with disabilities for a non-profit organization in SMC.
In 2017, Noelia became only the second Trustee of LatinX heritage in a district where over 35% of the students are LatinX. In 2022, she became the first Latina ever elected to the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors where nearly 25% of the residents are LatinX and over half are women. She is also the only woman currently serving on the Board of Supervisors.
Noelia Corzo believes it is essential that we elevate the voices of our community members when they need representation the most.
County Superintendent of Schools
Nancy Magee is the San Mateo County Superintendent of Schools. Elected in 2018, Superintendent Magee brings more than 20 years of classroom experience and 11 years of district and county office of educational leadership experience to the role. Most recently, she served as the Associate Superintendent of Student Services at the San Mateo County Office of Education where she oversaw special education programs, Court and Community Schools, Career and Technical Education, and Safe and Supportive Schools.
Superintendent Magee began her career as a high school English and Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) teacher in San Diego County. She served as a high school librarian and school district administrator for student services before being tapped to oversee a federal Readiness and Emergency Management for Schools (REMS) grant serving six school districts. Superintendent Magee’s experience in that role helped prepare her to create and lead the San Mateo County Coalition for Safe Schools and Communities. Under her leadership, the Coalition developed and implemented a set of emergency response protocols, a suicide prevention toolkit, and a student threat assessment protocol that are now the standard in San Mateo County.
Superintendent Magee holds a Master’s degree in Library and Information Science from San Jose State University and a Bachelor’s degree in English from San Diego State University. She lives in Half Moon Bay and is the mother of two adult sons.
Director of the San Mateo County Human Services Agency
Claire A. Cunningham was appointed as the Director of the San Mateo County Human Services Agency (HSA) in July 2023. HSA is the second-largest County department with almost 800 employees and a budget of over $316 million. HSA provides safety net services and administers federal and state-mandated programs to over 198,000 children, families, and adults.
Claire first joined the County in 2007 as a Deputy County Attorney, after several years in private practice at a San Francisco litigation firm. Claire spent over a decade as HSA’s in-house legal counsel and represented many other County departments and local school districts during her tenure in the County Attorney’s Office, where she most recently served as a Chief Deputy. Claire also served in a leadership role in the Coalition for Safe Schools and Communities, which developed emergency response protocols, a student threat assessment protocol, a suicide prevention protocol, expanded mental health supports for students and other potential life-saving measures.
Claire received her bachelor’s degree in government and French Studies from Smith College and her law degree from U.C. Law San Francisco (formerly UC Hastings). She is the proud parent of two children who attend local public schools.
Chief, San Mateo County Health
Louise F. Rogers was named chief of San Mateo County Health in July 2015. Previously she served as deputy chief, where she oversaw the department’s community health–related divisions: Family Health, Correctional Health, Emergency Medical Services, Behavioral Health and Recovery Services, and Aging and Adult Services. Prior to 2011, she was director of Behavioral Health and Recovery Services.
Rogers first joined San Mateo County Health in 2002 as deputy director of what was then the Mental Health Division of the Health Department. In her various roles over the last decade she led several major transformation efforts locally and as a part of statewide initiatives through expansion of benefits and integration of mental health, addiction, wellness, and primary care services. She represents the department in various statewide associations and is on the UCSF Depression Center Advisory Board and the San Mateo County First Five Commission.
Before joining San Mateo County Health, she held a variety of leadership positions in public and nonprofit behavioral health and health care organizations in San Francisco and New York.
Rogers received a bachelor’s degree in philosophy from Yale University and a master’s degree in public administration from Golden Gate University.
When she is not at work, she enjoys sketching, photography and other art.
Kitty Lopez has served as the Executive Director of First 5 San Mateo County since 2013, focusing on strategic investing, community leadership, policy and advocacy development for young children, 0-5, and their families.
Kitty has served as Co-Chair of the Advisory Body for Build Up for San Mateo County Children’s Initiative, with Board of Supervisor, Dave Pine, since 2018. Congressman Kevin Mullin is Honorary Co-Chair. This initiative was established to preserve, grow, and increase the number of early care sites in San Mateo County.
Kitty previously served as the Executive Director of Samaritan House, one of San Mateo County’s leading Core Service Agencies and safety-net nonprofits serving low-income families and individuals with food, shelter, clothing, health care, counseling, education classes, and holiday assistance from 2002 to 2013.
Kitty taught kindergarten, second grade, and high school in southern California and San Francisco and was a consultant in schools with children who have autism and special needs. Additionally, Kitty worked in a residential substance abuse treatment center in San Francisco and psychiatric hospital for children and youth in San Diego. Kitty’s roots in supporting children began as a 16-year-old volunteer at the Braille Institute in Los Angeles where she taught swimming to children and adults with visual impairments.
She attended University of California Santa Barbara earning a California Teaching Credential and B.A in Psychology. Kitty is active in her community serving as Vice Chair of the San Mateo County Event Center, and Past President and Current Member of the San Mateo Rotary Club. She is currently serving as Past President of the First 5 Association of California. On March 2022, Assembly Speaker pro Tem Kevin Mullin selected Kitty Lopez as the 2022 Assembly District 22 Woman of the Year.
