Leadership, innovation and purpose: Meet The Sacramento Bee’s Top 20 Black Change Makers

Meet the Top 20 Black Change Makers, a group of area leaders focused on making Sacramento and its neighboring communities a fairer and more just place. We are better because of them.

The Sacramento Bee’s Equity Lab has partnered again with the Nehemiah Emerging Leaders Program (NELP) to honor our Black change makers. This announcement will be followed by the partnership’s Top 20 AAPI and Latino change makers.

These individuals stand out as innovative problem-solvers, leaders who not only seek solutions, but change cultures to help others find a path to improving lives.

Our selections define the term “change makers.” They are talented forces who continue to change and grow, too. They see what can be and help others aspire as they do. Our list of Sacramento’s Top 20 Black Change Makers have transformed communities through their leadership, innovation, altruism and style.

After honoring the inaugural group of change makers in 2022, The Bee’s Equity Lab and NELP sought reader nominations this summer for the second cohort of Black change makers. Our selection committee included Jackie Cole, principal at Veritable Good; Faith McKinnie, art curator and founding director of the Black Artist Foundry; Julius Austin, Promise Zone Coordinator for the Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency; Michael Lynch, co-founder and CEO of Improve Your Tomorrow; Stacey Ault, founder and CEO of the Race and Gender Equity (RAGE) Project; Chinua Rhodes, president of the Sacramento City Unified School District Board of Education; Nkiruka Catherine Ohaegbu, principal owner of Adaptive Strategies Consulting; Scott Syphax, founder of the Nehemiah Emerging Leaders Program; Scot Siden, chief operating officer of the Nehemiah Community Foundation and director of the Nehemiah Emerging Leaders Program; Marcus D. Smith, Sacramento Bee reporter; and Colleen McCain Nelson, executive editor of The Sacramento Bee.

Here are The Sacramento Bee Equity Lab’s 2023 Top 20 Black Change Makers.

Berry Accius

Background: Growing up, Accius learned about leadership by watching his father provide guidance to children in his community. He took care of his mother, who fought mental illness. It taught him unconditional love. Now, Accius is affectionately known as “Unc” or “Mr. Accius” by youth members who have grown within his programs.

In 2008, Accius created Voice of the Youth to teach lessons of manhood and fatherhood to today’s young people, the same lessons he learned during his teenage years. He wanted to show there’s a better way of life for younger people, especially Black and brown children.

Accomplishments: Voice of the Youth has successfully orchestrated a variety of events, including community drives, festivals, college tours and youth summer camps.

Accius is a community activist who leads many conversations on topics such as domestic violence, sex-trafficking, mental health, community violence, police brutality and racism.

Plans: Accius plans to continue doing the work. He hopes that people recognize the value provided by Voice of the Youth and financially support its endeavors.

Best Advice: “You have no limitations in your vision. Always remain passionate, patient and consistent about your purpose,” Accius said.

Why a nominee: “He is not only a mentor, but a great community leader who advocates for the Black community in matters such as police brutality, prison reform, as well as promoting, building Black businesses,” said Anne Njuguna, owner of African-print clothing business Kitenge365.

Kwame Anku, 51

Background: Anku co-founded Black Angel Tech Fund in 2015, the first venture fund in the U.S. focused on Black tech entrepreneurs, and in 2019, he founded Black Star Fund. Anku’s Black Star Fund has now invested in a dozen Black-owned companies.‍

Accomplishments: The Sacramento Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce honored Anku as the 2022 Entrepreneur of the Year, and he has been named an AT&T Dream in Black Future Maker. Anku also received two invitations to the White House during the Obama administration and was personally recruited by the singer Prince to oversee business and development teams for his mobile app.

Plans: Anku said his plans for the Black Star Fund are two-fold: to build “a wealth-generating engine” for underserved communities and to inspire the community to think bigger in terms of what’s possible.

Best advice: “A lot of people in life talk themselves out of getting started,” Anku said. “Don’t focus on what you don’t have — you have to use what you have in your hand, to create what you want in your life.”

Why a nominee: “Kwame saw the opportunity in Black founders and was one of the first people in the country tackling this disparity in capital,” said Kellie DeMarco, a friend of Anku. “Kwame was a true evangelist for Black entrepreneurs (and) that work was inspirational and catalytic to the ecosystem we have today of (...) funding in the space.”

Brandy Bolden, 49

Background: Bolden is part of executive management at the Sacramento Municipal Utility District, the nation’s sixth-largest community-owned electric utility. She serves as chief customer officer and often finds herself troubleshooting issues beyond just late utility bills.

Accomplishments: The COVID-19 pandemic shed light on the challenges many customers in the Sacramento area have been having when it comes to paying their utility bills. Missed bills are often a sign that a resident is in jeopardy of experiencing homelessness.

Those problems, long exacerbated by systemic racism, led Bolden to establish a pilot program connecting SMUD with local social services to provide needs-based support for many of those struggling residents. It’s not just about utilities or electricity, but about ensuring that people have the quality of life they deserve.

Plans: Born and raised in Sacramento, Bolden said she has seen this community change. Now, she wants to help pass the torch on to future generations interested in community activism and engagement.

Best advice: “You can do anything you set your mind to. I don’t take that lightly,” said Bolden. “I’m not here to be a bystander. I’m not here to go along quietly. I’m here to make an impact. I’m here to make a difference, and I have the power to do so.”

Why a nominee?: “Brandy recognizes that SMUD has a larger role to play than just as a community-owned electric utility,” her employee Sierra Stalcup said. “Brandy has demonstrated an above and beyond commitment to serving her community both at work and in her personal life as an advocate for social, environmental and economic equity and justice.”

Michael Casper, 35

Background: Casper grew up in a single-parent household and said he struggled with academics. But after barely graduating from eighth grade, he moved in with his aunt, who provided support that helped take him through high school and college at Sacramento State. His experience seeing how loving guidance can transform the lives of youth gave him a heart to help others unlock their potential in their academic pursuits.

Accomplishments: Casper co-founded Improve Your Tomorrow (IYT), a college preparatory program for young men of color, in 2013. The program, which offers mentorship, tutoring, life skills seminars and more, currently includes more than 3,500 young men across California. So far, 99% of participants in the program have graduated from high school, and nearly 80% have attended college.

Plans: In the future, Casper said that IYT plans to go deeper in the services they’re providing to expand their impact to match the need he sees in the region.

Best advice: “Two things,” Casper said. “One is to be flexible with the path but stubborn when it comes to the vision, and the other is just to finish what you start.”

Why a nominee: “He has worked tirelessly to make sure that these young men can get every opportunity that comes to them,” said Gregory Ortiz, a board member of IYT and Casper’s former high school counselor. “He also is a great father — I don’t know when he sleeps. Mike is definitely going to heaven!”

Tony Christ, 35

Background: Christ is an entrepreneur constantly looking to fill the void for whatever is missing in Sacramento. Over 15 years ago, he and his friends threw parties at warehouses, sometimes abandoned homes. They built a reputation under the brand, HOFisbetter, hosting different events such as small concerts, festivals and block parties showcasing local talent.

Accomplishments: Christ curates hospitality through Tiger Bar and Restaurant and recently Solomon’s Vinyl Diner through Vizion Capital Management. He partnered with organizations including Last Supper Society, FHM Group, Downtown Sacramento Partnership and Old Sacramento to host social, entertainment and nightlife events such as Dinner at Tiger, Tiger After Dark, Silent Disco at the Ice Rink, Ugly Sweater Christmas Crawl and HOF Day. Their HOFisbetter social media platforms have generated millions of views and helped other social media users and creatives connect with each other.

Plans: Christ wants to showcase Sacramento for its music, food, art and culture. He hopes to attract tourists, increase local artist visibility, and get investors to financially support his vision for the city.

Best Advice: “We can be inspired by other places, but we have to build it for Sacramento,” Christ said.

Why a nominee: “It doesn’t take much to see how influential and progressive this man’s ideology is on the community from entertainment to creating safe spaces focused on marginalized groups in our community. This town would be better with more Tonys,” said Trevor Easter, creative director of Irish Hospitality.

Le Ondra Clark Harvey, 43

Background: Clark Harvey is the CEO of the California Council of Community Behavioral Health Agencies and has tackled issues of behavioral health in Sacramento for years. She holds a doctorate degree and worked in a variety of policy-centric roles before taking on her current position, where she works with state legislators on bills that affect health care professionals. She also works with service groups to provide mental health counseling to under-served communities.

Accomplishments: Gov. Gavin Newsom appointed Clark Harvey to his behavioral health advisory group in 2020. She has also received several awards, including a 2020 Hume Center Distinguished Community Leader award and the APA’s Emerging Contributions to Service Award, and was recognized by The Sacramento Bee as a top 100 influencer in health care.

Plans: Clark Harvey said that she feels like her career is coming “full circle,”, and she wants to continue doing what she’s been doing — using psychology to “(lift) up the plight of disenfranchised communities in the ways they cope with behavioral health.”

Best advice: “Find someone who is older and wiser, and someone who is younger and smarter,” Clark Harvey said. “And surround yourself with those people.”

Why a nominee: “Dr. Clark Harvey epitomizes the qualities we look for,” said Amber Mace, who knows Clark Harvey through the California Council on Science and Technology fellowship program. “The courage to step into the unknown, combined with a deep sense of service and motivation to effect positive change.”

Flojaune Cofer, 40

Background: Cofer’s work in the area of public health stems from experiencing the loss of her father, who died at 47 with congestive heart failure. She wanted to study the distribution, determinants and conditions of diseases across the human population. She holds a master’s degree in publish health and a doctorate in epidemiology.

For the past six years, she’s been dedicated to her role with Public Health Advocates, challenging policies that influence health factors including community safety, racial equity and nutrition. She is tasked with determining why people get sick, how to ensure they stay well and live longer.

Accomplishments: Cofer has been on the forefront of committees such as Measure U, which lobbied for and generated funds to pay for youth services, community projects and reducing homelessness under the city’s budget during the 2023-24 fiscal year. She’s proud of having a part in the conversation shift, emphasizing that homelessness issues are financial issues, and there needs to be a solution for more affordable housing.

Plans: Cofer is hoping to create a positive frame for change. For people who have been historically dehumanized, she hopes that they reclaim their power and step into their true purpose. Cofer is also a candidate in Sacramento’s mayoral race.

Best Advice: “Collaboration and cooperation are really important,” Cofer said.

Why a nominee: “(Cofer) doesn’t have any problems stepping up, leaning in and getting involved with an action plan, giving support, advice, resources, opening up her home or sharing information,” said Christi Ketchum, founder of Sacramento Sister Circle. “She is a valuable asset to our community and beyond.”

Debra Cooper, 39

Background: Nine years ago Cooper was recruited to California as a freshly minted Ph.D. She thought she would stay a year. Now she is the assistant secretary for California’s Health and Human Services Agency. After spending the first part of her career as a researcher studying drug use, she turned her attention to the social services side of health and has spent the past decade improving health-care access and equity through policy.

Accomplishments: In addition to serving at the Health and Human Services Agency, Cooper is the Policy Committee co-chair at the California Black Health Network, a statewide organization dedicated to advancing health equity for Black Californians. In her role, she has traveled to cities across the state to speak with Black residents about the problems they face to find solutions.

Plans: Cooper hopes eventually to merge her background as a scientist with her experience in policy as she continues to work in health.

Best advice: “People are always watching. People are learning or growing, hopefully, from everything that you do. I know that my daughter is watching me, so I’m working to hopefully make a better life and world for her that she will continue on.”

Why a nominee: “Dr. Cooper’s experience in the healthcare system and in policy making has cemented her place to advocate alongside community groups, public agencies, civic and community leaders, and public officials,” said Perry Gee, a program officer at the California Council on Science and Technology.

Dawnté Early, 41

Background: Early stumbled upon West Sacramento as a doctoral student at UC Davis searching for affordable housing. She quickly came to call the place home.

Early “absolutely believes that in our lifetime, it is possible to end poverty,” a conviction that drives her work as CEO of the United Way Capital Region and as West Sacramento’s first Black city council member.

Accomplishments: As a city council member, Early’s public health expertise aided the city’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. She also led the city’s first Juneteenth celebration.

At the United Way, she brought in $4 million in grant funding in 2022 to channel into local initiatives related to education and poverty reduction.

Plans: Early is excited to scale up the United Way’s investment in workforce development and housing and to pilot the region’s first guaranteed income program.

At the city council, she’s deploying her public health background as the city looks to address homelessness and provide unsheltered people with wraparound services and housing.

Best Advice: “If we all commit to being changemakers, whether it’s running for some sort of elected seat or being a community advocate or running a nonprofit, or whatever work you’re doing to be a changemaker and help your community, if we collectively invest, we truly can change our community.”

Why a nominee: “Dr. Early’s work has always centered on serving people and advancing equity,” wrote Babs Sandeen, vice chancellor at Los Rios Community College District. “I think the world of her.”

Nicholas Haystings, 33

Background: Haystings attended college to become an engineer. He noticed an absence of diversity and decided to create Square Root Academy to focus on providing free, accessible education and resources to Black and brown children about science, technology, engineering, art and math (STEAM).

Accomplishments: Haystings has continued to build on the foundation and habits of his organizations. . He’s provided a permanent home for his Square Root Academy by establishing Lab 7 Co-Working, a space for the community to get together, whether professionally or casually, building relationships.

Plans: He plans to leverage the honor of being named one of The Sacramento Bee’s Change Makers. He hopes his organizations will be held accountable to continue to create necessary change.

Best Advice: “Understanding that we have a responsibility,” Haystings said. “If we have the keys to liberate, educate and empower as many as possible, we now have a responsibility to do so. We can’t just sit and say we’re waiting on someone else to do it. We must take charge and responsibility for our own communities.”

Why a nominee: “Haystings wastes no time in solving prevalent problems especially where community, education, and economic mobility is concerned,” said Didier Mponte, executive director of Light & Water.

Jeneba Lahai, 37

Background: Lahai’s work is all about paying it forward. As a child growing up in Liberia during a civil war, she found support from humanitarian workers before making her way to the U.S.

Now, as executive director of Yolo County Children’s Alliance, she leads the Yolo County Child Abuse Prevention Council, serving over 6,000 residents annually with violence prevention, housing services and family support.

Accomplishments: As executive director, Lahai has increased the agency’s annual revenue by 20% She has played a key role in expanding in-language support services and diversifying staff who often work with children of color, particularly Black youth.

She has looked to many mentors along the way for advice, including the previous leaders in the alliance. But she’s also seeking to form more connections with Sacramento’s immigrant communities as their children come to the U.S., much like she.

Plans: She wants to stay in humanitarian work for as long as possible, expanding the alliance’s efforts to prevent child abuse. But now that she is in the U.S., she thinks about how she can bring her efforts to families in Liberia and her home country of Sierra Leone.

Best advice: “If you ever get the opportunity to mentor someone, or pay it forward, please do so,” Lahai said.

Why a nominee: “Jeneba’s heart for impacting the lives of the vulnerable is a beacon of compassion that guides her every step,” said Quirina Orozco, a community partner who works with Lahai. “She bestows hope and wonder and joy upon all whom she touches.”

Kiara Reed, 34

Background: Kiara Reed is the executive director of Civic Thread, formerly known as WALKSacramento. The nonprofit advocates for health equity in historically under-invested communities via city planning and transportation policy in the Sacramento area.

Reed grew up outside of Chico, an area with little city investment, she said. To get to school, she walked along a busy road with no sidewalks — the result of environmental injustice, she now understands. Her lived experience shapes her work creating healthier, safer communities at Civic Thread today.

Accomplishments: Since assuming the role of executive director at Civic Thread in 2020, Kiara doubled and diversified its staff, rebranded its name and mission and secured the nonprofit’s largest award ever, a $1.25 million grant. She’s launched air quality monitoring projects, helped local governments engage community in planning and budgeting and continued the organization’s work creating Safe Routes to School.

Plans: Ultimately, Reed wants Civic Thread to be a place where inter-agency work can happen. She sees different parties essential to public health — health professionals, school districts, local governments — working in silos, and she hopes to bring them together to work towards a healthier, more equitable Sacramento area.

Best advice: “Be authentic and true to yourself. It’s really easy to get caught up in white supremacy culture, and it’s really easy to get caught up in pushing the status quo. If we can remind ourselves that transformational change and bold change doesn’t come from operating within the status quo, then we can really move towards something that is going to work for everybody,” she said.

Why a nominee: “Kiara undertook the rebranding of a 20-year-old organization [...] to better honor the organization’s commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion,” said Angelo O. Williams, a Civic Thread board member.

Robynne Rose-Haymer, 51

Background: Rose-Haymer considers herself a continuous learner, and it’s that skill she’s brought to the California Legislature.

Accomplishments: As vice president for the Sacramento-based consulting firm Capitol Impact, her main project has been professional development for staff in the California Legislature, building up their policy and management experience through the California Legislative Staff Education Institute.

As that vision has taken shape, she’s furthered her mission by ensuring staff from the California Legislative Black Caucus, AAPI Caucus, and LGBTQ+ Caucus have a seat at the table and don’t miss out on any “insider knowledge.”

Plans: Rose-Haymer is also co-founder and facilitator of the Black Entrepeneur Success Academy, which helps local Black-owned business owners gain the skills they need to run their company. She plans to focus on building her projects with a growth-mindset. “We can accomplish more together.”

Best advice: “Live the life you have imagined,” she says, citing American essayist Henry David Thoreau. “Early in my career, I understood that people couldn’t be what they can’t see. The more quality and authentic examples we can offer as leaders ... the more likely it is that the next generation of people have a vision of what is possible in their life”

Why nominated: “Robynne is a true agent of change in the Sacramento Region,” said friend Johnnise Foster-Downs. “Robynne’s leadership and longtime commitment to her community make this recognition well-deserved.”

Ruth Shim, 45

Background: Shim became interested in mental health at a young age. She went to medical school in Atlanta where she began to take notice of the health disparities that exist between Black and white people. This moved her to become a psychiatrist and address mental health.

Since 2017, she’s been a professor of clinical psychiatry for the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences and Associate Dean of Diverse and Inclusive Education at UC Davis School of Medicine.

Accomplishments: Under Shim’s direction in the past five years, the department has developed and implemented a more diverse and inclusive medical residency program. She’s been integral in recruiting people of underrepresented backgrounds into medicine, particularly psychiatry. On multiple occasions, she’s presented to President Joe Biden’s COVID-19 Health Equity Task Force on mental health and equity.

Plans: Shim wants people to know there is a mental health crisis in this country. In an attempt to combine equity and justice in medical schools, Shim plans to address policies at the local, state and national level. She hopes to improve the quality and access of mental health services for communities that are oppressed and marginalized.

Best Advice: “It’s really important to prioritize caring for ourselves and I don’t think that we always do that,” Shim said.

Why a nominee: “Shim has devoted her career to addressing structural barriers to health equity and health outcomes, especially for patients in traditionally underserved communities,” UC Davis Chancellor Gary May said.

BJ Snowden, 47

Background: Snowden holds a doctoral degree and spearheads initiatives to make higher education more accessible for Sacramento area students as the Associate Vice President of Equity, Institutional Effectiveness and Innovation at American River College.

Accomplishments: As a professor and administrator in higher education for more than two decades, Snowden believes that higher education is “critical for a community to grow and thrive.” That conviction has driven his efforts to expand learning communities to help low-income students, students of color and formerly incarcerated students earn advanced degrees.

Plans: As the school year revs up, Snowden remains committed to expanding access to higher education. He hopes to welcome new classes of students to the learning communities he’s worked to develop and continue pushing the administration toward more equitable hiring practices.

Best advice: “Find your conviction. What are the things, or what is the thing, that you are most passionate about? Once you have that conviction and you can learn perseverance, you are literally limitless. I feel like you can change the world.”

Why a nominee: “BJ only knows above and beyond. He only serves the community with his whole heart, because he knows he can and does make a difference,” said Veronica Delgado, who met Snowden through the Nehemiah Emerging Leaders Program, which aims to develop effective and ethical leadership in the Sacramento region. “His actions are causing a never-ending ripple effect of change.”

Arnold ‘Arnie’ Sowell Jr., 62

Background: Sowell knows that a rising tide can lift all boats.

The executive director of Next Gen Policy, a Black-led progressive nonprofit, his organization is focused on tackling issues that champion many causes, rather than just one single issue. He advocates for a variety of policies and programs that involve the environment, racial and social justice, and economic equity.

Sowell’s work has helped people facing discrimination in legal proceedings find recourse, improved access to electrical vehicles for local communities of color. He also teamed up with other local nonprofits to promote benefits like CalFRESH.

Plans: Sowell wants to see the organization grow beyond its current size, furthering its influence beyond the local area to the entire state. He wants to continue bigger projects like the Racial Equity Commission, which has been endorsed by Gov. Gavin Newsom.

Best advice: “We can’t just continue to move forward, thinking that everything is gonna work itself out. We’ve got to work with others. We’ve got to build coalitions, and we’ve got to be courageous and fearless in our efforts to try to make the world a better place,” Sowell said.

Why a nominee?: “Arnie is invested in the Sacramento community and has mentored countless individuals both professionally and personally throughout his life,” his colleague, Robin Swanson said. “This is something that comes second-nature to Arnie… he invests his personal time and resources in others without hesitation.”

Justin Ward, 47

Background: Justin Ward is the managing attorney for the Ward Firm, a Sacramento-based law firm handling criminal defense, employment and personal injury cases.

He’s always found strength in being skeptical and holding power to account, proving to be beneficial for a career in the law where he would go on to do just that.

Accomplishments: Ward boasts a long list of victories on behalf of his clients, many of whom are facing retaliation in the workplace or long sentences that he knows they don’t deserve.

His decisions have saved people from serious life sentences, ensuring they get to spend valuable time with their families that often get lost in the criminal justice system. He’s won millions in settlements for his clients, handling over 30 criminal jury trials and 10 civil jury trials.

Best advice: “Never be afraid to ask questions,” Ward said. “Information is power.”

Why a nominee?: “Through the practice of law Justin has helped tackle the problem of so many Black men and women not having quality legal representation in criminal, personal injury, civil rights and employment cases by representing many of them,” said Veronica Delgado, a friend of Ward’s.

Marcellene L. Watson-Derbigny, 51

Background: Watson-Derbigny holds a doctorate degree and serves as the associate vice president for student retention and academic success at Sacramento State, overseeing the Educational Opportunity Program there and focusing on equitable academic success, especially for freshmen and transfer students.

Accomplishments: Sacramento State named Watson-Derbigny their Woman of Influence for two years in a row. Her work for the university includes creating the college’s first transfer learning communities and the campus’ first tutoring center, as well as founding the Martin Luther King Jr. Center on campus, a central hub for the exploration of African American heritage and culture. She has received awards from the Sacramento Kings and the Sacramento Black Chamber of Commerce and has served on various local committees and task forces.

Plans: Watson-Derbigny said she’s excited to continue her work at Sacramento State to help underserved communities earn their degrees, and elevate their communities as a result.

“My goal in life is to ensure that the community will be better off in future generations,” she said.

Best advice: “If you pour into others through your life, the communities you pour into will be uplifted,” Watson-Derbigny said.

Why a nominee: “(She is) a transformative, visionary, judicious and servant leader,” said Chao Vang, an employee and mentee of Watson-Derbigny. “She values the opportunity to share the wisdom and experience she has gained to help other first-generation students (...) and is actively helping the campus to eliminate the degree attainment gap.”

Angelo Williams, 52

Background: Williams grew up in a household where “public service was the thing to do.” So, he earned a doctorate degree and went into education, first as an adjunct professor at UC Davis and Sacramento State and later as the chief deputy director of First Five California, an organization that aims to help parents navigate early childhood development.

Accomplishments: In his time as a teacher, Williams said he hopes he has broadened the minds of students.

“I hope that I’ve provided the value of inquiry,” Williams said. “The ability to question and to understand different cultures and perspectives.”

Plans: Professionally, Williams is focusing on making learning conditions better for diverse kids. But mostly, he’s focused on his own kids — he adopted his sister’s four children after she passed away, and they are now in college. His fifth child, Jonathan, is 2. .

“In the next five years, I’m hoping that I can spend more time with him and help him grow up and learn and love and just have a great life,” Williams said.

Best advice: “Education is freedom,” Williams said. “It’s not just what you learn in school, but it relates to getting educated about your community and different cultures. Become a lifelong learner.”

Why a nominee: “Students are often unprepared socially and emotionally for college life, and I have witnessed numerous students reach out to him for help,” said Jocelyn Jackson Williams, Williams’ spouse. “He (is) the epitome of a change maker.”

Joshua Wood, 41

Background: Joshua Wood grew up in foster care and then was adopted in rural Northern California. He now calls Sacramento home and is committed to building a city that his four kids want to stay in.

Oh, and don’t confuse him with his identical twin brother Luke, Sacramento State’s new president.

Accomplishments: Wood became a hometown hero as leader of Sacramento Proud, the campaign to keep the Kings in Sacramento. For Wood, that was just one project of many he’s embarked on to fill Sacramento with exciting, prosperous attractions.

Wood founded the Sacramento Region Business Association, which develops and advocates for business-friendly policy solutions. The association has moved millions of dollars into local banks, enabling easier lending and investment in local business, and partnered with the city on economic development policy.

Plans: The Region Business Association has turned its focus to “the apocalyptic nature of our homelessness and crime in Sacramento,” Wood said. He led the development and campaign for Measure O, passed by voters in 2022. It requires the city to clear encampments on city sidewalks and public property. He said he hopes to continue to put policy forward that reduces regional homelessness.

Best Advice: “Don’t join someone else’s table. Make your own. The reality is that no one gives you the ability to lead, you have to take it,” he said.

Why a nominee: “There is literally no one more politically connected and effective throughout all of Sacramento and the surrounding counties than Josh Wood,” said David Townsend, a longtime colleague of Wood’s.