Copyright © 1997-2003 CSA
May 10, 2002
New CSA Board of Directors Announced
Contact: Andrea Seastrand
Phone: 916-551-1543
Santa Maria, CA - The California Space Authority (CSA) is pleased to announce that on April 16, 2002 its Board of Directors was seated. The gavel passed form the Transition Board Chairman General Donald Cromer (Ret.) to the newly elected Chairman of the Board, Michael Gallo of Kelley Space and Technology, Inc.
This Board is the first to be seated by the membership of CSA, which was formed as a result of the merger between the California Space Authority and Western Commercial Space Center. The 15 members represent a broad cross section of California's space enterprise community and bring experience gathered from industry, academia, government, military and labor backgrounds.
Board members are chosen from 3 regions consisting of Northern, Central and Southern California. Terms are for two years, but will be staggered to ensure continuity between future elections.
For a full listing of the new 2002 Board, complete with information about their existing businesses, please go to http://www.californiaspaceauthority.org/boardcsa.html.
The Officers of the Board are as follows:
Chairman, CSA Board of Directors
Michael J. Gallo
President and COO
Kelly Space and Technology, Inc.
San Bernardino
Michael Gallo began his career as a USAF Officer in 1980, joined TRW Ballistic Missiles Division in 1984 and co-founded Kelly Space and Technology, Inc. in 1993, where he currently serves as President and Chief Operating Officer. Gallo served as 2001 Board Chairman of the former California Space and Technology Alliance (CSTA), and also as a Member of the California Space Authority Transition Board. An AIAA Arrowhead Section Chairman, Gallo is also Chairman of the San Bernardino County Community Action Board, Vice Chairman of the San Bernardino County Workforce Investment Board and served as a space industry liaison to the recent Joint Legislative Committee to develop a California Master Plan for Education, under the leadership of Senator Dede Alpert.
Vice Chair, California South
John R. Parsons
Senior Vice President, Space Systems Group
The Aerospace Corporation
Los Angeles
John Parsons is currently Senior Vice President, Space Systems Group, The Aerospace Corporation. Parsons joined The Aerospace Corporation in 1969 and has served in numerous director-level positions: Director of the Image Exploitation Department, Mission Information Systems Division; Principal Director of the Sensor Systems Subdivision, Electronics and Sensors Division; Principal Director of the Boost Surveillance and Tracking System Directorate, Strategic Defense Operations. Appointed Vice President of Space Program Operations, Space Systems Group in 1996, Parsons was named Senior Vice President of the Engineering and Technology Group in 1997, prior to his current position. Before joining Aerospace, Parsons held a variety of industry positions. Parsons holds a B.S. in physics from the University of California at Berkeley and completed graduate studies in optical sciences at the University of Arizona, where he was a National Defense Education Act Fellow. Parsons is a member of the AIAA and the Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association.
Vice Chair, California Central
Raymond Deutsch
President
HHD Architects, Inc.
Santa Maria
Founding Chairman, former California Space and Technology Alliance (CSTA) Board of Directors, Raymond Deutsch was an early champion of economic development efforts supporting regional and California space enterprise. Deutsch served on the California Defense Conversion Council and was Chairman of the CSTA Space Resource and Planning Committee which provided oversight for the development of the California Space Strategic Plan. He recently served as a Member of the California Space Authority Nominating Committee. Deutsch is President, Hall Hurley Deutsch, Architects, Inc., a firm specializing in educational, institutional, industrial and research facilities.
Vice Chair, California North
Celeste Ford
President/CEO
Stellar Solutions
Palo Alto
Celeste Ford is the founder and CEO of Stellar Solutions, an internationally recognized aerospace engineering services firm. Under her guidance since its inception in 1995, Stellar Solutions has become a recognized leader in the aerospace field by participating in critically important national and international satellite programs. Ford is widely recognized as a leader in the aerospace industry and business community, having served on Congressional commissions and panels with leaders of emerging businesses. She has received numerous leadership awards. She also established the Stellar Solutions Foundation to support education and charities, and launched Stellar Ventures to develop and market new technologies.
Secretary
Laurel Shockley
Consultant
Los Angeles
As Director, Los Angeles Regional Office, California Trade and Commerce Agency from 1986-1997, Laurel Shockley had the opportunity to work on economic recovery during the great aerospace "downturn". Heading up the State's X-33 "red team", Shockley worked to identify incentives to secure production of the X-33 prototype in California. After moving to Southern California Edison's Economic Development Division, Shockley continued work in aerospace by funding a study identifying over 40,000 aerospace suppliers across the state. This study identified aerospace stakeholders in every Congressional district in California and has been used to communicate the importance of the industry to the State's economy.
Treasurer
James A. Diani
President
A.J. Diani Construction Company, Inc.
Santa Maria
James A. Diani is president of A. J. Diani Construction Company, Inc., a general building, general engineering and environmental remediation and restoration contractor. The company has a long history of performance in military and private sector work related to the space launch industry. Diani currently represents Vandenberg's 30th Space Wing on General Ralph E. Eberhart's Air Force Space Command Commander's Group. Diani also has a long and diverse history of professional and community involvement and was honored by the Santa Maria Valley Chamber of Commerce as its Citizen of the Year in 1997.
Working closely with the Division of Science, Technology and Innovation within the California Technology, Trade and Commerce Agency, the CSA maximizes the state's space-related potential by developing, managing, coordinating funding for, or otherwise supporting, California-based space activities.
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