By Mark Edward Nero
For the first time in its history, the Port of Long Beach’s Board of Harbor Commissioners will soon have a female majority. On May 21, the Long Beach City Council approved the appointment of longtime Long Beach City College executive Lou Anne Bynum to the harbor board.
“I’ve long worked with representatives of the Port of Long Beach to develop educational and job opportunities in support of economic and workforce development in the region, and I look forward to continuing those strong ties between the port and the educational community,” Bynum said in a prepared statement.
Bynum, who is expected to attend her first meeting as a Commissioner on Tues., May 27, becomes the third female member of the five-person panel, following Susan Anderson Wise, who was appointed to a six-year term by Mayor Bob Foster in December 2008 and Lori Ann Farrell, who was appointed to her first term by Foster in December 2013.
Bynum becomes only the sixth woman to have served on the board in its 103-year history. She fills the seat left vacant by the Nov. 19, 2013, departure of then-Board President Thomas Fields, who was removed from his seat in November 2013 after conflicting with the mayor. The unexpired term that Bynum now assumes expires in June 2015.
Bynum is the Executive Vice President of College Advancement and Economic Development for Long Beach City College, where she has previously served as Vice President and Administrative Dean.
She is also currently a board member for the Pacific Gateway Workforce Investment Network, Downtown Long Beach Associates and the Advisory Board for the Los Angeles County BizFed Institute. In the past, she has served as chair of the Long Beach Area Chamber of Commerce, vice chair of the Long Beach Economic Development Commission and president of the Southern California International Business Association.
