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The public service career path for Catharine Baker is taking another interesting turn starting on Monday.
The longtime lawyer and former member of the State Assembly, who is wrapping up her term on the Fair Political Practices Commission this year, has been hired as the director of the University of California Student and Policy Center in Sacramento.
Citing the Tri-Valley resident’s prior elected experience and support of higher education, the U.C. Office of the President announced the appointment last week in a press release lauding Baker as the ideal leader for “university-wide public programming and outreach” in the state’s capital.
“Catharine is a dedicated public servant and brings a wealth of knowledge to this role from her time as a California Assemblymember, an attorney, and a nonprofit leader,” Richard Leib, chair of the UC Board of Regents, said in the press release. “She will advance the University’s public service mission in myriad ways, including by bringing distinguished speakers from across the state to the UC Student and Policy Center and by opening doors to new opportunities for UC students in the Capitol.”
Conspicuously missing from the press release were comments from Baker herself. So I reached out to learn more about her interest in the role and her vision for the center.
“This position immediately sparked my interest because it combines so much of what I enjoy and really want to see more of in public service: robust discussion and debate of policy solutions to address the challenges facing California; world-class research and ideas the University of California can contribute like no other institution in the country; and engagement with the Legislature, the Governor’s Office, statewide leaders, and local leaders that leaves electoral and partisan politics on the side. I’m all about that!” Baker told me by email before the holiday.
“Plus, I get to be a part of a new extension of the University service to California and education of UC students, who really are the future leaders of the state and country. This is a new building and new way for UC’s faculty and students to connect with the Capitol community, all for a public benefit,” she added.
Baker said her early focus will be building awareness among leaders and the greater public about the Student and Policy Center and soliciting feedback about “how the center can have a positive, measurable impact in their service.”
“Also, an election year like this creates many opportunities to develop and debate ideas about our future, and the center is the perfect place to do that. Keep an eye out for high-profile events at the center in the coming months,” she added.
Speaking of elections, I asked Baker about her own political future – although she remains engaged in the game via her FPPC position, it seems more like refereeing or even being on the sidelines than actually playing.
She burst onto the scene with no prior elected experience to earn a surprise legislative seat for the Republicans in 2014 by defeating Democrat Tim Sbranti in a ballot largely defined by BART strike fallout.
Baker then rode a reputation of bipartisanship from the GOP side of the aisle with a focus on Tri-Valley constituent priorities to an easy victory over former Pleasanton councilwoman Cheryl Cook-Kallio in 2016. But she was ultimately upended two years later as newcomer Democrat Rebecca Bauer-Kahan was carried to a narrow win in Assembly District 16 by the blue wave statewide and nationally midway through Donald Trump’s presidency.
Baker has remained active in the Tri-Valley community since, working as a special counsel at Hoge Fenton and serving on nonprofit boards such as Diablo Regional Arts Association, Livermore Lab Foundation, California Women Lead and California Forward.
She did apply for the Contra Costa County clerk-recorder vacancy in late 2019, becoming a finalist but losing out for the job early that next January. But other than that, Baker’s name has not been tied to any elected position since her Assembly loss despite her strong local record.
She told me that’s primarily for a good reason: the rules around her FPPC position, to which she was appointed by then-state controller Betty T. Yee heading into 2021.
“The commission has enforcement jurisdiction over pretty much all campaigns for state and local elected office. To do that job with fairness, integrity and impartiality, commissioners are prohibited from running for office or participating in campaigns or partisan activity for their entire four-year term, even if they resign early, That’s as it should be,” Baker said.
“I am proud of the work and reforms my fellow commissioners and I have enacted at the FPPC, but my tenure there will soon come to a close,” she added. “This position as director of the Student and Policy Center is exactly the kind of public service I’d like to do next.”
And will she retain her local ties despite the new gig in Sacramento? “Yes! The Tri-Valley has been our home for 24 years. It will remain our home and I will remain active in our local community. Can’t imagine it any other way,” Baker said. “My minivan and I know the commute to Sacramento well after my four years in the Assembly and almost four years on the FPPC.”
Editor’s note: Jeremy Walsh is the editorial director for the Embarcadero Media Foundation’s East Bay Division. His “What a Week” column is a recurring feature in the Pleasanton Weekly, Livermore Vine and DanvilleSanRamon.com.
