Our Leadership

EXECUTIVE LEADERSHIP TEAM

Lina Sheth, MPH, CPCC

Interim Chief Executive Officer
Lina partners with social sector organizations to facilitate, coach, and offers thought partnership to strengthen organizational effectiveness that builds on culture and sustainability, all through a lens of equity, inclusion, and belonging. Lina works to support executive transitions both as an Interim Executive Director/Chief Executive Officer or advisory transition services. She also brings ex... Read Moretensive strategy experience to support organizational vision and impact with her clients, while also providing professional coaching to support development to leaders of boards, teams and staff.

For over 25 years, Lina has played an executive role as staff or interim executive in multiple sectors from health, human services, affordable housing, racial justice, and public policy both here in the U.S. and globally. Lina has successfully completed nine interim executive positions that range from sustaining to transformational and work with organizations from $1 million to $30 million. She has broad experience of working within and along with Black, Asian and Latinx communities in these different sectors. Lina holds a Master's in Public Health from Boston University and is a Certified Leadership Coach from the Coaches Training Institute. In envisioning Lina’s practice, meraki, a Greek word that means “love, play and create”, hopes to facilitate spaciousness for this very transformation needed for justice and equity in our society.Read Less

Syd Najeeb

Interim Chief Financial Officer
Over the past two decades, Mr. Syd Najeeb has established an impressive career with three prominent nonprofit organizations dedicated to affordable housing in the Bay Area. His journey has seen him assume vital roles such as Controller at OCHI/M, Director of Finance at Satellite Senior Homes, and CFO at Christian Church Homes (CCH). Syd has fostered strong connections with key stakeholders, includ... Read Moreing HUD, HCD, lenders, various Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) investors, and asset managers. Notably, he began his tenure as a transformative COO/CFO at CCH, where his dynamic leadership contributed significantly to the organization's unprecedented growth. In January 2020, Syd was elevated to the position of President/CEO of CCH. His proactive and solution-oriented approach has consistently driven remarkable financial and operational achievements, even in the face of formidable challenges, such as the recent global COVID-19 pandemic.

Additionally, Syd's academic background is marked by a Bachelor's degree in Accounting, a Master of Arts degree in Economics, and a Master’s degree in Business Administration. These credentials have fortified his knowledge and capabilities in the realm of financial and strategic leadership. Boasting a solid track record of fostering financial success, streamlining operations, and fostering collaboration at all organizational levels, Syd's arrival brings a fresh perspective as we work together to elevate financial stability and propel growth to new heights.Read Less

Capri Roth

Executive VP, Real Estate Development
Capri Roth leads EBALDC’s Real Estate Development department in the acquisition, development, and rehabilitation of EBALDC’s affordable housing and commercial portfolio, including a pipeline of over 1,100 housing units spread across 13 properties.

Since Capri joined EBALDC in 2016 she oversaw the development, acquisition, and rehabilitation of 558 affordable housing units and 20... Read More,000 square feet of community-serving commercial space, representing over $300 million in asset value. Rooted in her belief that everyone should have an affordable and safe place to live and that all communities should be high-resourced neighborhoods, Capri is an active policy and community advocate. She participates in the Nonprofit Housing Association of Northern California’s (NPH) Legislative and Regulatory Issues working groups and advocacy campaigns with East Bay Housing Organizations (EBHO).
Prior to EBALDC, Capri was a Project and Asset Manager for Terrex Development Corporation, where she oversaw the development of 320 affordable housing units in Northern California and Minnesota with a total asset value of $120 million.

Capri earned her M.B.A. from Lehigh University, where she received a Martindale Fellowship and a B.A. from The New School.

Follow her on LinkedIn and Twitter at @capriroth.Read Less

Ener Chiu

Executive VP, Community Building
Ener Chiu has been with EBALDC since 2004. He started in Real Estate Development, eventually supervising a team of 10 staff, a pipeline of more than 550 affordable homes in predevelopment, and leading several multi-phase mixed-income developments with public-private joint venture partnerships. In 2021, Ener transitioned into the role of Executive Vice President of Community Building, which suppor... Read Morets and leads all of EBALDC’s non-Real Estate programming: Resident and Community Services; Economic Opportunities; and Neighborhood Collaborations. The 42 staff in these three departments collectively serve more than 5,000 individuals each year with service referrals, benefits assistance, leadership development, youth programming, financial coaching, free tax preparation, emergency rental assistance, neighborhood coalition organizing (in West Oakland, Downtown/Chinatown, and East Oakland), and creative art-driven neighborhood improving projects.

Since 2008, Ener has been deeply involved in community planning and development projects in Downtown Oakland and Chinatown. As a Steering Committee member of the Oakland Chinatown Coalition, he organizes nonprofits, residents, and business owners and employees to advocate for planning policies and development projects that would directly benefit the people who currently live and work in Oakland, while making space for the new residents and businesses that are moving to this city.

Ener is a Founding Member of Old Oakland Neighbors; a Founding Family Member of Yu Ming Mandarin Immersion Public Charter School; a Co-Founder of Friends of Lincoln Square Park; past President of the Pacific Renaissance Plaza Master Association; past President of the Board of East Bay Housing Organizations, and served on the Investor Oversight Committee of the New Parkway Theater. In 2022, he completed his service to the Founding Board of Oakland Chinatown Improvement Commission. Ener holds a Master’s degree in City and Regional Planning from UC Berkeley, and lives in Oakland with his wife, two daughters, and pit terrier. Read Less

Felicia Scruggs

Executive VP, Property Operations
Felicia served on the EBALDC Board of Directors from 2010 until she joined EBALDC’s senior management team as Director of Property Management in 2016. She manages the operations of EBALDC’s 25 residential buildings and oversees the largest department in the organization, with 187,000 square footage of commercial space. Prior to EBALDC, Felicia was Director of Property Management for Tenderloin... Read More Neighborhood Development Corporations, where she was responsible for the operation of their 30 properties from 2004 to 2015. Prior to 2004, she oversaw the Property Management Department at the Emergency Housing Consortium in the South Bay and oversaw management 19 sites.

Felicia holds a BA degree in Leadership and Organizational Management from Saint Mary’s College of California. She is a California Real Estate Broker and EBALDC’s Broker of record. She is also a Certified Property Manager (CPM®) with the Institute of Real Estate Management, a Certified Apartment Manager (CAM) through the National Apartment Association, and a Certified Housing Credit Specialist.Read Less

Kathleen Higginbotham

Vice President, Human Resources
With over 20 years of experience in the Human Resources, Kathleen Higginbotham leads EBALDC’s many HR programs including HR strategy development and execution, talent management, total rewards, training & development, compliance, internal communications, and engagement.

Prior to joining EBALDC in 2022, Kathleen was the HR Leader for Meazure Learning, a global education technology... Read More company. In this role, Kathleen led the HR strategy through significant organic and acquisition-based growth.

Kathleen earned her degree in Art History and German from the College of William Mary. She actively volunteers with youth in the East Bay. Read Less

Vicki Shu

Vice President, Resource Development & Communications
As the Vice President of Resource Development & Communications (RDC), Vicki provides leadership, strategic direction, oversight, coordination, and priority-setting for EBALDC’s fundraising and communications work. With over 30 years of working, consulting, and volunteering in the public, private and nonprofit sectors, Vicki brings a range of experiences integral to a cross-departmental and -func... Read Moretional team.

In addition to working in diverse positions for the late Senator Alan Cranston, Human Rights Watch, OCA-Asian Pacific American Advocates, and the Asian American Federation of New York, Vicki has provided fundraising, board development, and operations consultations for nonprofit organizations in Washington DC, New York City, and the San Francisco Bay Area. She has produced a documentary on the effects of 9/11 on the Asian American community and has served as the National VP of Public Affairs for OCA, leading its advocacy efforts in the areas of immigration, voting rights, and other social justice issues. In addition to a BA from the University of California, San Diego, Vicki is a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY, and has cooked in and managed some of New York City’s most popular restaurants. A nationally-ranked Masters swimmer, Vicki swims with Oakland’s MEMO Swim Team.Read Less

EBALDC BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Kelly Drumm

Board Chair
Kelly is the Deputy General Counsel of Legal Policy and Operations at the University of California’s Office of the President located in downtown Oakland. She has been practicing law since 1994 and is an experienced land use and entitlement lawyer specializing in the California Environmental Quality Act. She previously served as Managing Counsel of Capital Strategies overseeing a legal team of l... Read Moreand use, construction, and real estate attorneys supporting the University of California’s construction and real estate development programs, which include student and faculty/staff housing. In her current role, she oversees a $31M+ internal legal operating budget, manages a 50+ member team, and supports the General Counsel in coordinating legal advice to the University of California’s 10-campus system on a broad range of higher education matters.

Kelly joined EBALDC’s Board in 2017. She has been an Oakland resident since 2003 and is a fourth-generation Bay Area native. Her commitment to EBALDC’s mission is driven by her family’s direct experiences with housing insecurity and displacement. She earned a BA in Anthropology from California State University, Sacramento, and a JD from UC Hastings College of the Law in San Francisco. Prior to joining the University of California, Kelly practiced law at Barg, Coffin, Lewis and Trapp, a boutique firm in San Francisco; the California Environmental Law Project, an environmental non-profit; and before attending law school was an archeologist for the US Department of Agriculture.Read Less

Leslie Francis

Board Vice Chair
Leslie Francis is Vice President, Shared Services Strategy and Business Solutions Group for Enterprise Shared Services at Kaiser Permanente. She is responsible for delivering the shared services strategy at Kaiser Permanente while providing internal consulting services across Enterprise Shared Services. Previously, Leslie was Chief of Staff for the Office of the CFO and Director of Medical Group ... Read MoreAffairs for the Permanente Federation, and has been with Kaiser Permanente for over 25 years.

As a lifelong champion of equity and inclusion, Leslie has also served as co-chair of Kaiser Permanente’s Asian and Pacific Islander association, co-founder of KP Women Embracing Live and Leadership, sponsor of childcare development programs for OneSky. She has been a board member of the East Bay Asian Local Development Corporation for 5 years. Leslie holds a BA in Economics and Asian Studies from UC Berkeley and an MBA/MHA in Business and Health Administration from University of Washington.Read Less

David Peters

Treasurer
David Peters was born and raised in the West Oakland community where he lives today. David believes that healthy communities exist at the intersection of racial justice, environmental justice, and economic justice and serves on the Board, and as an advisor to several local non-profits and community groups. He is a Certified Public Accountant, and has a broad background in multinational corporate ... Read Moreauditing, accounting, tax and financial reporting developed over 25 years in finance leadership roles across a range of industries. David is a graduate of California State University, Hayward.Read Less

Agnes Ubalde

Secretary
Agnes Ubalde is the SVP at PNC Bank for Community Development Banking in CA. She is responsible for overseeing & directing a team aimed at improving low-to-moderate income/distressed communities & leveraging the bank's community development loan, grant investments, financial inclusion tools and technical expertise to support local and regional based, nonprofit/for-profit & community partners make... Read More an impact.

Ubalde is a highly accomplished and seasoned cross-sector leader with over 30+ years of experience across corporate/community philanthropy, government and social innovation to advance economic inclusion, racial equity, and social justice through data-driven systems change and public policy. Prior to PNC she held positions with BBVA, Wells Fargo, City & County of San Francisco’s Mayor’s Office, Alameda County General Services Agency & Deloitte Consulting. Agnes holds a BS in Health Science/Community Health Education from San Francisco State University, and an MSPPM from Heinz College at Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA.Read Less

Adam Feldman

Board Member
Adam is the Chief Investment Officer of Project Finance at Sol Source Power, LLC which develops solar and battery storage projects in the eastern United States. He has been in the solar industry since 2011 and has managed M&A transactions of over 300MW with a total value of over $1B.

His current focus is on the financing of renewable energy projects from the early development stage... Read More through the commencement of operations as projects are placed into service, as well as supporting the growth of Sol Source Power. Prior to moving into the solar industry, Adam was involved in the private development, ownership, and financing of traditional real estate with various publicly and privately owned companies.

Adam has been an Oakland resident since 1998 and joined EBALDC’s Board of Directors in 2023. His family arrived in the Bay Area in the early 1900’s and his commitment to EBALDC’s mission is motivated by a goal to support an ever-changing region in a way that seeks inclusion and support for all residents. Adam earned a BA in Business Economics from UCLA and an MBA with a focus in Sustainability from the Presidio Graduate School.
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Beth Rosales

Board Member
Recently retired, Beth Rosales has spent her career in philanthropy fighting for social justice. Currently, she is a Senior Adviser at the Arch Community Fund. She has held executive positions at the Lia Fund, Marguerite Casey Foundation, Tides Foundation, and the Women’s Foundation of California.

Beth was a co-founder of Asian Americans/Pacific Islanders in Philanthropy and ... Read MoreCommunity Vision (formerly, the Northern California Community Loan Fund). She was a trustee of pioneering socially responsible investments firms, namely, Working Assets Management Company and Progressive Asset Management, a national financial adviser network that specializes in impact investing. Beth also served on the boards of Asian Health Services, Horizons Foundation, and the Funding Exchange.

An EBALDC resident, Beth also sits on its Resident Leadership Council.Read Less

Chris Ferreira

Board Member
Chris Ferreira has a diverse background in community development, regulatory, and government work experience. He had been with the Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco from August 2014 through 2021, where he managed multiple programs, including the AHEAD economic development grant program and two disaster recovery grant programs. He previously worked at The Low-Income Investment Fund (LIIF) and... Read More Capital Impact Partners (formerly NCB Capital Impact), two of the leading Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) in the country. While at LIIF and Capital Impact Partners, Chris underwrote, structured, and financed a variety of community facility projects, including charter schools, community health centers, other non-profit facilities, and affordable housing projects.

Chris received a BA in American Studies from UC Berkeley and an MBA from the Graduate School of Management at UC Davis. He was a four-year letterman in Track & Field while at UC Berkeley, including winning the 1996 Pacific-10 Long Jump Championship.Read Less

Chun Huang

Board Member
A resident of EBALDC’s Frank G. Mar Community Apartments, Chun is a college student studying architecture, gaining experience assisting in project research and development as an intern with David Baker Architects and Rubicon Point Partners. He is currently working part-time as a high school college and career advisor at Metwest High School and as a track and cross-country coach for Piedmont Midd... Read Morele School.

He spends his time volunteering in various non-profit organizations. He is the lead senior youth advisor with the Asian Youth Services Committee. He is serving on the Board of Directors of the Wa Sung Community Service Club and is an active mentor with Running for a Better Oakland. As an EBALDC resident, Chun takes part in the Resident Leadership Council, planning and facilitating resident events. Over the past two years, he has assisted with meal and pantry distributions throughout the EBALDC Chinatown properties. As a tax-preparer with EBALDC under the IRS VITA program, he helps prepare taxes for low and moderate-income families.

In 2021, Chun received EBALDC’s Lynette Jung Lee’s Resident Leadership AwardsRead Less

Dr. Dianne Rush Woods

Board Member
Dr. Dianne Rush Woods is a Professor Emerita in the Department of Social Work at CSU East Bay. She currently teaches Race, Gender, & Inequality, Social Policy, and Human Behavior in the Social Environment. Prior to retiring, Dr. Woods served on the President’s Cabinet, first as Chief of Staff and then as Chief Diversity Officer for the University. She joined Cal State East Bay as an assistant p... Read Morerofessor in 2001 and co-founded the Master of Social Work program in 2003. Prior to completing her Ph.D., Dr. Woods practiced as a Licensed Clinical Social Worker providing mental health and managed care services.Read Less

John Chan

Board Member
Mr. Chan is currently a Senior Vice President of East West Bank leading their low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) lending efforts. He joined East West Bank in July 2021 after over five years at BBVA USA where he was Senior Vice President and Director of Community Development Capital overseeing the bank’s LIHTC lending and investments in its seven state CRA footprint. Prior to joining BBVA, he ... Read Morespent eight years as Senior Vice President, at US Bank’s Community Lending team providing financing to affordable housing developers across California. Overall, Mr. Chan has spent over twenty-nine years working in community development finance. Mr. Chan graduated with a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics and a Master’s Degree in Business Administration, both from the University of California at Davis.Read Less

Klein Lieu

Board Member
Klein Lieu is an advocate who leverages technology to organize queer and Asian Pacific Islander communities to build collective bargaining power. He was born and raised in Oakland’s Chinatown near his family’s hair salon, just right across the street from EBALDC’s Asian Resource Center. Klein currently works for Affirm Inc as a senior software engineer, where he co-leads the Asian Heritage A... Read Morelliance, Affirm’s Asian Pacific Islander employee resource group. Prior to that, he was the chair of Mixtape, Pandora’s resource group for employees of color. Klein previously served on the Oakland Unified School District Board of Education committee overseeing the E12th parcel at Lake Merritt. Previously, he was also elected as a student senator at UC Berkeley, where he received his BA in Cognitive Science.Read Less

K.M. Tan, M.D.

Board Member
K.M. is a retired radiologist after 34 years with The Permanente Medical Group, Inc., having served on its Board of Directors and as an assistant Physician‐in‐Chief and Chief of Radiology.

He received the 2006 Sidney Garfield, M.D. Exceptional Contribution Award from TPMG for co‐founding the Kaiser Permanente School of Allied Health Sciences. An active volunteer in the communi... Read Morety, KM has served as an Oakland Arts Commissioner, Chair of the Institute for Medical Quality, Family Bridges and EBALDC as well as on the Boards of the Alameda County Community Food Bank, Oakland Ballet, Alameda United Way and several other groups.Read Less

Lorenzo Brooks

Board Member
Lorenzo Brooks is a real estate investment professional with over 15 years of experience in finance and development. He is currently an SVP on the acquisitions team at Prado Group where he is responsible for leading the execution of acquisitions, financings, and dispositions. In addition, Lorenzo structures investment opportunities and manages relationships with Prado’s capital partners. Previou... Read Moresly, Lorenzo was the Director of Real Estate Investments for Emerson Collective where he led the design, entitlement, and financing for over 50 acres of ground-up development projects. Prior to Emerson Collective, Lorenzo served as Director of Acquisitions at Meridian, where he led acquisitions of value-add medical and general office buildings in the Bay Area. Before Meridian, Lorenzo was an Assistant Vice President of Investments at MacFarlane Partners. At MacFarlane, Lorenzo invested equity in joint-venture development projects worth over $2 billion in a variety of property types that included multifamily, hotel, retail, and office.

Lorenzo joined the EBALDC board in 2023. He is also a member of the Urban Land Institute and serves on the Public/Private Partnership Council. Lorenzo earned his MBA from Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business and his Bachelor’s degree in Mathematics from Morehouse College.Read Less

Minming Wu Morri

Board Member
Minming is the Vice-Chair of EBALDC’s Governance Committee, is an Oakland resident, and is an attorney. She worked in affordable housing as the Commercial Real Estate Development Director of Better Housing Coalition, a past CDC recipient of the Fannie Mae Maxwell Award of Excellence and as a project manager for the Regional Affordable Housing Fund in Marseille, France. Minming’s affordable h... Read Moreousing legal work includes serving as attorney for the Bay Area Rapid Transit District (BART), its Board committees and real estate projects and as Chair of the American Bar Association’s Sustainable Real Estate Transactions Committee. Minming is also a founder and former Vice-Chair of the Asian American Bar Association’s (AABA) Public Law Leadership Advisory Council and a past Board member for APILO, one of the Bay’s oldest Asian American legal aid services agencies and an EBALDC commercial tenant. Read Less

Richard Quach

Board Member
Richard was raised in Oakland, CA and spent much of his childhood in the markets and parks in Chinatown. After graduate school, Richard worked for EBALDC as a project manager in the Real Estate Development department. He managed the acquisition and build out of EBALDC's headquarters at 1825 San Pablo Avenue. Richard is currently the Design, Construction, and Facilities Lead at Square. He oversees ... Read Moreall construction and facility maintenance activities for Square's global real estate portfolio.Read Less

Rosalyn Tonai

Board Member
Rosalyn is the Executive Director of the National Japanese American Historical Society, Inc. for 30 years. She has served on the EBALDC board since 1986 and currently serves on the board of the Japantown Task Force, a nonprofit planning & community development organization in San Francisco's Japantown. She's a graduate of the Getty Museum Management Institute and Coro Foundation's API community le... Read Moreadership program and holds a Masters in Public Administration, nonprofit management from University of San Francisco, and a BA from UC Berkeley, in Social Welfare, with a concentration in public policy.Read Less

Sean Sullivan

Chair Emeritus
Sean Sullivan is an award-winning serial entrepreneur, published author, non-profit executive, and the only person in Oakland to entitle two emergency homeless shelters.

Most recently, Sullivan served as Acting Executive CEO of EBALDC. He also served as EBALDC’s Board Chair for three years from 2020 – 2022. Sullivan also co-owns Fluid 510 and The Port Bar in downtown Oakland. ... Read Morer /> For ten years, Sullivan worked at Covenant House, the nation's leading agency serving homeless youth. He oversaw a multimillion-dollar capital campaign that brought a permanent community service center for homeless youth to Oakland. The center provided 30 beds of emergency shelter and transitional housing, job training, and diversion programs for homeless and trafficked youth in Oakland.

Sullivan has held leadership positions at Equality California, the Center for Environmental Health, and College Track.

Sullivan joined the EBALDC Board of Directors in 2017 to continue to provide support, advocacy, and solutions for homeless & housing-insecure people.
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Ted Dang

Co-Founder & Board Member
Ted Dang is one of the original co-founders of EBALDC in 1975, and continues as a current board member. An Oakland native, he has been in the real estate business as commercial broker, property manager, and developer for almost 50 years. He holds the professional designations of CPM (Certified Property Manager) and CCIM (Certified Commercial Investment Member) and is also a Probate Referee for Ala... Read Moremeda County. He has also been involved in leadership positions at the Oakland Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce, Oakland Housing Authority, Oakland Housing Initiatives, Chinese American Community Foundation, Shoong Family Chinese Cultural Center, and Alameda County Assessment Appeals Board.Read Less

Thái-Ân Ngȏ

Board Member
Thái-Ân is a Senior Housing Finance Consultant at California Housing Partnership Corporation where she provides financial consulting, technical assistance, and training to nonprofit and government partners. Prior to the Partnership, Thái-Ân worked at two tax credit syndication firms where she sourced, underwrote, and closed affordable housing development transactions across the country. Thái... Read More-Ân began her long career in affordable housing with a variety of roles in housing development at Chinatown Community Development Center (San Francisco) where she oversaw the development of several new-construction, urban-infill projects over her 14-year tenure. She has resided in the San Antonio neighborhood for almost two decades.Read Less