Bobby Lee (Photo from City of Seattle)
Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan announced that she will nominate Bobby Lee as the next director of the City’s Office of Economic Development. Lee currently serves as the director of economic development for the City of Portland. Prior to his service with the City of Portland, Lee served in the Office of Governor Kate Brown as the regional solutions coordinator, where he led an integrated team focused on solving the state’s economic and community development challenges. In addition to working in the private sector and for advocacy organizations, including Oregon’s largest workforce development agency, Lee also previously served on the City Council in Eugene, Ore.
Durkan is also nominating Amarah Khan as the first-ever director of the City’s newly created Office of the Employee Ombud.
Amarah Khan (Photo from City of Seattle)
Khan currently serves as the director of equity and inclusive practices at the Renton School District. Prior to that, she served as the associate director for global diversity initiatives at Oregon State University. Khan spent her early career working as a humanitarian aid worker across South Asia and the United States. She is an international development scholar with extensive background in conflict management and peace studies.