APTA 2026 Nominating Committee Selects Leadership Executives

9/8/2026

From left: Joel B. Young, Randy Clarke, Jannet Walker-Ford, Leanne Redden.

APTA’s 2026 Nominating Committee met Sept. 2 to select nominees for the association’s Executive Committee and Board of Directors for 2026–2027. 

Joel B. Young, Board Member, AC Transit, Oakland, CA, has been nominated to serve as APTA chair for 2026–2027. Randy Clarke, General Manager and CEO, Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA), Washington, DC, has been nominated to serve as vice chair. 

Jannet Walker-Ford, Advisory and Planning Business Line Executive, WSP USA, will continue her 2025–2028 term as secretary-treasurer. Leanne Redden will serve as immediate past chair. 

Nominated for three-year terms as members of the APTA Executive Committee include: 

  • Jessica Mefford-Miller, CEO, Valley Metro, Phoenix, AZ, to serve as Rail Transit CEOs Committee Representative 
  • Shawn Donaghy, CEO, North County Transit District, Oceanside, CA, to serve as Bus and Paratransit CEOs Committee Representative
  • Raquel Olivier, President and CEO, Olivier Inc., Houston, TX, to serve as Business Member Board of Governors (BMBG) Representative
  • Kevin Quinn, CEO, TransLink, Vancouver, BC, to serve as Canadian Member 
  • Denise Figueroa, Board Member, Capital District Transportation Authority, Albany, NY, to serve as At Large Transit Board Member
  • Buddy Coleman, Chief Customer Officer, Clever Devices, to serve as At Large Business Member 
  • Randall Bryant, Board Chair, Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART), Dallas, TX, to serve as At Large Member 

Nominations for three-year terms on the APTA Board of Directors are: 

Transit system directors: 

  • Margaret Abe-Koga, County Supervisor, County of Santa Clara, San Jose, CA
  • David Armijo, Executive Director, South Central Regional Transit District, Anthony, NM
  • Monica Backmon, CEO, Northern Virginia Transportation Authority, Fairfax, VA
  • Jordan Hess, CEO and General Manager, Missoula Urban Transportation District/Mountain Line, Missoula, MT
  • Charles “Chuck” Reeves, Chief Transportation Officer, Pittsburgh Regional Transit, Pittsburgh, PA
  • Charlotte Shaw, Executive Director and CEO, Birmingham-Jefferson County Transit Authority, Birmingham, AL 

Business member directors: 

  • Charles Di Maggio, CEO, Greystone Real Estate Advisory Group, New York, NY 
  • Emily Guill, Director of Business Development, Transdev U.S., Lombard, IL 
  • Tom LeBeau, National Rail and Transit Market Director, Sundt Construction, Dallas, TX 
  • Kim Slaughter, Senior Vice President and Transportation Leader for North America, TYLin, Houston, TX 
  • Ryan Snow, P.E., Senior Vice President Pursuits, Stacy Witbeck, Salt Lake City, UT 
  • Frank White III, Founder and Managing Partner, Praxis Advisors Group, Kansas City, MO 

APTA members will vote on the 2026–2027 slate of nominees Oct. 3 during the Annual Meeting of the Members, held during APTA’s TRANSform Conference & EXPO in Chicago, IL.