Sen. Aaron Woods, D-Wilsonville, periodically has been absent from the Oregon Capitol for medical treatment. In light of legislative deadlines and committee-quorum requirements, Senate President Rob Wagner on Thursday appointed replacements for Woods on three committees: Labor and Business, Deb Patterson, D-Salem; Ways & Means, James Manning Jr., D-Eugene; and Ways & Means Transportation and Economic Development Subcommittee, Mark Meek, D-Gladstone, co-chair, and Wagner.

The League of Minority Voters held its annual gala last week in Portland. Honorees included Gov. Tina Kotek; Sen. Cedric Hayden, R-Fall Creek; and Rep. Travis Nelson, D-Portland.

Nikki Olson was named the Oregon Health Authority’s permanent deputy director of health policy and analytics after serving on an interim basis since August 2024. She succeeds Trilby de Jung, who retired last year.  Olson has been with OHA since 2020, starting as director of integrated care for kids. Before that, she was the director of the Providence Center for Outcomes Research and Education.

Khela Singer began work this week as business operations supervisor at OHA. She previously was grant coordinator for the Department of Administrative Services after working in local government and academia, including Willamette University.

Kelsey Gleeson joined OHA as Medicaid rules analyst. During 2023-24, she was equity and engagement coordinator for the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department after seven years with the Department of Human Services.

Manoj Bajpai is the new chief information officer for the Department of Corrections. He was chief product officer for the state of California after working for the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas and for technology firms.

Joe Offer is now recreation, education and interpretation program manager at the Department of Forestry.

Roy Kaufmann, who was communications director for Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum, opened Kaufmann Communications LLC.

Union Gospel Mission of Salem hired Northwest agribusiness executive Craig Smith as executive director, effective May 1. Smith has been executive director of Far West Agribusiness Association since 2023 and was director of government affairs for Food Northwest. At UGM, he succeeds Dan Clem.

Ethan Krow moved from Stuart Collective to ACLU of Oregon, where he is associate director of policy organizing.

Luke Belant, who was Oregon’s deputy elections director, now is a project manager on the National Conference of State Legislatures’ elections and redistricting team.

McKenzie Worthington, senior legislative assistant for President Wagner, now is vice chair of Young Democrats of Oregon. Kien Truong, policy adviser for Senate Majority Leader Kayse Jama, remains president.

If you have an update on who’s coming or going – or taking on a new assignment – in state government or organizations involved with it, email Dick Hughes at TheHughesisms@gmail.com.