Longtime San Diego County finance official Ebony Shelton became the county’s first Black chief administrative officer Tuesday, after county supervisors unanimously agreed on her appointment.
Shelton is also the first Afro-Latina woman to serve as the county’s top executive, succeeding the first woman ever named to the job. She has worked for the county for nearly 30 years in various capacities, most recently in a dual role as the county’s chief financial officer and deputy CAO.
Shelton said she recognized the importance and trust of the board’s vote.
“I definitely do not take that lightly,” she said. “You have my commitment to do my absolute best to advance San Diego County for all residents, as well as all of our workforce.”
Once she starts her new position June 14, Shelton will be paid an annual base salary of $395,000, with yearly cumulative salary increases of no less than 3 percent for at least the next five years.
The board’s vote was met with cheers and applause from both the dais and the audience, which included a handful of Shelton’s family members who were there to support her.
Ebony Shelton was appointed as the county’s new chief administrative officer on Tuesday, June 4, 2024.
(Courtesy of San Diego County)
Supervisor Terra Lawson-Remer teared up as she spoke to Shelton.
“We’ve been working really hard as a board over the last four years to steer this county in a new direction, and I think you are so prepared and so ready to continue in advance and deepen and accelerate that work,” Lawson-Remer said.
The CAO reports to the Board of Supervisors, overseeing the county’s budget of more than $8.5 billion and workforce of about 20,000, executing policy, managing labor agreements and negotiations and directing operation of county departments spanning health, land use, finance and more.
She also supervises all the county’s non-elected department heads and works closely with elected officials, including the sheriff and district attorney, as well as other local governments.
Both Supervisors Jim Desmond and Joel Anderson called Shelton the right choice for the role. Chair Nora Vargas said Shelton “has a can-do attitude that sets ambitious goals, builds consensus around them, and then removes barriers to achieving those goals through her leadership influence.”
Since joining the county, Shelton has served as financial policy and planning director and group finance director, where she guided financial planning policies and coordinated the creation of the county budget.
Most recently, she has worked to oversee departments in the county’s finance group and manage fiscal and financial operations and has helped the CAO manage the budget and supervise county business.
She lives in San Diego with her husband, Cecil, and their three daughters. A native San Diegan of Black and Salvadoran ancestry, Shelton says she understands the impacts of history on Black and Latino communities, and the importance of equity for all San Diego County residents.
“I am committed to driving positive change and fostering a future of prosperity, inclusivity and resilience for all in the region,” she said.
Shelton’s appointment ends an unusually long hiring process that had recently drawn intense political pressure over whom to pick for the job.
Supervisors had been searching for more than a year for someone to succeed Helen Robbins-Meyer, who recently retired after more than a decade in the top position.
Her deputy, Sarah Aghassi, took the helm as interim CAO in January temporarily until supervisors could hire a permanent successor but did not apply for the permanent job.
The recruitment was complicated soon after it began early last year, when Supervisor Nathan Fletcher resigned in the face of sexual misconduct allegations.
At the time, supervisors had recently made Santa Clara County Supervisor Cindy Chavez a conditional job offer. They withdrew it after deciding to start the search over once Fletcher’s successor was in place.
Chavez later reapplied but was removed from consideration, prompting public criticism from local labor unions representing county workers. A lawyer for Chavez told the county she was considering suing.
The board continued to conduct its hiring process with candidates in private, as it typically does. In addition to supervisors’ interviews, the process involved finalists being interviewed by a panel of 10 community members, two from each supervisorial district.
Shelton and another candidate from outside of San Diego County were named finalists, but the other candidate dropped out, leaving Shelton as the only contender to face the panel.
While SEIU 221 President Crystal Irving — who had pushed for Chavez — and a handful of other labor union members spoke in favor of Shelton’s appointment at Tuesday’s board meeting, they criticized what they described as a lack of transparency in her hiring. Irving called the process “a missed opportunity.”
Nearly all of the dozen people who spoke Tuesday congratulated Shelton and said they were optimistic.
Maddie Kilkenny said she witnessed Shelton’s character, integrity and work ethic firsthand while working with her at the county. “Perhaps what’s most impressive about Ebony is her ability to work with others, build consensus and keep the best interests of the county of San Diego and our 3 million residents in mind at all times,” she said.
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