Calif. Gov. Gavin Newsom Nominates Three South Asian Americans to Key Positions
- Hemant Dhingra was appointed to the Medical Board of California, Nisha Devi Rodrigo of San Francisco was named to the Commission on the Status of Women and Girls, and Naginder Dhillon was appointed Deputy Director of Program Support at Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.
California Governor Gavin Newsom has nominated three South Asian Americans to key positions in the state administration. Hemant Dhingra of Clovis was named for the Medical Board of California, Nisha Devi Rodrigo of San Francisco was named to the Commission on the Status of Women and Girls, and Naginder Dhillon was appointed Deputy Director of Program Support in the Division of Rehabilitative Programs at the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. All three appointees are Democrats. Dhingra and Rodrigo’s appointments require Senate confirmation.
Hemant Dhingra has been chief of Medical Staff at the Saint Agnes Medical Center of Fresno since 2023, where he was founding program director of Internal Medicine. He has been president of the Nephrology Group since 2014. Dhingra is a member of the American Society of Nephrology and the California Medical Association. He is a member of the American Society of Nephrology and the California Medical Association. He earned a Doctor of Medicine degree from the Mount Sinai School of Medicine and completed his Fellowship in Nephrology at Texas Tech University.
Nisha Devi Rodrigo, founder of Kala Wellnes has been an Eastern Medicine Practitioner with the United Nations since 2018. She was founder at the InFocus Wellness Institute. The India and Sri Lanka-raised Rodrigo was in charge of communications for MP Graham Allen in the House of Commons in the UK Parliament from 2000 to 2001, and did communications in the White House Counsel’s Office from 1999 to 2000. She is a member of the Governor’s Advisory Council on Physical Fitness and Mental Well-Being and of the Yoga Alliance Board of Directors. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communications from Loyola Marymount University and has studied Eastern Medicine Modalities since 2001.
Naginder Dhillon, of Sacramento, has been associate director of the Division of Rehabilitative Programs at the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation since 2019. She has served in several positions in the Budget Management branch from 2008 to 2010, including staff services manager and associate budget analyst. She was a branch chief at the California Department of Housing and Community Development, and a branch chief at the California Department of Public Health, as well as a health program specialist. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology from the University of California, Davis. This position does not require Senate confirmation.