Meet the SMART Board of Directors
Steve Cohn, President
Steve is one of the co-founders of SMART and the SacMoves Coalition. He was the longest-serving Sacramento City Council member in history, elected to five terms from 1994 to 2014, while also serving as Chief Assistant General Counsel for SMUD until retiring in 2010. He has chaired numerous boards and commissions, including SACOG, SacRT, Sacramento Transportation Authority, Capitol Corridor (Rail) JPA, Sacramento Area Flood Control Agency, Sacramento Library Authority, and Breathe California Sacramento Region; and served as Vice Chair of Sacramento Metro Air Quality Management District and San Joaquin (Rail) JPA. He is also Chair of the Sacramento Regional Rail Working Group and Treasurer of The Natomas Basin Conservancy.
Steve is a graduate of Yale University (AB) and the University of San Diego Law School (JD). Steve is the author of two books, Citizen Cohn, a memoir published in 2016, and The Blue Sky Rebellion, a novel published in 2019.
Emel Wadhwani, Vice President
Emel’s interest in transit and active transportation is rooted in her commitment to environmental protection and her reliance on bike and transit for transportation at home in Sacramento. Emel is a member of the Board of Directors for Breathe California Sacramento Region,and a past officer of the Midtown Neighborhood Association. In her professional role, Emel recently completed an short-term acting position as General Counsel for CalEPA; she is an Assistant Chief Counsel with the State Water Resources Control Board where she oversees the work of attorneys counseling the Governor-appointed regional water boards on permitting and enforcement actions to protect and restore the quality of water bodies throughout the state. She also previously worked in private legal practice on land use and environmental matters. Emel holds an undergraduate degree from Yale University, a Master in Public Policy from the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, and a Juris Doctor from Harvard Law School.
Frank Teran, Secretary
resides in Sacramento and is currently serving as the Board President for the Rosemont Community Association. Originally from the bay area, Frank moved to Sacramento in 2016 and is dedicated to improving rail and transit in the greater Sacramento region. Frank is employed in the tech sector and feels that with the right tools in place, we can solve our transit problems within this region. Frank holds a B.A. degree in Sociology from San Francisco State University and believes commuters should have more options when commuting around areas outside the city limits.
Kay Crumb, Treasurer
Kay is a lifelong Sacramentan and community engagement enthusiast. Over the last six years, she has worked in purchasing and finance for the state of California, with a special interest in city budgeting and its impacts on shaping the places we live. Kay holds a B.A. degree in English, with highest honors and distinction in the major, and a B.A. in Religious Studies from UC Santa Barbara.
Beyond being Treasurer for SMART, she is on the board for Einstein Jewish Community Services (EJCS), and is on the leadership team for Strong SacTown, strongly advocating for safe and reliable active and public transportation in the city.
When not working or volunteering, Kay enjoys spending time in the vegetable garden, learning about California native plants, reading a good book, and riding the light rail.
Dwayne Crenshaw
Dwayne is a well-vested, longtime, inclusive community leader and highly effective executive management professional and innovator. For more than 21 years, Dwayne has advanced issues of community development, social justice and racial equity with several community-based organizations focused on historically underserved and marginalized communities. Prior to these leadership roles, he was a public servant as a policy aide to state and local elected officials.
Presently, Dwayne is the President & CEO of Greater Sacramento Urban League responsible for furthering GSUL’s empowerment mission and vision by helping Sacramentans to increase their educational opportunities, gain meaningful employment, strengthen their financial well-being, and work together to build communities where all can live well, be well and thrive.
Dwayne graduated from San Diego State University where he majored in elementary education and was student body president. While working in the Capitol, he completed the coursework for a master’s in government from Sacramento State. Dwayne Crenshaw received his juris doctorate from California Western School of Law, where he twice earned the highly coveted Distinguished Advocate recognition.
Roger Dickinson
Roger served Sacramento constituents in public office for nearly 21 years from 1994-2014 on the Sacramento County Board of Supervisors and as a state Assembly Member. Throughout his legal, legislative, and nonprofit leadership career he has focused on issues related to transportation and public transit, environmental quality, education, health and human services for children and families, economic development, and consumer protection. He was a 20-year member and Chair of the Sacramento Regional Transit Board and past-President of Friends of Light Rail. Roger currently serves on the boards of the Aerospace Museum of California, the Sacramento Tree Foundation, and the Northern California Multiple Sclerosis Society. He is a graduate of UC Berkeley and UCLA Law School.
Sarah Geraty
Sarah is the owner of QHC Consulting. Sarah functions as a Business Development Consultant for her client base, with focus & strong concentration on customer re-branding, marketing, quality
improvement, & business line expansion & integration. Sarah earned her degree in Psychology at California State University Sacramento (CSUS).
Sarah is a native Sacramentan, with strong roots & investment emphasis on progressive growth and expansion in the Sacramento Region. Her 20 + years of UC Enterprise commitment & experience,
resulted in marked achievements impacting improvements in areas of hospital regulatory compliance, patient safety, language access for Non-English Speaking populations, & QI in large-scale clinical operations.
Sarah is an avid supporter of “access for all”, specifically to include regional transit services & options that are accessible, visible, centrally located, cost effective, & progressive, for our community in the Sacramento region.
In Sarah’s spare time, she enjoys international travel, & engaging with community members, to build collaboration efforts; making a difference with favorable outcome-based results.
Sotiris K. Kolokotronis
As CEO of SKK Development, Sotiris is one of Northern California’s most prolific and respected infill developers. He has been involved in the development of many mixed-use, mixed-income, transit-oriented master-planned communities and projects. He has played a vital role in the renaissance of Midtown Sacramento over the last 20 years.
Sam Rice
Sam is a Sacramento native and a lifelong advocate of public transportation. He has a background in labor advocacy, organizing, and the management of intermodal transportation operations at one of the nation’s largest container ports. Sam earned his Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy from the University of California, Berkeley and has traveled to more than 30 countries. Through his travels and work experience, Sam has focused on local and regional transportation networks with an eye towards how creative solutions could benefit the Sacramento region. Sam currently works as a Senior Union Representative at SEIU Local 1000 and serves as a board member to the Environmental Council of Sacramento (ECOS) and the C.K. McClatchy Law and Public Policy Academy Advisory Committee.
Anne Stausboll
Anne chaired the Mayors’ Commission on Climate Change for the cities of Sacramento and West Sacramento, which issued its final recommendations in June 2020. Since then she has worked with the city and local organizations to implement the commission’s recommendations and advance climate action within the city and region.
Previously, Anne served on the Board of Directors of Ceres from 2006 to 2018, in the position of board chair for the last several years. Ceres is a national nonprofit coalition of environmental groups, companies, and investors advocating for sustainable business practices.
Before retiring in 2016, Anne had a long history in public service. The last position she held was with the California Public Employees Retirement System (CalPERS), where she served for seven years as its first female CEO, and was known for championing the integration of environmental
factors into the portfolio. Prior experience included the positions of CalPERS Chief Operating Investment Officer and Chief Deputy Treasurer for the State of California.
Anne received a Bachelor of Arts degree from Oberlin College and a Juris Doctor from the University of California, Davis.
A native of Vancouver, British Columbia, Anne has lived in Sacramento since 1981.
Kirk Trost
Kirk is an attorney with over 35 years’ experience representing local and regional governments. His practice has focused on the intersection between transportation and land use, with a particular emphasis on public transit, environmental law, climate change, and housing. He has worked on many of Sacramento Regional Transit District’s light rail extensions, and on transit and rails-to-trails projects throughout the western United States.
Kirk played a key role in the development of California Senate Bill 375, the Sustainable Communities and Climate Protection Act of 2008, and in its implementation in the Sacramento region and statewide. He also led the effort to bring a regional bike share system to the Sacramento region.
Kirk is a graduate of King Hall School of Law at U.C. Davis and holds a master’s degree from the University of Kent in Canterbury, England. He has also served as an Adjunct Professor of Law at the University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law, teaching Local Government Law.