The League of Women Voters of Santa Barbara (LWVSB) has three new board members and a new website. Joining the board are Dianne Meester Black, Emily Engel and Linda Honikman.
Black, a Santa Barbara resident since 1978, holds a bachelor’s degree in environmental studies from UCSB. An interest in planning led her to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo’s master’s program for city and regional planning.
Returning to Santa Barbara, she joined Santa Barbara County’s Resource Management Department (now Planning and Development), working in every division, most positions, and at every level before retiring as department director in 2019.
Engel, a community advocate, focuses on women and the environment, She is an independent art historian who earned her bachelor’s degree from Tulane University and her masters and doctorate degrees from Boston College.
She has published several articles and books on visual culture in Latin America; is the founding associate editor of Latin American and Latinx Visual Culture, a scholarly academic journal published by the University of California; and teaches undergraduate courses for UCSB’s Latin American and Iberian Studies Program.
Honikman grew up in Dallas. She majored in human relations in college and worked in Raleigh, North Carolina, as a community planner. She moved to Miami, where she earned a master’s degree in architecture and planning. From 1980-2005, her work centered on software development, design, and media projects for the running industry.
Honikman moved to Santa Barbara in 1990 and has become an active member of the LWVSB’s social policy and diversity, equity, and inclusion committees.
As one of 68 Leagues throughout California, the League of Voters of Santa Barbara is a 501(c)(3) charitable trust, nonprofit, nonpartisan organization. LWVSB has 14 additional board members whose work focuses on voter service, redistricting, housing and homelessness, and criminal justice reform.
“Each member of our Board of Directors is a passionate advocate for community involvement,” said LWVSB president Vijaya Jammalamadaka. “The League of Women Voters is a great way to play a role in the community, and our robust new website is an easy way to learn more at http://www.lwvsantabarbara.org.”