Liz Kniss
Encyclopedia
Liz Kniss is currently the president of the Santa Clara County
Board of Supervisors in San Jose, CA.
Kniss received a BS degree in Nursing
from Simmons College
in Boston and an MPA in Public and Health Care Policy from California State University
. She has also completed graduate work in Health Policy and Economics at the University of California, Berkeley
.
During the 1970s Kniss worked as a public health nurse for San Mateo County and Cupertino Union School District
. Later she was employed as a Marketing and Communications Manager at Sun Microsystems, Inc. until 1999. Her community service includes the League of Women Voters
Board of Directors, the United Way Board of Directors and the Stanford Friends of Nursing.
Kniss began her public work when elected to the Palo Alto Unified School District
Board in 1985. She was then elected to the Palo Alto City Council in 1989 where she served three terms and was chosen as Mayor of Palo Alto in 1994 and 2000. In 1994, Kniss made Palo Alto the first city in the U.S. with a presence on the Internet and initiated Family Resources, a public-private partnership that provides on-line and on-site social services, job training information and other resources for families in Palo Alto. On the Council, she led efforts to make government more accountable to taxpayers, created new affordable housing and developed a citywide shuttle service to reduce traffic.
In November 2000, Kniss was elected to represent Santa Clara County's Fifth District on the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors. The Fifth District includes the cities of Cupertino
, Los Altos
, Los Altos Hills
, Monte Sereno
, Mountain View
, Palo Alto, Saratoga
, Stanford
, Sunnyvale
, the West San Jose neighborhoods, and unincorporated areas of Santa Clara County.
2005 marks the twentieth year of Liz Kniss' public service in elected office. As a member of the Board, Kniss chairs the Health and Hospital Committee and serves as Vice Chair of the Public Safety and Justice Committee, Vice Chair of the Legislative Committee, and sits on the Board of Directors of the Bay Area Air Quality Management District
, the Santa Clara Family Health Plan, and the Valley Transportation Agency. Liz is the Chair of the Board of Supervisors during 2005.
She and her husband Rick Kniss have two daughters, Liza and Johanna.
Santa Clara County, California
Santa Clara County is a county located at the southern end of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. As of 2010 it had a population of 1,781,642. The county seat is San Jose. The highly urbanized Santa Clara Valley within Santa Clara County is also known as Silicon Valley...
Board of Supervisors in San Jose, CA.
Kniss received a BS degree in Nursing
Nursing
Nursing is a healthcare profession focused on the care of individuals, families, and communities so they may attain, maintain, or recover optimal health and quality of life from conception to death....
from Simmons College
Simmons College (Massachusetts)
Simmons College, established in 1899, is a private women's undergraduate college and private co-educational graduate school in Boston, Massachusetts.-History:Simmons was founded in 1899 with a bequest by John Simmons a wealthy clothing manufacturer in Boston...
in Boston and an MPA in Public and Health Care Policy from California State University
California State University
The California State University is a public university system in the state of California. It is one of three public higher education systems in the state, the other two being the University of California system and the California Community College system. It is incorporated as The Trustees of the...
. She has also completed graduate work in Health Policy and Economics at the University of California, Berkeley
University of California, Berkeley
The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA...
.
During the 1970s Kniss worked as a public health nurse for San Mateo County and Cupertino Union School District
Cupertino Union School District
The Cupertino Union School District covers the city of Cupertino, California, and parts of San Jose, Sunnyvale, Saratoga, Santa Clara, and Los Altos, California. The CUSD operates twenty elementary schools and five middle schools...
. Later she was employed as a Marketing and Communications Manager at Sun Microsystems, Inc. until 1999. Her community service includes the League of Women Voters
League of Women Voters
The League of Women Voters is an American political organization founded in 1920 by Carrie Chapman Catt during the last meeting of the National American Woman Suffrage Association approximately six months before the Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution gave women the right to vote...
Board of Directors, the United Way Board of Directors and the Stanford Friends of Nursing.
Kniss began her public work when elected to the Palo Alto Unified School District
Palo Alto Unified School District
- Jane Lathrop Stanford Middle School :Jane Lathrop Stanford Middle School is a middle school located at 480 East Meadow Dr., Palo Alto, CA 94306. 2007 STAR test results showed an attendance of 870 students, in grades 6 through 8. It was originally named Ray Lyman Wilbur Junior High School after...
Board in 1985. She was then elected to the Palo Alto City Council in 1989 where she served three terms and was chosen as Mayor of Palo Alto in 1994 and 2000. In 1994, Kniss made Palo Alto the first city in the U.S. with a presence on the Internet and initiated Family Resources, a public-private partnership that provides on-line and on-site social services, job training information and other resources for families in Palo Alto. On the Council, she led efforts to make government more accountable to taxpayers, created new affordable housing and developed a citywide shuttle service to reduce traffic.
In November 2000, Kniss was elected to represent Santa Clara County's Fifth District on the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors. The Fifth District includes the cities of Cupertino
Cupertino, California
Cupertino is an affluent suburban city in Santa Clara County, California in the U.S., directly west of San Jose on the western edge of the Santa Clara Valley with portions extending into the foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains. The population was 58,302 at the time of the 2010 census. Forbes...
, Los Altos
Los Altos, California
Los Altos is a city at the southern end of the San Francisco Peninsula, in the San Francisco Bay Area. The city is in Santa Clara County, California, United States. The population was 28,976 according to the 2010 census....
, Los Altos Hills
Los Altos Hills, California
Los Altos Hills is an incorporated town in Santa Clara County, California, United States. The population was 7,922 at the 2010 census. Located in Silicon Valley, Los Altos Hills is one of the wealthiest cities in the nation.-Strictly residential:...
, Monte Sereno
Monte Sereno, California
Monte Sereno is a city in Santa Clara County, California, USA. The population was 3,341 at the 2010 census. The city is located in the foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains, about 10 miles southwest of San Jose and is immediately northwest of Los Gatos. The city is named for the 2249 ft...
, Mountain View
Mountain View, California
-Downtown:Mountain View has a pedestrian-friendly downtown centered on Castro Street. The downtown area consists of the seven blocks of Castro Street from the Downtown Mountain View Station transit center in the north to the intersection with El Camino Real in the south...
, Palo Alto, Saratoga
Saratoga, California
Saratoga is a city in Santa Clara County, California, USA. It is located on the west side of the Santa Clara Valley, directly west of San Jose, in the San Francisco Bay area. The population was 29,926 at the 2010 census....
, Stanford
Stanford, California
Stanford is a census-designated place in Santa Clara County, California, United States and is the home of Stanford University. The population was 13,809 at the 2010 census....
, Sunnyvale
Sunnyvale, California
Sunnyvale is a city in Santa Clara County, California, United States. It is one of the major cities that make up the Silicon Valley located in the San Francisco Bay Area...
, the West San Jose neighborhoods, and unincorporated areas of Santa Clara County.
2005 marks the twentieth year of Liz Kniss' public service in elected office. As a member of the Board, Kniss chairs the Health and Hospital Committee and serves as Vice Chair of the Public Safety and Justice Committee, Vice Chair of the Legislative Committee, and sits on the Board of Directors of the Bay Area Air Quality Management District
Bay Area Air Quality Management District
The Bay Area Air Quality Management District is a public agency that regulates the stationary sources of air pollution in the nine counties of California's San Francisco Bay Area: Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, southwestern Solano, and southern Sonoma...
, the Santa Clara Family Health Plan, and the Valley Transportation Agency. Liz is the Chair of the Board of Supervisors during 2005.
She and her husband Rick Kniss have two daughters, Liza and Johanna.