Shoshana Lew

Shoshana M. Lew (born 1983) is a career government administrator currently serving as the Executive Director of the Colorado Department of Transportation. She is the daughter of former United States Secretary of the Treasury Jack Lew.

Shoshana Lew
NationalityAmerican
Parent(s)
Executive Director of the Colorado Department of Transportation
Assumed office
February 5, 2019
GovernorJared Polis
Preceded byMike Lewis
Chief Operating Officer of the Rhode Island Department of Transportation
In office
April 23, 2017 – January 2019
GovernorGina Raimondo
Preceded byPeter Garino
Succeeded byLoren Doyle

Career

The Colorado Senate confirmed Lew's appointment to the position of Executive Director of the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) on February 5, 2019.[1] Prior to heading the Colorado Department of Transportation, Lew worked from April 2017 to January 2019 as the Chief Operating Officer of the Rhode Island Department of Transportation.[2] Before her appointment to Rhode Island's Department of Transportation, Lew worked for eight years in the Obama Administration. The federal government positions she held were Chief Financial Officer, U.S. Department of Transportation, Assistant Secretary for Budget and Programs, U.S. Department of Transportation, Senior Adviser, U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, and Policy Adviser, White House Domestic Policy Council.[3]

Lew has a bachelor's degree in history from Harvard University and a master's degree in history from Northwestern University. [4] Lew's first position after she completed her graduate degree was at the Brookings Institution, where she served as Policy Analyst and Research and Policy Assistant in the organization's Metropolitan Policy Program from 2007-2009.[5]

Criticism

In Colorado, Lew has been criticized for focusing too much on non-highway transportation projects such as bike lanes, large buses, walking paths, light rail, and electric vehicles, with insufficient emphasis placed on roads and highways. Some have questioned Lew's qualifications for the position, for she was hired for the job at age 35 with no experience in construction management or engineering. Indeed, one reported rumor is that Colorado Governor Jared Polis appointed Lew to head the Colorado Department of Transportation as a personal favor to Michelle Obama.[6][7] Under Lew's leadership, CDOT has been criticized for adding only expensive toll lanes in highway-widening projects. These toll lanes, often called Lexus lanes, are paid for with tax dollars but may offer more benefits to the wealthy who can afford the tolls.

References
  1. "Shoshana Lew confirmed as CDOT Executive Director". February 5, 2019. Retrieved 2020-04-23.
  2. Anderson, Patrick (2018-12-27). "R.I. transporation [sic] official heads west". Providence Journal. Retrieved 2020-04-24.
  3. "Shoshana Lew, Nonresident Senior Fellow, Metropolitan Policy Program". The Brookings Institution. Retrieved 2020-04-24.
  4. "About CDOT Executive Director & Staff". Retrieved 2020-12-02.
  5. "President Obama announces more key administration posts". The White House, President Barack Obama. 2015-09-18. Retrieved 2020-04-24.
  6. Bonniwell, Charles C. (2019-10-28). "CDOT in total disarray, Part I". Glendale Cherry Creek Chronicle. Retrieved 2020-04-24.
  7. Bonniwell, Charles C. (2019-11-22). "CDOT now dominated by two out-of-state companies and scores of consultant firms, Part II". Glendale Cherry Creek Chronicle. Retrieved 2020-04-24.
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