Apur Patel

Apur Patel is Vice President & Associate General Counsel at The Clorox Company. He has a long track record of advising businesses in complex technology transactions, strategic initiatives, branding and advertising, mergers and acquisitions, international operations, and more.

Apur recently returned to the East Bay after 35 years. He spent nearly 25 years in Minneapolis, where he served as a volunteer board member at several civil rights organizations, schools, and youth athletic associations. Apur is thrilled to put his legal expertise and passion for educational equity to work at Chapter 510 while getting reacquainted with local communities.

He is a graduate of Washington and Lee University School of Law and Colgate University.

JAMES "JAMIE" SAMPSON

Jamie is Vice President, Digital Distribution & Platform Partnerships at iHeartMedia. Chapter 510’s mission resonates for him because he knows youth can gain “immense confidence and pride from being a published writer or podcaster.”

Jamie has long had a career at the intersection of arts and business, having gotten his early start as co-manager for musical acts Flight Of The Conchords & My Morning Jacket. He has also worked at Pandora and Facebook.

Jamie holds an MBA from Baruch College and a BA in Music from New York University.

TOVA RICARDO

Tova Ricardo is an award-winning writer, spoken word poet, social media content creator, and Jewish community advocate and professional. Tova is the only member of the Chapter 510 board who is also an alumna. She is thrilled to bring her expertise to Chapter 510, which she says is: “an intentionally loving environment where Oakland youth flourish.”

Tova’s extensive background in writing, journalism, digital media, and community engagement has elevated her voice into public platforms, including her term as the 2015 Oakland Youth Poet Laureate, an award recipient by the American Jewish Press Association, and with bylines and features in New York Jewish Week, Jewish Journal, the San Francisco Chronicle, and Jewish News of Northern California.

Ricardo’s investment in storytelling, uplifting Jewish communities of color, Jewish empowerment, and speaking about the intersections of being Black and Jewish has garnered her lay leadership roles in major American Jewish organizations, including Hillel International, UJA-Federation of New York, and Jewish Federations of North America. Ricardo regularly elevates the themes above on her social media platform, @tovathepoet and as a digital producer with the Tel Aviv Institute, a laboratory focused on uplifting Jewish voices with social media driven strategies.

Tova is a graduate of Columbia University.