Lawrence Salinas to oversee governmental relations at Fresno State

Longtime political adviser Lawrence Salinas was named director of governmental relations for Fresno State on Friday.

Salinas, 54, a Fresno State alumnus who graduated in 1986 with a bachelor’s degree in political science, formerly served as associate director of institutional relations and advocacy for the University of California system.

At Fresno State, he will focus on developing strategies to influence public policy related to Fresno State at the local, state and federal levels and will report directly to President Joseph Castro.

“(Salinas) brings a long and successful track record in governmental relations and a passionate love for Fresno State that will serve our campus and region very well,” Castro said in a statement Friday.

His annual pay will be $149,000.

Salinas has also worked as the public and governmental affairs manager for PG&E and helped advise many politicians and candidates in California, including former Congress members Tony Coelho, Cal Dooley and Gary Condit.

He also helped establish the UC-Merced campus.

This story was originally published January 8, 2016 at 4:58 PM with the headline "Lawrence Salinas to oversee governmental relations at Fresno State."