Councilmember Laura Koval
Laura Koval is serving her third term on the Santee City Council, first elected in 2018. A native of East County, she was born at Grossmont Hospital, grew up in Lakeside, and has lived in Santee since 1991.
Laura was salutatorian at El Capitan High School and is a member of its Athletic Hall of Fame. At San Diego State University she competed in shot put and discus as a track and field scholar-athlete. Her senior year she served as Team Captain and as the representative for all female athletes in SDSU sports.
Laura began her career working with young people. She directed the Santee Boys & Girls Club, served as Program Director at the El Cajon Boys & Girls Club, taught GED classes, worked in EOPS, Admissions and Records and tutoring at Grossmont College, coached at several local high schools, and worked with AVID and SED students in specialized high school programs.
Laura then spent more than 25 years with the San Diego Padres, retiring as Director of Ticket Services, Disabled Services and Fan Loyalty Programs. She oversaw season ticket holder and revenue retention, fan loyalty programs, ticketing services and the contact center, and achieved season ticket renewal rates among the highest in Major League Baseball.
At Padre Dam Municipal Water District, Laura served as Customer Service Manager and led a CRM and billing modernization delivered on time and under budget that she later presented internationally.
Laura spent 11 years as Director of Park and Recreation for Santee Lakes Recreation Preserve, where she doubled revenue in four years while expanding reservation capacity, and led the park to three Best Large Campground in the Nation awards. Her Dynamic Vision Plan, a unique take on a traditional master plan, guided more than $14 million in park improvements and the planting of over 300 trees in its first six years. As a self-sufficient enterprise, Santee Lakes paid for these improvements through guest user fees, a distinctive financing model in the park and recreation field.
Laura is married to JP Koval and has two daughters. As a former Army wife, Laura supports military causes. Her father was a police captain with the El Cajon Police Department, and her mother ran the Veterans Affairs Department at Grossmont College.
Cool fun fact: Her great grandparents lived in the home that is now Cafe 67 in Lakeside.
Current Regional and Community Service
San Diego Air Pollution Control District Governing Board
Chair, San Diego Air Pollution Control District Planning and Policy Committee
SANDAG Regional Planning Committee
San Diego River Conservancy
Heartland Communications Facility Authority Board
SANDAG Board (alternate)
MTS Board (alternate)
Santee Community Center Subcommittee
Santee Arts and Culture Subcommittee
Santee Fire Station Subcommittee
Past Service
Chair, Santee-Lakeside Emergency Medical Services Authority (SLEMSA)
Chair, CSA 69
East County Representative, SANDAG Borders Committee
Founding Member, Highway 52 Coalition
Santee School District Wellness Advisory Committee
Stowe Trail Taskforce
Grossmont Union High School District Coach and Volunteer
Honors
2018 "WILL" Woman in Leadership
2018 San Diego East County Woman of Distinction