“When I first moved to Folsom, the population was 11,000. Now it’s over 70,000,” says Folsom Mayor Kerri Howell.

Having moved to the area in 1985, she has seen the city change quite a bit over the years but loves the fact that Folsom has maintained its small-town atmosphere. In Howell’s new role as mayor, she plans to continue the tradition of controlled growth for the city, and she is proud of the recent annexation of 2,400 acres of land originally slated for purchase by the City of Sacramento. Since joining the City Council in 1998, Howell has strived to keep a balanced budget and continue improvements to the historic district. She is also actively involved with a multitude of community boards and organizations, including the Rotary Anns, which help provide scholarships to local high school students.

Although Howell is Folsom’s first female mayor, being a woman in a man’s world is nothing new for her. As a politician and president of Atlantic Consultants – her own civil and corrosion engineering consulting firm – Howell is comfortable working in fields traditionally dominated by men. Yet she is encouraged that times are changing. “It’s better now,” Howell explains. “I don’t think I [became mayor] because I’m female. I think it’s because I bring a lot of skills to the table.”

For more about Kerri Howell and other local happenings and information, be sure to pick up this month's copy of Style – Folsom, El Dorado Hills edition. Click on the Get Your Copy link on this Web site for some of our newsstand locations; click on the Subscribe link on this Web site to become a regular subscriber, or to order a copy of this issue or one of our back issues, please email  [email protected], or call 916-988-9888.