Mike Lee joined the Water Authority in 2012 and has more than 25 years of professional experience in public relations and journalism. As director of public affairs, Lee works across departments to support internal, external and member agency communication needs. He is active in industry associations such as CalDesal and California Urban Water Agencies. He also serves a board member at the Copley-Price YMCA and teaches communications classes at Point Loma Nazarene University. Lee has a bachelor’s degree in English from Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, Wash., and a master’s degree in organizational leadership from Gonzaga University in Spokane, Wash. Before joining the Water Authority, he wrote extensively about natural resource issues across the West as a reporter for the Sacramento Bee, The San Diego Union-Tribune, and the Tri-City (Wash.) Herald. In 2002, he was awarded the Society of Professional Journalists’ highest annual honor for investigative reporting.