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Kotowski, Melder join ITD Office of Communication

If you’ve stopped by the Office of Communication recently, you may have noticed a couple new faces - Jake Melder and Bill Kotowski. The two are new public information specialists on manager Vince Trimboli's team.

Melder (pictured immediately below) comes to ITD from KIVI Channel 6, where he worked for three years as a news reporter. While there, he enjoyed covering state and local politics. On occasion, Jake was even able to don ITD gear to tell stories of ITD employees, their innovations and efforts – he says he felt drawn to the department after seeing how it works.

“I’m very excited to join a spectacularly talented team at the Office of Communication as part of a state agency that looks to employees to solve everyday challenges,” Melder said.

Jake is a Minnesota native, and attended Union University in Jackson, Tennessee where he studied broadcast journalism and political science. In his free time, he enjoys riding his motorcycle and volunteering with kids in the youth ministry at his church.

Kotowskil (pictured below, to right) joins the communication staff by way of Salt Lake City, Utah. He worked as a communication specialist for the Utah Department of Transportation – specializing in video production, graphic design and public involvement.

Although he spent the last few years in Utah, Bill is very proud to call Idaho home. He grew up in Pocatello and studied Mass Communication and Spanish at Idaho State University.

“It’s great to be back in Idaho,” Kotowski said. “ITD has given me a great opportunity to work for an industry leader while at the same time providing my friends and family a world-class transportation system and I couldn’t be happier.”

"Jake and Bill are first and foremost good people," said ITD Communication Manager Vince Trimboli. "They add robust skill sets to an already diverse team. Bill brings experience working for a department of transportation, as well as a strong background in graphic design and social media. Jake is well known by the media across Idaho, and possesses great digital and social-media skills.

"One of our primary goals as an office is to own our communication channels. We want to be the primary source for information about ITD for citizens of Idaho, travelers and stakeholders. We must develop our communication channels to better tell the story of our entire ITD team. Jake and Bill will help our office meet that objective, and help us become one of the best transportation departments in the country."