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The Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) recently named Jolene Molitoris assistant director. She most recently chaired the Ohio Rail Development Commission, becoming the agency's second chairperson and first chairwoman in November 2007.

Molitoris is marking her second stint at ODOT. After serving as the Ohio Rail Transportation Authority's executive director, she joined ODOT in the late 1980s as deputy director for rail. During her tenure, Molitoris worked with port authorities to create 13 new short lines in Ohio — the most in any state since 1980's Staggers Act.

In 1993, she became the first woman to lead the Federal Railroad Administration after being appointed administrator by President Bill Clinton in 1993. Molitoris held the post for nearly eight years. In 2001, she became president and chief executive officer of GeoFocus L.L.C., which provides real-time automatic vehicle location technology to the transportation industry.