In addition to the Children’s Bureau, other critical appointments included Katie Hamm, Associate Deputy Assistant Secretary for Early Childhood Development; Dr. Bernadine Futrell, Director Office of Head Start; Cindy Huang, Director Office of Refugee Resettlement; and Dr. Lanikque Howard, Director Office of Community Services.
Hamm has a lengthy resume in the child care arena. Her last position was at the Center on American Progress as vice president for early childhood policy. Before that, she had worked at the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB), where she worked on budgetary and policy issues related to human services programs.
Bernadine Futrell worked for the National Head Start Association (NHSA). She had been that association’s senior director of effective practice. It is reported that she will be the first Head Start alumna to be appointed into this critical role overseeing the federal Head Start and Early Head Start program.
Cindy Huang comes from Refugees International as the vice president of strategic outreach. There she led efforts to expand support for improved protections and outcomes for displaced people. Her previous experience includes work at the State Department, where she managed the interagency team that designed and implemented Feed the Future, the U.S. government’s global hunger and food security initiative. The Office of Refugee Resettlement has only grown in importance over the past decade as the population of those seeking refuge, including unaccompanied minors, have created significant policy challenges.
Lanikque Howard served three years in the Obama Administration in the Immediate Office of the Assistant Secretary, supporting the development and implementation of ACF policy and cross-cutting initiatives. Prior to returning to ACF, she was the Senior Administrator for Programs at First 5 Alameda County, where she oversaw a number of strategic programs, initiatives, and partnerships aimed at addressing the causes and consequences of poverty, reducing racial disparities, and maximizing the potential of young children and their families. The Office of Community Services oversees SSBG.
Returning to HHS after working there during the Obama Administration, Steven “Jeff” Hild, who is the new Deputy Assistant Secretary for Legislation (Human Services), Elizabeth Fowler, as the Deputy Administrator and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation Director. Fowler was chief health counsel to former Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-MT), where she helped write the ACA. Then she served in the Obama Administration as a special assistant on healthcare and economic policy at the National Economic Council, along with deputy director of policy in CMS’ Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight Office.
As indicated here last week, JooYeun Chang has returned to HHS, and her formal title is Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary.
