Raggio, Donald, and Skinner to Join O'Malley's Cabinet
ANNAPOLIS - Governor Martin O'Malley today announced his selection of three cabinet secretaries: Catherine Raggio to be Secretary of the Maryland Department of Disabilities, Brenda Donald to be Secretary of the Department of Human Resources, and Raymond A. Skinner to be Secretary of the Department of Housing and Community Development. Also in attendance was Gary D. Maynard, the Governor's nominee to be Secretary of the Department of Public Safety and Corrections.
"Today, I am happy to welcome Catherine Raggio, Brenda Donald, and Ray Skinner to the O'Malley/Brown Administration," Governor O'Malley said. "All three are leaders in their fields, and they will help us protect those who most need the helping hand of a caring government."
Catherine Raggio has served as both an administrator and as a front-line service provider for Marylanders with disabilities for decades. Currently, Raggio serves as Executive Director of Independence Now, a non-profit working with people in Montgomery and Prince George's Counties, for over a decade. She has also served as Executive Director of the Maryland Developmental Disabilities Council, and United Cerebral Palsy of both Prince George's County and Wilkes-Barre, PA. Previously, Raggio was an educational speech therapist, and a therapist in a hospital.
"It is an honor to serve Governor O'Malley and the O'Malley/Brown Administration," said Raggio. "I look forward to expanding opportunity for people with disabilities, and giving them real opportunities to contribute to their community."
Raggio graduated from Bloomsburg State College with a B.S. and M.Ed. in Speech and Language Disorders. She currently lives in Ellicott City, in Howard County.
Brenda Donald was formerly Washington, DC's Deputy Mayor for Children, Youth, Family, and Elders. Appointed in 2005, Donald managed 9 agencies, including child welfare and human services, which provided services to 225,000 residents. Previously, Donald was Director of the District of Columbia Child and Family Services agency, which serves over 6,000 abused and neglected children. Donald was also Vice-President of Municipal Programs for DC Agenda, and a Fellow at the Annie E. Casey Foundation.
"I look forward to working under Governor O'Malley to help Maryland citizens in need," noted Donald. "For too long, the Maryland Department of Human Resources has struggled, with a demoralized workforce, inadequate funding, and a lack of accountability, but I will bring results to this critical agency."
Donald earned her B.A. with honors from George Washington University, an M.P.A. from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, and received a certificate from Harvard's John F. Kennedy School of Government in the Program for Senior Executives in State and Local Government.
Raymond A. Skinner is currently President of The Skinner Group, a Prince George's County-based consulting firm for housing policy, community revitalization, and economic development. Previously, Skinner was Maryland's Secretary of Housing and Community Development, and the Director of the Prince George's County DHCD. Skinner was also the Executive Director of the Washington, DC office of Business and Economic Development.
"I am delighted to rejoin the Department of Housing and Community Development under the O'Malley/Brown Administration," said Skinner. "As Maryland grows its housing stock, and confronts the challenges of BRAC, I will protect our communities and keep housing affordable for working families."
Skinner graduated from Pennsylvania State University with a B.S. in Engineering, and received his Masters in City Planning from the University of Pennsylvania. He also has received certificates in Real Estate Development from Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and completed the Program for Senior Executives in State and Local Government at Harvard University. Skinner serves as a member on the Board of Trustees for the National Housing Conference and as a member of the Community Development Advisory Council of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond. A resident of Bowie, Skinner is Chairman of the Bowie Economic Development Committee.
Also in attendance at the press conference was Gary D. Maynard, the Governor's nominee to be Secretary of the Department of Public Safety and Corrections. "Governor O'Malley shares my vision of protecting correctional officers and treating them with the respect they deserve," said Maynard. "In the coming months and years, I will run a professional department, where we secure our prisons, strengthen our ex-offender re-entry programs, and most of all, safeguard the public."
Source: Gov. O'Malley's Office