Washington Gov.-elect Bob Ferguson announces reappointment of 7 state department heads
Gov.-elect Bob Ferguson has announced the return of seven cabinet heads.
The reappointments announced Thursday include Joel Sacks as director of the Department of Labor and Industries; Allyson Brooks as director of the Department of Archaeology and Historic Preservation; Bill Kehoe as director of Washington Technology Solutions; and John Batiste as chief of the Washington State Patrol.
On Friday, he announced that he was also reappointing Shauna Bilyeu as executive director for the Washington Center for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Youth (CDHY); Scott McCallum as superintendent for the Washington State School for the Blind (WSSB); and Drew Shirk as director for the Department of Revenue (DOR).
“With our challenges ahead, proven and thoughtful leadership is more important than ever,” Ferguson said in a Dec. 19 news release. “Washingtonians deserve committed leadership that will make government work better for the people.”
The reappointments take effect Jan. 15.
Batiste was originally chosen as WSP chief by then-Gov. Christine Gregoire in 2005, according to the news release. Gov. Jay Inslee reappointed him in 2017. Batiste’s career with the State Patrol started in 1976. He’s an executive member of multiple boards, including the state Criminal Justice Training Commission and Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs.
Brooks, who holds a Ph.D. in anthropology and two masters degrees, has worked for more than two decades as the state’s historic preservation officer, the release says. She also serves as a trustee with The Evergreen State College. Brooks has co-authored legislation and advocated for initiatives aimed at preserving and promoting the state’s environmental, historical and cultural landscapes.
Sacks’ tenure as head of the state’s labor and industry department started in 2013, the news release states. He is “one of three ex-officio members serving on the Washington State Investment Board (WSIB),” for which he has served as chair. Sacks has worked in other leadership roles as well, including at the state’s Employment Security Department and within the U.S. Department of Labor.
Kehoe has served as director and state chief information officer (CIO) for Washington Technology Solutions since 2021, according to the release. He previously worked as Los Angeles County CIO and before that, as the King County CIO and information department director. He was the Washington state Licensing Department’s first CIO from 2002 to 2010.
Shirk was appointed as the director of the Department of Revenue in 2023. Prior to his appointment he served as the executive director of Legislative Affairs for Inslee. Shirk’s tenure with the Governor’s Office included numerous legislative victories including the enactment of historic climate legislation, the Working Families Tax Credit, capital gains and the Washington College Grant program. He also helped shepherd legislation transforming the state’s behavioral health system, bills reducing gun violence and crucial legislation creating the Office of Equity, the Office of Independent Investigations, police accountability, Juneteenth holiday, and environmental justice. Before he joined the Governor’s Office, he served nearly 30 years at the Department of Revenue (DOR).
Bilyeu has worked in deaf education for over 28 years. She has served in a variety of roles for the Washington Center for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Youth (CDHY) since 2005, ranging from teacher to school administrator, and has been in her current role of executive director for a year and a half. CDHY is responsible for operating Washington School for the Deaf in Vancouver, and providing educational support for districts throughout the state.
McCallum has 25 years of experience working on behalf of children and young adults who are blind or have low vision (BLV). Before being appointed superintendent of the Washington State School for the Blind in June 2016 by Inslee, McCallum served for six years as the Blind and Visually Impaired Student Fund administrator for the state of Oregon. His work to support implementation of the nation’s first online adaptive state assessment accessible to students who read Braille and his contributions to the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium have given him a national reputation as a collaborative leader. In 2022, McCallum was honored by the National Federation of the Blind as the nation’s “2022 Distinguished Educator of Blind Students”.
Additional Ferguson reappointments already announced include David Puente Jr. as director of the Department of Veterans Affairs and Marcus Glasper as director of the Department of Licensing. Also, Derek Sandison will again head the Department of Agriculture, Major General Gent Welsh will return as the adjutant general of the state’s Mlitary Department and Cami Feek will lead the Employment Security Department once more.
In November, the governor-elect said he would hire new leadership for nine state agencies. Earlier in the week he announced that state Rep. Tana Senn, a Mercer Island Democrat, will helm the Department of Children, Youth and Families.
This story was originally published December 21, 2024 at 5:00 AM with the headline "Washington Gov.-elect Bob Ferguson announces reappointment of 7 state department heads."
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