Obama Nominates More Key People to Department of Veterans Affairs Posts
WASHINGTON, DC – Today, President Barack Obama announced his intent to nominate the following individuals to key administration posts: Anne Castle, Assistant Secretary for Water and Science, Department of the Interior; Mathy V. Stanislaus, Assistant Administrator for the Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Response, Environmental Protection Agency; Jo-Ellen Darcy, Assistant Secretary of the Army (Civil Works), Department of Defense; John U. Sepúlveda, Assistant Secretary of Human Resources, Department of Veterans Affairs; Roger Baker, Assistant Secretary for Information and Technology, Department of Veterans Affairs; and William Gunn, General Counsel, Department of Veterans Affairs.
President Obama said, "These fine public servants will be valuable additions to our team as we confront the many challenges our nation faces. Their talent and dedication will be of great service to the American people, and I look forward to working with them in the coming months and years."
President Obama announced his intent to nominate the following individuals today for the Department of Veterans Affairs:
Roger Baker, Nominee for Assistant Secretary for Information and Technology
Roger Baker is the former President and Chief Executive Officer of Dataline, LLC, a mid-sized technology products and services company headquartered in Norfolk, VA. Previously, Baker served as the Chief Information Officer at the Department of Commerce from 1998 to 2001.
Prior to joining the federal government in 1998, Baker had an extensive career with software and Internet technology firms, including leading the development of Internet and online banking systems at VISA International. He has also been a senior technology management executive at CACI International and General Dynamics. Baker left the private sector in May of 2008 to volunteer on President Obama’s campaign, serving on the Technology, Media, and Telecommunications policy group. After the President’s election, Baker served on the Technology, Innovation, and Government Reform (TIGR) and the Veterans Agency Review Teams for the Presidential Transition Team.
Baker is active in the federal technology community, and has written extensively on improving the management and results of the government’s information technology investments. He was the Vice Chair of the Industry Advisory Council’s Transition Study Group, and a co-author of the group’s capstone paper entitled "Returning Innovation to the Federal Government with Information Technology." He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science and a Masters in Business Administration from The University of Michigan.
William Gunn, Nominee for General Counsel
A recipient of the American Bar Association’s Outstanding Career Military Lawyer Award, Will A. Gunn is an attorney who represents military members and veterans in private practice in Northern Virginia. He retired from the Air Force in 2005, where he served as a Colonel in the Judge Advocate Generals (JAG) Corps. He is also a former White House Fellow. In 2003, Gunn was named the first-ever Chief Defense Counsel in the Department of Defense Office of Military Commissions. Gunn built a defense team and supervised all defense activities for detainees selected for trial before military commissions.
His efforts earned respect and admiration for his principled leadership and commitment to ensuring that detainees received effective representation. A native of Fort Lauderdale, FL, Gunn is a graduate of the United States Air Force Academy and is a Cum Laude graduate of Harvard Law School. While at Harvard, he was elected President of the Harvard Legal Aid Bureau, the nation’s oldest student run legal services organization. He also has a Masters of Laws degree in Environmental Law from the George Washington University School of Law and a Master of Science degree in National Resource Strategy from the Industrial College of the Armed Forces.
Gunn is active in the civic life of his community. He chairs the American Bar Association’s Commission on Youth at Risk and serves on the board of Christian Service Charities. In 2005 Gunn was named President and CEO of Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Washington. He has been featured in The New Yorker magazine and The Wall Street Journal. Gunn has also received many awards and honors including the Harvard Legal Aid Bureau’s Outstanding Alumni Award.
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Wednesday, April 1, 2009
Obama Nominates More Key People to Department of Veterans Affairs Posts
