Governor Northam Announces Administration Appointments

RICHMOND—Governor Ralph Northam announced additional appointments to his Administration today.

Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Alaysia Black Hackett, Deputy Chief Diversity Officer
Alaysia Black Hackett has been appointed Deputy Chief Diversity Officer. Prior to her appointment, she served as Special Assistant to the Chief Diversity Officer, and Diversity and Inclusion Consultant at the Department of Human Resource Management. Before joining the Northam Administration, she was Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at Mars Hill University in North Carolina. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Sociology with a concentration in Race, Ethnicity, and Gender Relations and a Master of Public Administration degree with a concentration in Organizational Development from Western Carolina University. She attended Robert H. McKinney School of Law at Indiana University and earned an Executive Juris Doctor degree from Concord Law School at Purdue University Global.

Mona Siddiqui, Deputy Chief Diversity Officer and Senior Policy Advisor
Mona Siddiqui has been appointed Deputy Chief Diversity Officer and Senior Policy Advisor for immigrant and refugee affairs in a new collaboration between the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion and the Office of New Americans in the Department of Social Services. Prior to her appointment, she served as Assistant Attorney General in the Office of the Attorney General, where she worked on human rights, fair housing, and disability initiatives, and established best practices in civil rights advocacy for Virginia localities. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Foreign Affairs and Middle Eastern Studies from the University of Virginia and a Juris Doctorate degree from the University of Maryland School of Law. She is currently pursuing a Doctor of Philosophy degree from the L. Douglas Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs at Virginia Commonwealth University, where her research focuses on the intersection of immigration integration and civil rights.

Yewande Austin, Special Advisor to the Chief Diversity Officer
Yewande Austin has been appointed Special Advisor to the Chief Diversity Officer, where she will provide direct consultative services to state agencies and coordinate the implementation of the ONE Virginia statewide strategic plan for inclusive excellence. Before joining the Northam Administration, she served as principal of Change International and the Global Institute for Diversity and Change, where she developed programs and led humanitarian initiatives to empower diverse and vulnerable constituencies. Yewande earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Music from Howard University with an interest in using music for social impact and completed the Diversity and Inclusion Certificate from Cornell University.

Secretariat of the Commonwealth
Board Appointments

Board of Health Professions

• Carmina Teresa V. Bautista MSN, RN, FNP-BC, BC-ADM of Suffolk, Executive Director, Philippine Nurses Association of America, Inc.
• Sandra J. Catchings DDS of Staunton, Dentist, Drs. Bradford & Catchings Inc.
• Brenda Stokes of Lynchburg, Physician, Centra Medical Group
  
  

Board of Pharmacy

• Bernard L. Henderson, Jr. of Henrico, President Emeritus and Funeral Celebrant, Woody and Nelsen Funeral Homes
  
  

Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority

• The Honorable Katherine K. Hanley* of Reston, former Secretary of the Commonwealth of Virginia, and former Chair, Fairfax Board of Supervisors
• The Honorable David G. Speck* of Alexandria, Retired Financial Services Executive, former Member, Virginia House of Delegates, and former Member, Alexandria City Council
  
  

Statewide Independent Living Council

• Daniel Aranda of Alexandria, Senior Advisor, Inclusive Engagement, Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac)
• Arthuretta Holmes-Martin of Woodbridge, Owner, Words and Melodies, LLC
• Vassantha K. Rayman, MS* of Annandale, Retired Instructional Technology Resource Teacher, Fairfax County Public Schools
• Gary W. Talley of Petersburg, Retired Community Services Manager, Virginia Department for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing
   

Virginia Board for People with Disabilities

• Phil Caldwell* of Fairfax County, Administrative Operations Officer, City of Alexandria
• Frank Carrillo of Crewe, Case Manager Counselor, Virginia Department of Corrections
• Dr. Sarah Kranz Ciment, PT, DPT* of Henrico, Executive Director, Friendship Circle of Virginia
• Dennis Lites, Jr. of Suffolk, Vice President of Predictive Analytics, PRA Group
• Olivia Price of Covington, Disabilities Advocate
• Cindy Rudy* of Williamsburg, Digital Technology Coordinator, Walsingham Academy
• Ed Turner of Virginia Beach, Disability Consultant and Legislative Chair, Virginia Association of Persons Supporting Employment First
• Niki L. Zimmerman of Fairfax County, Vice President and Disabilities Advocate, Fairfax County NAACP
  
  

*denotes reappointment

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