Congratulations to my friend Chad Kirkpatrick on his appointment by Governor Brewer to Director of Government Information Technology Agency (GITA). The State’s IT will be in good hands under Chad’s leadership.

Here are the press releases issued today by Governor Brewer:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: MARCH 25, 2009

Governor Jan Brewer Announces Director of Housing, Director of GITA

PHOENIX – Arizona Governor Jan Brewer today named Donald E. Cardon as Director of the Department of Housing, and Chad Kirkpatrick as the Director of the Government Information Technology Agency (GITA).

“These individuals will be tremendous assets to their respective agencies and to the State of Arizona,” stated Brewer. “Mr. Cardon brings with him expertise and innovation that will prove invaluable to Arizona citizens coping with the current housing climate. Mr. Kirkpatrick is widely respected and recognized in his field and possesses a unique blend and broad range of technical and leadership skills.”

Prior to his appointment, Mr. Cardon served as President and CEO of Cardon Development Group, LLC, creating low-income housing tax credit (LIHTC) projects throughout the State. His company was responsible for creating affordable housing communities in Phoenix, Gilbert, Eloy and Winslow. In addition, he helped envision and initiate the formation of Phoenix Future, which assembled the key business leaders, political leaders and financial institutions necessary to create CityScape, a mixed-use development in downtown Phoenix. He also has several years of experience in the public sector of the housing industry. Mr. Cardon has worked as Deputy Housing Director at the City of Phoenix, where he was responsible for overseeing eight housing programs and all housing development activities within the City of Phoenix. He began his career in Longview, Washington, where he served as Executive Director for the Longview Housing Authority, and then as Community and Economic Development Director at the City of Longview. In these capacities he gained knowledge in financial planning, zoning activities, marketing and partnership development.

Mr. Cardon received his Masters of Public Administration from Lewis and Clark College, and his Bachelor’s in Business Administration from Point Loma College. He is a member of the National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials and a board member of Helping Hands Housing Services.

Mr. Kirkpatrick’s appointment as Director of GITA, places him at the helm of an agency created in 1996 to serve as Arizona’s official entity for strategic planning and coordination of all state information technology. He will oversee day-to-day operations of: IT coordination and planning, IT project review and monitoring, and maintenance of e-government.

Kirkpatrick comes to GITA from Wells Fargo where he has served since 2003, most recently in the role of Vice President and Business Systems Manager of Compliance Services MIS (Management Information Services). While with Wells Fargo, he created the “MIS Roadmap” to assess the current MIS environment, identify MIS goals and develop an action plan to align technology and business needs. He was also responsible for: fully automating the business process for regulatory compliance testing, managing the Information Security process for the Phoenix location; developing an innovative data analysis program to proactively identify potential regulatory issues, tracking corrective action and delivering critical information to the compliance team; working with the finance, operations and marketing teams to develop the next generation of reporting and leading corporate efforts to create common data definitions and corporate reporting standards. He has won two Leadership Excellence Awards: Team Leadership and the annual Excellence in Action Award as well as 19 Legendary Service awards.

Mr. Kirkpatrick has also served as Chairman of Americans for Prosperity Arizona, a group that he helped grow into one of Arizona’s largest grassroots organizations. He also built up and turned around finance and IT teams for two Fortune 500 companies.

Mr. Kirkpatrick received his Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from George Washington University in Washington, DC and went on to earn his Master of Arts in Applied Economics from The American University.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: MARCH 25, 2009

Governor Jan Brewer Announces Director of Governor’s Office for Children, Youth and Families

PHOENIX – Arizona Governor Jan Brewer today named Cassandra A. Larsen as the new Director of the Governor’s Office for Children, Youth and Families.

“Ms. Larsen is extremely knowledgeable in education and issues facing Arizona families,” stated Brewer. “Her expertise in prevention strategies and education management, as well as her ability to work in partnerships will make her a tremendous asset for Arizona’s youth and families and for my Administration.”

Prior to her appointment, Ms. Larsen served as Director of the Arizona Prevention Resource Center after serving as Associate Director and Community Initiatives Coordinator. The APRC provides technical assistance and training to educators and various organizations for the prevention of gang violence, drug and alcohol abuse, and bullying. She was responsible for managing the day-to-day operations and community partnerships, as well as overseeing grant writing, budget preparation and implementation, and conducting analysis of the effects of various programs. She also worked simultaneously as a Managing Member of CA Larsen Associates, LLC.

Ms. Larsen has a strong background in education management. She has served as Chief of Staff for the Arizona Department of Education and Executive Director of the Arizona State Board for Charter Schools. In both positions, she learned about issues facing Arizona’s school system and worked to create solutions and programs to address those issues. In addition, she gained experience in building community relationships and public outreach while working for KSAZ Fox 10 news as Community and Public Affairs Director.

Ms. Larsen received her Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education with an emphasis in English from Edinboro University in Edinboro, Pennsylvania.