Governor Gregoire Announces New Deputy Chief of Staff

For Immediate Release: December 21, 2006

OLYMPIA � Governor Chris Gregoire today announced that she has appointed Joyce Turner as her Deputy Chief of Staff, effective January 2, 2007.

�Joyce brings a wealth of government experience and expertise to the job,� said Governor Gregoire. �She has worked with me on many important issues and will be able to hit the ground running in January � especially important as we head into the legislative session.�

In her most recent position with the Office of Financial Management, Ms. Turner served as the transition director and the Acting Director for the Department of Early Learning. She has handled an array of special projects including management and process reviews and served as Acting Deputy Director of Department of Information Services.

As Deputy Chief of Staff, Joyce will be responsible for the supervision of the small agency cabinet and the Governor�s management agenda. She will also manage the Constituent Services Unit and the administrative functions of the Governor�s Office.

Fred Olson, Governor Gregoire�s current Deputy Chief of Staff, has announced he will retire at the end of the year. Mr. Olson has served as Governor Gregoire�s Deputy Chief of Staff since she took office. Prior to that, he served Gregoire as Director of Administration for the Attorney General. He served as the Deputy Director at the Department of Ecology and, prior to joining state government, was a reporter and the Managing Editor of The Olympian.

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