President Biden Announces Key Regional Appointments for GSA, HHS
WASHINGTON – Today, President Joe Biden appointed the following individuals to serve in key regional leadership roles at the General Services Administration (GSA) and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS):
- Elliot Doomes, GSA Regional Administrator for Region 11
- Jason Shelton, GSA Regional Administrator for Regions 4 and 7
- Sukhee Kang, GSA Regional Administrator for Regions 9 and 10
- Everett Handford, HHS Regional Director, Region 1
- Jeffrey Reynoso, HHS Regional Director, Region 9
These regional appointees will be critical to the President’s efforts to rebuild communities most impacted by the pandemic, the economic recovery, and climate change. They bring deep expertise in their issue areas as well as critical relationships with federal, state, tribal, and local leaders. Consistent with the President’s commitment to building an administration that looks like America, these regional appointees represent the diversity of America and the communities they serve.
GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION (GSA)
Regional Administrators lead GSA’s Regional Offices and serve as liaisons with: Members of Congress, representatives of federal, state, and local government agencies, councils, committees, commissions, boards, as well as others that benefit from GSA’s services in real estate, acquisition, technology, and other mission areas. In alignment with the Biden-Harris Administration’s priorities, they will also build relationships that promote sustainability, strengthen American manufacturing and job creation, ensure equity for underrepresented populations and stakeholders, and more.
Elliot Doomes, GSA Regional Administrator, Region 11
Elliot Doomes previously served as Professional Staff on the Financial Services and General Government Subcommittee of the Appropriations Committee in the House of Representatives. He also formerly served as Counsel for the Subcommittee on Economic Development, Public Buildings, and Emergency Management on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee in the House of Representatives for over a decade. His principal responsibility was to advise the Ranking Member of the Committee and the Ranking Member of the subcommittee on GSA’s Real Property activities. Doomes began his career as a Legislative Assistant in the office of Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) where his primary focus was on economic development in the District of Columbia. His signature staff work included passage of the Federal and District of Columbia Real Property Act of 2006, which executed a complicated land exchange between the District of Columbia, GSA, the National Park Service, and the Architect of the Capitol that has enabled hundreds of millions of dollars of economic development within the District of Columbia. Doomes graduated from Morehouse College with a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry and earned a Juris Doctorate from the Georgetown University Law Center in Washington, DC.
Region 11 serves Maryland, Virginia, DC, Europe, Africa, and the Middle East.
Jason Shelton, GSA Regional Administrator, Regions 4 and 7
Jason L. Shelton has been a licensed attorney for 23 years, with direct legal experience as a civil trial attorney, criminal prosecutor, criminal defense attorney, and municipal attorney. Shelton has personally tried several hundred cases in a variety of courts throughout the states of Mississippi and Alabama. Over the course of his career, he has represented clients pro hac vice in litigation in New Jersey, New York, Louisiana, and Illinois. From 2004-2013, Shelton owned, operated, and managed Shelton & Associates, P.A., a general practice law firm in Tupelo, Mississippi. In 2013, Shelton was elected Mayor of Tupelo, Mississippi, where he managed over 500 full-time and 900 part-time employees, and superintended a combined annual budget of approximately $180 million. Shelton was widely recognized for his inclusive, coalition-building leadership style that was reflected in the city’s success during his two terms as mayor. Choosing not to seek a third term in office, Shelton’s tenure as mayor concluded in July 2021. Shelton is licensed to practice law in Mississippi and Alabama and is admitted to practice in multiple state and federal courts.
Regions 4 and 7 serve Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma, and New Mexico.
Sukhee Kang, GSA Regional Administrator, Regions 9 and 10
Sukhee Kang is a businessman, civic leader, and former city councilmember and two-term mayor of Irvine, California. Born and raised in South Korea, Kang and his wife Joanne immigrated to the United States in 1977 following his graduation from the prestigious Korea University with a degree in Food and Resource Economics. He and his wife built a successful retail business of shoe stores in Orange, Los Angeles, and Riverside counties. After the 1992 LA Riots inspired Kang to promote greater civic engagement within the Korean American community, Governor Gray Davis appointed him to the California Workforce Investment Board in 2000. Four years later, he won his first election to the Irvine City Council. In 2008 Kang made history as the first Korean American mayor of a major American city. Following his service on the city council, Kang served as a special advisor to UC Irvine Chancellor Michael Drake and an adjunct professor and Chancellor’s Fellow at Chapman University. He holds an Honorary Doctoral Degree in Business Administration from Dongseo University in Busan, Korea. Kang is the author of The Power of Possibility — My American Journey and was honored for his community leadership and citizenship by the Carnegie Corporation of New York with their annual “Immigrants: The Pride of America” designation.
Regions 9 and 10 serve Arizona, California, Nevada, Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, Washington, American Samoa, East Asia, and Guam.
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (HHS)
Regional Directors lead HHS’s 10 Regional Offices that directly serve state and local organizations. Regional Directors ensure the Department maintains close contact with state, local, and tribal partners and addresses the needs of communities and individuals served through HHS programs and policies.
Everett Handford, HHS Regional Director, Region 1
Everett Handford joins the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. He previously served as the Deputy State Director for United States Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA). Handford oversaw Senator Warren’s state operations, constituent services portfolio, and political outreach. Prior to working for Senator Warren, Handford was a brand management consultant for professional athletes. Handford received his Master’s Degree from the University of Southwest in Hobbs, New Mexico in Public Health Administration, a Business Certificate from Northeastern University in Boston, Massachusetts, and a BA in Science from Johnson & Wales University in Providence, RI.
Region 1 serves Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont.
Jeffrey Reynoso, HHS Regional Director, Region 9
Jeffrey Reynoso previously served as the Executive Director of the Latino Coalition for a Healthy California. He has worked on health equity issues spanning academia, government, and non-profit sectors at the local, state, and national level in roles including Doctoral Fellow at Kaiser Permanente, where he designed innovative programs to address food insecurity in the Southern California region; Public Health Fellow in the Office of Congressman Raul Ruiz, advising on healthcare policy issues; and Chief Administrative Officer at the County of San Diego Health & Human Services Agency, supporting the executive team on Affordable Care Act implementation. Reynoso holds a Doctor of Public Health from Harvard University, a Master of Public Health from UC Berkeley, and a BA from UCLA. A son of working-class immigrants from Mexico who grew up in California’s Central Valley and North San Diego County, he is in the first generation of his family to attend college.
Region 9 serves Arizona, California, Hawaii, Nevada, American Samoa, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Guam, Marshall Islands, and Republic of Palau.
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