Meet NARA's Leadership

The Honorable David S. Ferriero was sworn in as 10th Archivist of the United States on November 13, 2009.

David S. Ferriero was confirmed as 10th Archivist of the United States on November 6, 2009. Early in 2010 he committed the National Archives and Records Administration to the principles of Open Government—transparency, participation, and collaboration. To better position NARA to fulfill these goals, Mr. Ferriero initiated an agency transformation in 2010. The transformation restructured the organization and set goals to further our mission, meet the needs of those who rely on us, and find new, creative ways to approach the agency's work.

Openness and access drive NARA's actions in a variety of ways. The agency has embraced a number of social media tools—Facebook, Twitter, blogs, YouTube, Tumblr, and others—to reach a wider and broader audience. NARA uses this digital engagement as a two-way street. Early in his tenure, Mr. Ferriero celebrated the contributions of "citizen archivists," and he encourages public participation in identifying historical Federal records and sharing knowledge about them.

Access and protection go hand in hand, and NARA has taken steps to ensure that future generations will continue to enjoy access to Federal records. In August 2012, NARA produced the Managing Government Records Directive to modernize and improve Federal records management practices. Mr. Ferriero also instituted new security measures to deter theft or mishandling of records.

Several new facilities, designed to protect the records and improve access to them, have been opened since 2010. The George W. Bush Presidential Library became the 13th Presidential Library under NARA's administration. The National Personnel Records Center in St. Louis, MO, moved into a newly constructed building that is better equipped to preserve the millions of veterans records in its care. And the National Archives at New York and the National Archives at Denver moved to new locations. In Washington, DC, the National Archives Museum's visitors entrance was reconfigured, and the new David M. Rubenstein Gallery opened in December 2013.

Previously, Mr. Ferriero served as the Andrew W. Mellon Director of the New York Public Libraries (NYPL). He was part of the leadership team responsible for integrating the four research libraries and 87 branch libraries into one seamless service for users, creating the largest public library system in the United States and one of the largest research libraries in the world. Mr. Ferriero was in charge of collection strategy; conservation; digital experience; reference and research services; and education, programming, and exhibitions.

Before joining the NYPL in 2004, Mr. Ferriero served in top positions at two of the nation's major academic libraries, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, MA, and Duke University in Durham, NC. In those positions, he led major initiatives including the expansion of facilities, the adoption of digital technologies, and a reengineering of printing and publications.

Mr. Ferriero earned bachelor's and master's degrees in English literature from Northeastern University in Boston and a master's degree from the Simmons College of Library and Information Science, also in Boston. Mr. Ferriero served as a Navy hospital corpsman during the Vietnam War.

Debra Steidel Wall became Deputy Archivist of the United States in July 2011. She previously served as the agency's Chief of Staff (2008-2011), and in a variety of management positions relating to bringing NARA’s archival holdings to the public online. She joined the National Archives in 1991 as an archivist trainee with a specialty in film, and holds an undergraduate degree in history and government from Georgetown University, and a graduate degree in film from the American University.

Maria Carosa Stanwich was appointed Chief of Staff on February 5, 2017. She is the principal adviser to the Archivist of the United States for NARA's comprehensive communications program, serves as the agency champion for customer experience, and provides leadership for NARA’s Executive Secretariat. She served as the Acting Chief of Staff since October 2016, when the Office of the Chief of Staff was created as part of the agency’s reorganization.

Prior to that appointment, Maria served as the Acting Chief Strategy and Communications Officer. She has previously served as Chief of Staff in the immediate Office of the Archivist, Executive Officer for Business Support Services, Operations and Public Programs Director for the National Archives Museum, and Deputy Director of the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum. Before joining NARA, Maria taught high school history in Washington, DC, and Boston.

Maria holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in International Relations from Boston University and a Master of Education degree in Administration, Planning, and Social Policy from Harvard University's Graduate School of Education.

William J. Bosanko was appointed as the Chief Operating Officer effective January 1, 2013. Prior to this appointment, he served as NARA's Executive for Agency Services and was responsible for NARA's efforts nationwide to service the ongoing records management needs of Federal agencies and to represent the public's interest in the accountability and transparency of these records. Mr. Bosanko previously served as the Director of the Information Security Oversight Office from January of 2008 to March of 2011 where he was responsible for oversight of the government-wide security classification system and the National Industrial Security Program. Mr. Bosanko began his career with NARA in February of 1993, first as an Archives Technician and later as an Archivist, working on NARA's Special Access and FOIA Staff and NARA's Records Declassification Division. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from Susquehanna University (Selinsgrove, Pennsylvania).

Gary M. Stern has been the General Counsel of the National Archives and Records Administration since 1998, and also serves as NARA's Chief Freedom of Information Act Officer, Senior Agency Official for Privacy, and Dispute Resolution Specialist. Mr. Stern provides legal and policy guidance with respect to NARA's implementation of the Federal Records Act, the Presidential Records Act, and all of the other statutes, regulations, orders, and directives that govern NARA's multiple archival and records-related responsibilities. Before coming to NARA, Mr. Stern worked for the U.S. Department of Energy (1995-98), the U.S. Federal Advisory Committee on Human Radiation Experiments (1994-95), and the Washington Office of the American Civil Liberties Union (1987-94), where he specialized in national security, classification, and information law issues. While at the ACLU, Mr. Stern participated as a plaintiff in Armstrong, et al. v. Executive Office of the President, the first major case involving government email recordkeeping practices, and also served as legal consultant to the National Academy of Science's Committee on Declassification of Information for the Environmental Remediation and Related Programs of the Department of Energy. Mr. Stern earned his law degree in 1987 from Yale Law School, where he served as editor-in-chief of the Yale Journal of International Law; he graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Vassar College in 1983, where he majored in Ancient Greek.

John Hamilton serves as Director of Congressional Affairs for the National Archives, where he plans, directs, and coordinates the legislative and congressional relations activities of NARA. Before coming to NARA, Mr. Hamilton led federal relations efforts for the University of California (UC) in Washington, DC, primarily in the Federal budget and appropriations processes, science and technology policy, and higher education programs and regulations. Mr. Hamilton also served as the assistant director for federal relations at the National Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges, and worked as a legislative assistant to U.S. Congressman Robert Traxler, following issues related to education, science, labor, civil service, transportation and the Federal courts. Mr. Hamilton is a native of Michigan and received a BA in history from Saginaw Valley State University in Michigan and an MBA from an international graduate school at Kyung Hee University in Seoul, South Korea.

Pamela Wright became the National Archives' first Chief Innovation Officer in December 2012. She leads staff responsible for agency-wide projects and programs in the following areas: innovation, digitization, web, social media, online description, and online public engagement. Ms. Wright previously served as the agency's Chief Digital Access Strategist (2009–2011), where she pulled together the web, social media, and online catalog staff into an award-winning integrated team for improved online public access, and as the manager of the Archival Research Catalog (2005–2008), where she led staff responsible for developing and implementing policies, processes, systems and standards relating to the description of records. She currently serves as the agency representative to the White House Open Government Working Group and the Digital Public Library of America.

Ms. Wright began her work at the National Archives as an archivist in the Initial Processing and Declassification unit in 2001 and holds undergraduate degrees in history and English from the University of Montana, as well as a graduate certificate in project management from the George Washington University. Prior to her work at the Archives, Ms. Wright was a staff historian for a private consulting firm, conducting research at local, state and federal facilities across the country.

Oliver Potts was selected as the Director of the Federal Register in August 2015. As Director, he is responsible for publication of the official text of Federal laws, Presidential documents, and regulations. He previously served as Deputy Executive Secretary at the Department of Health and Human Services where he also served in legal counsel positions. Oliver holds a BA in Government and Politics from George Mason University and a JD from the University of Connecticut School of Law.

Jay Trainer was appointed as the Executive for Agency Services effective June 2013. As such he is responsible for NARA's nationwide efforts to service the ongoing records management needs of Federal agencies and to represent the public's interest in the accountability and transparency of these records. Agency Services is comprised of the Office of the Chief Records Officer, the Federal Records Centers Program, the Information Security Oversight Office, the National Declassification Center, and the Office of Government Information Services.

Jay is a career NARA employee having started as a student trainee at the Dayton Federal Records Center in 1988. Upon reassignment to Washington, DC, in 1991 he held a progression of management analyst and financial analyst positions at headquarters offices for the Federal Records Center, Records Management, and Regional Archives programs and the Washington National Records Center. Since 2004, Jay served as Assistant Director for the Federal Records Centers Program (FRCP). As the Assistant Director, Jay had oversight authority for four lines of business: Operations, the National Personnel Records Center, Customer Relations Management, and Business Development. He also exercised daily authority over staffing, finance, facilities, and administrative functions as well as a lead role in FRCP strategic planning efforts. Jay also served as a member of the NARA Strategic Support Team assisting with strategic planning and benchmarking efforts.

Jay holds a BA in History from the University of Dayton and an MA in American History from George Mason University.

As the Chief Records Officer, Mr. Brewer leads records management throughout the Federal Government with an emphasis on electronic records. He provides overall direction and guidance for Federal agencies on all aspects of records and information management. This includes overseeing the scheduling and appraisal of Federal records, the development of records management regulations and guidance, and evaluating the effectiveness of records management programs in Federal agencies.

Prior to his current appointment, Mr. Brewer held a number of positions in NARA’s records management program, including management positions working directly with Federal agencies to improve records management government-wide. Most recently, he directed the National Records Management Program, coordinating the activities of headquarters and field records management staff in support of NARA’s overall strategic plan.

Prior to joining NARA in 1999, Mr. Brewer was a records management consultant responsible for managing records management programs at the Environmental Protection Agency and the Virginia Department of Transportation. He has more than 25 years of experience in records and information management and earned his Certified Records Manager (CRM) designation in 1998. Mr. Brewer is also a senior fellow of the Partnership for Public Service’s Excellence in Government Program, which focuses on developing the leadership skills of senior government employees. He holds an M.A. in Political Science from the University of Georgia, and a B.A. in Government from the College of William and Mary.

Ann Cummings has served as the Executive for Research Services since December 2016. In this role, she is responsible for directing a program that acquires, preserves, and makes accessible the National Archives’ vast holdings of accessioned Federal records at fourteen locations nationwide. Since 2011, Ann served as the Access Coordinator responsible for Research Services’ archival operations in the Washington DC area. She holds a B.A. in History from Friends University in Wichita, Kansas and an M.A. in History from Wichita State University.

Swarnali Haldar was appointed NARA's Executive/Chief Information Officer (CIO) effective June 29, 2014. She is responsible for leading programs and projects for information systems and tools that allows customers to permanently preserve digitized as well as born digital information and tools for customers to discover NARA's holdings. She will continue to develop strategies to enhance NARA's capabilities to support records management.

Swarnali has been with NARA since February of 2013. Prior to her appointment as CIO, she served in the role of Deputy Chief Information Officer/Director of Operations. Before joining NARA, Swarnali served as the CIO for the Foreign Agricultural Service within the Department of Agriculture. She is an accomplished senior manager with domestic and international experience in leading the strategy and tactical operations of an information technology organization. She has proven experience in innovative, results-driven success managing a multi-million dollar government information technology organization and has a proven track record for providing information services to headquarters as well as field offices.

She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science from the University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC).

Donna Forbes has served as Executive for Business Support Services since November 2016. She came to NARA in May 2015 as Chief Facilities Engineer and Operations Manager. Business Support Services assists NARA's internal customers nationwide. Services include managing the Agency's safety program; operating and maintaining all NARA facilities; providing security management; and administering field support management throughout the organization. Prior to joining NARA, Donna served in facilities management positions at the Department of Labor, NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, and the Department of Agriculture. She retired from the U.S. Navy Reserve as a Commander. Donna is a registered professional engineer in the Commonwealth of Virginia. She holds a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from Southern Methodist University and a master's degree in engineering from the University of Maryland, College Park.

Micah Cheatham was appointed as NARA's Chief Financial Officer (CFO) in June 2011. As CFO, he is the principal adviser to the Archivist on Federal financial management and provides enterprise wide leadership for budget, accounting policy and operations, financial reporting, and operation of NARA's Trust Fund. He has previously served as the Director of Budget for the General Services Administration and in financial management positions in the Internal Revenue Service. Micah holds an undergraduate degree in Economics from the London School of Economics and a graduate degree in Applied Economics from the University of Michigan.

On October 2, 2016 Colleen Murphy was appointed Chief Financial Officer. As CFO, she is the principal adviser to the Archivist on Federal financial management and provides enterprise wide leadership for budget, accounting policy and operations, financial reporting, and operation of NARA's Trust and Gift Funds. Since 2010, Colleen served as NARA’s Accounting Officer. She has Bachelor Degrees from the University of Maryland in Accounting and Government and Politics.

John Valceanu is the Director of Communications and Marketing, overseeing NARA's public and media communications, product development and internal communications. Before joining NARA in February 2016, John worked for the U.S. Department of Defense, where he led the teams that manage content on Defense.gov, DoD's official home page, and which produce news and feature articles for military newspapers and websites around the world.

In addition to DoD, John's government experience includes serving as acting director of Enterprise Web Management at the General Services Administration. He retired from the military after completing a 20-year combined active and reserve U.S. Army career as a public affairs specialist, including tours with the 82nd Airborne Division, the Southern European Task Force Infantry Brigade and on the staff of "Soldiers," the official magazine of the U.S. Army.

John has a bachelor's degree in liberal arts and creative writing from Sarah Lawrence College and a master's degree in public administration from Troy University.

Miranda Andreacchio has served as the Director of the Executive Secretariat at NARA since November 2017. In this role, she is responsible for leading a variety of support services to the immediate Offices of the Archivist and Deputy Archivist and to the greater NARA in the areas of administration, correspondence management, special events, agency historical resources, protocol, and committee management.

Prior to joining NARA, Miranda served as the Executive Officer for the National Weather Service, Office of Observations and the Chief of the Executive Secretariat for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, Office of Intelligence and Analysis.

Miranda also served in the U.S. Navy as a signals intelligence operator at the National Security Agency.

James E. Springs was appointed as the Inspector General effective March 23, 2015. The Office of Inspector General (OIG) is an independent office established under the Inspector General Act of 1978, as amended. The OIG's statutory mission is to promote the economy, efficiency, and effectiveness of NARA programs and operations, and to protect against fraud, waste, and abuse. The OIG carries out this mission by conducting audits, and investigations; reviewing existing and proposed legislation and regulations; and keeping the Archivist of the United States and the Congress fully informed about problems and deficiencies relating to NARA programs and operations.

Mr. Springs has 27 years of government experience working in the Inspector General community. Mr. Springs joined NARA in 1997 and has previously served as the Inspector General and Assistant Inspector General for Audits. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting from Saint Augustine's College.

Megan (Meg) Phillips became NARA's External Affairs Liaison in August 2013. From 2010 to 2013 she served as the Electronic Records Lifecycle Coordinator in the Office of the Chief Operating Officer. In that role, Meg was involved with two large-scale electronic records initiatives, NARA's Electronic Records Archives (ERA) project and the search for automated electronic records management solutions under the Managing Government Records Directive. From 2008 to 2010, she served as the Electronic Records Project Manager and ERA adoption coordinator for the Office of Regional Records Services. Meg joined NARA in 2002 as a Senior Records Analyst in the Mid Atlantic Region. She has been based at the National Archives at Philadelphia throughout her NARA career, helping keep her in touch with Agency and Research Services operations in the field.

Before coming to NARA, Meg ran the archives and records management program for the American College of Physicians. She has a BA in history from Haverford College, an MA in history from the University of Chicago, and a MLS from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Meg is a Certified Records Manager and an active participant in the Society of American Archivists.

Ismael Martinez is the Director of the Office of Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) for the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA). As EEO Director, Mr. Martinez is the principal advisor to the Archivist of the United States on all EEO matters, and is responsible for the leadership and oversight of the Agency’s EEO Program.

Mr. Martinez brings to NARA a wealth of knowledge and experience in EEO and civil rights. Previously, he served as an EEO Manager for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency where he was responsible for developing and implementing a model EEO and affirmative employment program. Through his career, Mr. Martinez has served in numerous positions including EEO Counselor, Complaint’s Specialist, Budget Officer, EEO Investigator, Compliance Officer, and Special Emphasis Program Manager for Hispanics and Persons with Disabilities.

Mr. Martinez also served in the U.S. Army for 22 years, where he received extensive training and education in leadership and program management relating to civil rights, EEO, and diversity. Mr. Martinez holds a Bachelors of Science degree in Business Management from the University of Maryland and is an Honors graduate from the Defense Equal Opportunity Management Institute.

Christopher Eck became the Executive Director of the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC) in April 2018. He is the thirteenth executive director of the NHPRC, which was created by Congress in 1934 and is chaired by the Archivist of the United States. He and the NHPRC staff provide support for the Commission’s leadership initiatives, grant programs, and the fostering of new tools and methods to connect the work of the National Archives to the work of the nation’s archives.

Christopher came to the NHPRC from the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency and his prior Federal Government service includes work with the First Responder Network Authority (“FirstNet”), the Air National Guard at Joint Base Andrews, and the US General Services Administration. Additionally, he served as the executive director of the Miami-Dade County (metropolitan Miami) Office of Historic Preservation and as the administrator of the Broward County (metropolitan Fort Lauderdale) Historical Commission. Christopher holds an undergraduate degree in History from Loyola University New Orleans, a master’s degree in History and Historical Archaeology from the University of Massachusetts Boston, and a law degree from the University of Miami.

The President of the United States approved Mark A. Bradley's appointment as Director of ISOO in November 2016. Before coming to ISOO, Mr. Bradley served from 2010–2016 as the Director of FOIA, Declassification, and Prepublication Review at the U.S. Department of Justice's National Security Division. While at the DOJ, he also served as an attorney-adviser, Deputy Counsel for Intelligence Policy, and Acting Chief of Intelligence Oversight. He has been a member of the federal government's Senior Executive Service since 2003.

Mr. Bradley also served as a CIA intelligence officer and as Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan's legislative assistant for foreign affairs and intelligence matters and as his last legislative director. He co-drafted the legislation that established the Public Interest Declassification Board. Mr. Bradley, who is a member of the District of Columbia Bar, also practiced as a criminal defense lawyer in the District of Columbia, defending indigents accused of serious crimes.

In 2015, the Society for History in the Federal Government awarded "A Very Principled Boy" his biography of Soviet spy Duncan Lee, its George Pendleton Prize for being the best book written by a Federal historian in 2014.

He is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Washington & Lee University and holds an M.A. in Modern History from Oxford, which he attended as a Rhodes scholar, and a law degree from the University of Virginia.

Alina M. Semo became the Director of the Office of Government Information Services (OGIS) in December 2016. OGIS serves as the nation’s FOIA Ombudsman. Its mission is to improve the FOIA process through resolving disputes between Federal agencies and FOIA requesters; reviewing agencies’ FOIA policies, procedures and compliance; and making recommendations to Congress and the President to improve the administration of FOIA.

Prior to joining OGIS, Ms. Semo served as the Director of Litigation in NARA's Office of General Counsel for two and a half years. Before coming to NARA, Ms. Semo led the FOIA Litigation Unit in the Office of the General Counsel at the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) for over 10 years, and prior to that served as an Assistant General Counsel in the FBI’s Litigation Branch for nearly 5 years. Ms. Semo began her Federal Government career as a U.S. Department of Justice trial attorney and later senior counsel in the Federal Programs Branch, Civil Division, from 1991 to 1999; and from 1988 to 1991, Ms. Semo worked as a litigation associate at Hopkins & Sutter in Washington, DC. Ms. Semo earned her law degree in 1988 from Georgetown University Law Center and graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Maryland, College Park in 1985 with a Bachelor of Arts degree with high honors in Government and Politics. Ms. Semo is licensed in the District of Columbia and Maryland.

David Weinberg has served as the Director of the Federal Records Centers Program (FRCP) since August of 1999, upon the completion of converting the FRCP from an appropriated program to a reimbursable one. Before joining the National Archives, Mr. Weinberg served as the Deputy Records Commissioner of the City of Philadelphia, the Curator of the University of Pennsylvania's Center for the Study of the History of Nursing, and the Assistant Curator of Temple University's Urban Archives. He earned a bachelor's degree in Urban Studies from the University of Pennsylvania, a master's degree in Library Science from Drexel University, and a second master's degree in American History from Temple University. In 1997, Mr. Weinberg was selected as a Research Fellow for the Study of Modern Archives at the University of Michigan's Bentley Historical Library, examining the feasibility of local government records programs that began with NHPRC grant funding.

Scott Levins was appointed the Director of the National Personnel Records Center (NPRC), effective July 3, 2011, bringing to the position over 20 years of experience at the National Archives. Prior to this appointment, Mr. Levins served as the Assistant Director for Military Records at NPRC and worked on space and facility matters in the Central Office of Regional Records Services, helping with the transition of the FRC Program to a fully reimbursable operation. He also was the Coordinator of Records Center Operations at the Pittsfield Federal Records Center and held Management Analyst positions in the Central Office of Federal Records Centers and at the Washington National Records Center.

Mr. Levins holds an undergraduate degree in Business Administration from Saint Xavier University in Chicago and a Masters in Business Administration from the University of Massachusetts.

Allison Olson became Director of Preservation Programs in January 2018. She is responsible for programs that preserving the holdings of the National Archives in collaboration with the custodial units and other stakeholders. She has worked at the National Archives since 2002 in a variety of positions: system owner for Holdings Management System, a preservation officer, and a paper conservator. She has a B.A. from University of Delaware in Art History and Art Conservation as wells as a M.A. in Art Conservation from Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario.

Richard H. Hunt has served as the Director of the Center for Legislative Archives since 2004, administering the staff responsible for the official records of the U.S. House of Representatives U.S. Senate, and legislative branch commissions. The Center supports the current business needs of Congress by returning records to committees, providing records assistance to House and Senate committees, congressional administrators, and the congressional community generally, and contributing to the exhibitions in the Capitol Visitor Center. The Center holds significant volumes of both textual and electronic records from congressional committees, commissions, and from its biennial web harvest of congressional web sites. The Center also provides archival services and programs to support researchers' use of the records and creates educational materials and programs to advance public understanding of the history of Congress and of representative government in America.

Hunt began his career at the National Archives in 1989 and at the Center in 1991, where he has served as assistant director, congressional outreach specialist, and archivist. Before coming to the National Archives, Hunt was a lecturer for five years at the University of California, San Diego and at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, where he taught courses in United States history. Hunt did graduate work in history at the University of California, San Diego and has a B.A. in History and Social Studies from the University at Albany, State University of New York.

On October 2, 2016, La Verne Fields was appointed acting Chief Acquisition Officer (CAO), and on September 17, 2017, she was appointed NARA’s first CAO. As the principal procurement advisor, La Verne leads agency wide acquisition policy, planning, and operations. La Verne also serves as NARA’s Suspension and Debarment Official and Acquisition Career Manager (ACM),. As ACM, she is responsible for the training and professional development of the distributed acquisition workforce.

La Verne joined NARA in 2005 and has served as Director of Acquisitions since 2011. Prior to joining NARA, she held acquisition positions at the Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. Postal Service. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in communications and Master’s degrees in organizational management; industrial and organizational psychology; and acquisition and supply chain management.