FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Tuesday, Nov. 24, 1998
Contact: Michael Kharfen, (202) 401-9215
ALVIN COLLINS APPOINTED DIRECTOR FOR FAMILY ASSISTANCE
HHS Secretary Donna E. Shalala today announced the appointment
of Alvin C. Collins as director for the Office of Family Assistance
in the department's Administration for Children and Families.
As director, Collins will oversee the Temporary Assistance to
Needy Families (TANF) program, a $16.8 billion federal block grant
to states to design and operate their own programs to move welfare
families to work.
"HHS is fortunate to gain the benefit of Al Collins' knowledge,
experience, and commitment. His entire professional career has
centered on human resources and social services," said Secretary
Shalala. "The Clinton administration is committed to making
welfare reform a success. Al's achievements in implementing welfare
reform in Maryland will be particularly helpful to us in reaching
that goal."
Since 1995, Collins has been secretary of the Maryland Department
of Human Resources. During that time, he guided welfare reform,
moving 107,000 recipients from public assistance to work in two
years. In the process of their parents' transition to work, Collins
ensured that children were protected through child support reform,
maintenance of a registry of child abuse perpetrators, and the
establishment of local single points of entry for service delivery.
Prior to his work with the Maryland Department of Human Resources,
Collins served as both director and business manager of social
services in Baltimore City, where he initiated city-wide efforts
to address the needs of target populations, developed accountability
standards, and restructured the agency for more efficient and
effective service delivery.
"I am delighted that Al Collins has joined the ACF team.
His commitment to public service has been recognized for two decades,
and he is a stalwart advocate for children and their families,"
said Olivia A. Golden, HHS assistant secretary for children and
families. "With his experience as a state human service director,
he will be a critical asset to ACF as we reshape the federal role
in supporting states' successes in welfare reform."
The ACF Office of Family Assistance oversees the TANF program,
which was created by the new welfare reform law of 1996. TANF
became effective July 1, 1997, and replaced what was then known
as Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC), and the Job
Opportunities and Basic Skills Training (JOBS) programs. TANF
provides assistance and work opportunities to needy families by
granting states the federal funds and wide flexibility to develop
and implement their own welfare programs.
Collins has also held positions in Virginia and Connecticut: chief
of administrative services in the Department of Human Resources,
Arlington County, Virginia; director, Department of Human Services,
New Haven, Conn.; and executive director, Dixwell Opposes Alcoholism,
Inc., New Haven.
A resident of Baltimore, Md., Collins has a post master's degree
in social administration from the University of Maryland at Baltimore,
a master of science in education from Harvard University, and
a bachelor of science in political science from Southern Connecticut
State College.
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Note: All HHS press releases, fact sheets and other press materials are
available at http://www.hhs.gov/news.
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