Mayor-elect Adrian Fenty has selected a member of the Board of Education to be his chief liaison to both the D.C. Council and Congress.
JoAnneGinsberg, an appointed member of the school board, was named Fenty’s deputy chief of staff and director of policy and legislative affairs. In her position, she will lobby the legislative branch on behalf of Fenty and his agenda, a critical role, especially as Fenty considers a bid to take over the schools.
The position is “absolutely essential,” outgoing Mayor Anthony Williams said Wednesday. A strong liaison will fight through the built-in bias against the mayor, and battle around those legislators who are gunning for the executive’s office, Williams said.
Before her appointment to the board in July 2005, Ginsberg served as chief of staff to Ward 3 Council Member Kathy Patterson and an education analyst for the council’s education committee.
Ginsberg’s slot on the school board will be filled early next year, Fenty said. Her exit leaves three positions open, with the earlier naming of Victor Reinoso as Fenty’s deputy mayor for education and the election of Tommy Wells to the Ward 6 council seat.
Fenty also named Stephanie Scott to be the secretary for the District of Columbia. The secretary maintains official District records and serves as the city’s chief protocol officer, preparing the government for official visits from international emissaries.
Scott is Fenty’s former chief of staff in his Ward 4 council office and former campaign chief of staff for his 2004 council re-election campaign.
