Governor Napolitano has appointed Tracy L. Wareing as director of the Arizona Department of Economic Security.
Ms. Wareing replaces David Berns, who resigned to join the Seattle-based Casey Family Programs Foundation as its executive vice president of child and family services.
Mr. Berns leaves DES on July 6; Ms. Wareing takes over July 7.
Mr. Berns has served as director of DES since August 2003.
Ms. Napolitano’s office touted Mr. Berns’ success stories in a press release. “Under his leadership, the agency has been working with its staff, client families and community partners on ways to improve outcomes for the highest-need families in our communities. Examples of the agency’s success: between 2003 and 2005, the cash assistance caseload decreased by 18 percent, meaning 10,000 fewer families are on welfare; the number of licensed foster care homes in Arizona increased by 45 percent; and there has been a 35 percent increase in the number of recipients of cash assistance entering the workforce (more than 20,000 individuals),” the release said.
Ms. Wareing has worked for the state since 1990. She joined the Attorney General’s Office in 1999, working as section chief counsel for protective services. During her tenure with the AG, she coordinated the delivery of legal services to Child Protective Services offices across the state.
In 2003, Ms. Wareing joined the governor’s staff as policy adviser for human services. In that capacity, she led implementation of the governor’s plan to reform CPS, and served on the bi-partisan committee that drafted the comprehensive CPS reform bill. In 2005, and at the request of the governor and Mr. Berns, Ms. Wareing worked for six months at DES as acting deputy director for the Division of Children, Youth and Families, overseeing CPS, as well as programs related to adoption, guardianship and foster child health care.
Ms. Wareing began her career as an attorney in private practice with the firm of Steptoe and Johnson. She holds a law degree from the University of Arizona, and a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science, also from the UofA.