(Washington, DC) Today, Mayor Muriel Bowser announced a series of appointments in her Administration:
Dr. LaQuandra S. Nesbitt, to be Interim Director of Department of Behavioral Health and remain Director of Department of Health. Dr. Nesbitt will assume the role as Interim Director of Department of Behavioral Health, serving dually as the Director of Department of Health (DOH). Prior to returning to the District to join the Bowser Administration, Dr. Nesbitt was Director of the Louisville Metro Department of Public Health and Wellness (LMPHW). Prior to her role in Louisville, Dr. Nesbitt served separate terms as Senior Deputy Director for the Community Health Administration and Senior Deputy Director for the Center for Policy, Planning, and Evaluation at DOH. Dr. Nesbitt was formerly an Assistant Professor in the Department of Family and Community Medicine and the Senior Coordinator for Health Disparities and Policy Research Initiatives in the Office of Policy and Planning at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. Dr. Nesbitt received her Bachelor of Science degree in biochemistry from the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, her medical degree from Wayne State University School of Medicine, and a Master of Public Health in Health Care Management and Policy from the Harvard School of Public Health.
Director David Do, to be Interim Director of Department For Hire Vehicles (DFHV). Mr. Do has served as Director of the Mayor’s Office on Asian and Pacific Islander Affairs (MOAPIA) since 2015. A seasoned community advocate and a champion for neighborhood and constituent engagement, Mr. Do brings to his new role experience working with numerous businesses and community-based organizations around the District, including his promotion of capital improvement grants during his previous tenure at the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development (DMPED). Mr. Do earned a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from the University of California Merced and a Master of Community Planning from the University of Maryland, College Park.
Mr. Ben de Guzman, to be Acting Director of Mayor’s Office on Asian and Pacific Islander Affairs (MOAPIA). Mr. de Guzman most recently served as the Community Outreach Specialist in the Mayor’s Office of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Questioning (LGBTQ) Affairs, helping to lead the agency’s constituent services and engagement efforts. Mr. de Guzman has been a leading voice at the local and national level on issues of racial equity, immigrants’ rights, veterans affairs, and LGBTQ justice for twenty years. He served on the Executive Committee for the Filipino Veterans Recognition and Education Project, a non-profit organization whose mission is to ensure a legacy of remembrance for Filipino WWII veterans and their service to the U.S. and the Philippines. In October 2015, he helped coordinate Mayor Bowser’s first-ever Filipino American History Month commemoration. Mr. de Guzman earned his Bachelor of Arts from the University of California, Berkley.
Ms. Ayris Scales, to be Interim Director of Serve DC and remain Director of the Office of Partnerships and Grants. Ms. Scales will assume the role as Interim Director of Serve DC, serving dually as the Director of the Office of Partnerships and Grants (OPGS). Under the leadership of Director Scales, PGS has processed more than $28 million in donations from District residents, businesses, foundations, and organizations—representing the largest give in the history of the agency. While at OPGS, Ayris has worked to develop and foster philanthropic partnerships that support Mayor Bowser’s work around immigrant rights and justice, affordable housing, ending homelessness, financial empowerment, small and local business development, and more. Ms. Scales holds a Bachelor of Science in journalism from Kent State University and a Master of Public Administration from the City University of New York, Baruch College.