COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Chief
- Counsel
- Chief Counsel to the Department of Conservation
Audrey Feinman Miner was appointed Chief Counsel to the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources during June 2015.
Prior to that appointment, Miner was senior counsel with the Department of Health, where she functioned as the Litigation Coordinator and provided advice to a variety of health program areas. Miner also served as Assistant Counsel-in-Charge, Personnel Section, at PennDOT, during which Miner was primarily responsible for providing legal advice on labor and employment matters as well as working on a variety of high-profile issues concerning the vehicle emissions inspection program.
Miner was appointed to an air quality task force in order to oversee the legal aspects of PennDOT's implementation of the Clean Air Act amendments of 1990.
Miner received her undergraduate degree from the University of Pennsylvania and her juris doctor from the Wake Forest University School of Law, where she was on the Law Review.
Prior to joining the commonwealth, Miner was an associate at Morgan, Lewis & Bockius and clerked for the Honorable John A. MacPhail, Commonwealth Court.
Ben Lukens has over 33 years of experience at the commonwealth. He has served in various budget, accounting, and fiscal systems roles. Most recently, he was the director of the Governor's Budget Office, a position he has held since February 2020. Since 2009 he served in various analyst, manager, and bureau director capacities within the Governor's Budget Office. His expertise is in public safety and transportation budgeting. Ben resides in Lewisberry with his family and enjoys spending time outdoors.
Job Titles:
- Secretary
- Secretary of the Department of Conservation
Cindy Adams Dunn became sixth secretary of the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources in June 2015.
As secretary, Dunn has helped position Pennsylvania as a leader in land conservation, outdoor recreation, green practices and public land management. During her tenure, the department created the Pennsylvania Outdoor Corps to connect youth and young adults with job opportunities relating to the outdoors and the environment. She also has directed the agency to provide leadership on planting forest buffers along streams to improve water quality.
Under her direction, Pennsylvania continues efforts to address the impacts of climate change, including helping the commonwealth adapt and implement a plan to reduce its impacts on state forests and parks.
Prior to becoming secretary, Dunn had served as the president and chief executive officer of PennFuture, a statewide environmental advocacy. Dunn also served as DCNR's Deputy Secretary of Conservation and Technical Services from 2007-2013, where she led DCNR's conservation landscape program and oversaw the community conservation partnerships grant program, which provides $30-$60 million annually for conservation and recreation throughout the commonwealth. Other leadership posts at DCNR included director of the Bureau of Recreation and Conservation as well as director of the Office of Education, Communications and Partnerships.
Job Titles:
- Executive Deputy Secretary for Administration and Management at DEP
Darrin Bodner is the Executive Deputy Secretary for Administration and Management at DEP. In this capacity, Darrin oversees the agency's budget, human resources, information technology, and business process management.
Darrin brings expertise in technology, financial management and organizational administration to DEP, having served most recently as director of operations for Oblong Industries, a new technology firm in Los Angeles, Calif. For five years there, he led the finance, administration, legal affairs and assets management units. Prior to that, he co-created Media Matters for America and served in its senior management from its incorporation in 2003 through 2008.
Darrin's background includes extensive experience in governmental affairs and political campaigning in both non-profit and corporate environments.
Darrin holds a bachelor of arts in both Economics and Dramatic Arts from Dickinson College.
Job Titles:
- Acting Chief Counsel for the Department of Environmental Protection
Diana Stares was appointed Acting Chief Counsel for the Department of Environmental Protection in September 2020, after having served as the Litigation Coordinator for DEP from 2016 to 2020. She started her career as a lawyer for the Department of Environmental Resources in 1980 and served as the Regional Counsel for the agency's Southwest Regional Office from 1990 to 2011. In 2011, she was appointed as the inaugural Director of the Center for Energy Policy and Management at Washington & Jefferson College and served in that capacity until 2016. Diana is a 1977 graduate of Hofstra University and a 1980 graduate of Duquesne University School of Law.
Job Titles:
- Coordinator / Infrastructure Implementation
- Infrastructure Implementation Coordinator for DEP
Jessica Shirley has been named the Infrastructure Implementation Coordinator for DEP. Her office is responsible for working across all programs in the agency to ensure that federal infrastructure funding programs are designed and implemented specifically for Pennsylvania. She joined the DEP Policy Office in 2011 and worked as the Policy Director most recently. Jessica received her Master's Degree in Public Administration from Penn State and her Bachelor's Degree in Economics and Political Science from Indiana University of Pennsylvania.
Job Titles:
- Acting Executive Deputy Secretary for Programs
Joe Adams started his DEP career in 2004 and has worked in the Field Operations, Water, and Oil & Gas deputates. Most recently, he served as the Regional Director for the Southcentral Regional Office. Joe has a Bachelor's degree in Chemical Engineering from Penn State University and is a licensed professional engineer in Pennsylvania. Originally from Cambria County, Joe resides in Camp Hill, PA, with his wife Sarah and daughter Cleo.
Job Titles:
- Chief Operating Officer of PennFuture
John Norbeck became DCNR Deputy Secretary for Parks and Forestry in August 2015. As deputy, he oversees operations of the bureaus of State Parks, Forestry, and Facility Design and Construction, and helps advance DCNR's strategic initiatives.
Norbeck served as the director of the Bureau of State Parks from 2006-2012. During his tenure, the bureau was awarded the National Gold Medal for Best Managed State Park System in the country, 2009-2011.
Norbeck also has served as the chief operating officer of PennFuture, a statewide environmental advocacy organization.
John Stefanko serves as the Deputy Secretary for the Office of Active and Abandoned Mine Operations at DEP. As Deputy Secretary he oversees the bureaus of Mining Programs, Abandoned Mine Reclamation, Mine Safety, and the District Mining Operations.
John has been with the Department since 1987. Prior to his recent appointment John was the Executive Assistant and served as the senior advisor to the previous Deputy Secretary until his retirement in December 2010. He has also served as the Chief of DEP's Division of Contracts, Procurement and Bonding within the Bureau of Office Services, where he managed bidding, awarding and management of the activities of all construction contracts and the procurement of goods and services for the Department. Prior to that, he was a Project Designer for the Department's Bureau of Abandoned Mine Reclamation, Division of Acid Mine Drainage Abatement, where he reviewed and created engineering designs for departmental mine reclamation, water supply replacements, mine fire control, subsidence control, abandoned mine lands projects and other associated facilities.
John holds an Associate Degree in Mechanical Engineering from Pennsylvania State University, Altoona Campus and Bachelor's Degree in Civil Engineering Technology from the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown.
Job Titles:
- Director for the Office of Environmental Justice
Justin Dula currently serves as the Director for the Office of Environmental Justice at DEP, focusing on outreach to communities facing disproportionate environmental impacts. Justin started with the Office in 2008 as the Eastern Regional Coordinator, which allowed him to work with a variety of communities ranging from historic towns in anthracite coal country to suburban communities near Philadelphia. In 2020, he completed the courses and attained the status a Climate Change Professional (CC-P).
Justin formerly served as the manager of community and regional planning at the Delaware County Planning Department. He has continued to be involved with planning and other issues around the built-environment through being a member of the American Institute of Certified Planners (AICP). He is the Vice President of the American Planning Association (APA) Pennsylvania Chapter and the Secretary/Treasurer of APA's LGBTQ and Planning Division, and also serves as the Past Chair of the APA Pennsylvania Southeast Section Council. He is also on the board of the Pennsylvania Downtown Center and the board of the Bywood Community Association, which works to further the neighborhood of Bywood in Upper Darby Township, Delaware County. Justin received his Master of City and Regional Planning from The Ohio State University and a Bachelor of Arts with a focus on International Area Studies from Kalamazoo College.
Job Titles:
- Director / Policy Office
- Policy Director for DEP
Kate Mallory Cole has been named the Policy Director for DEP. The Policy Office is a highly specialized executive office that works closely with all DEP programs and the Governor's Office of Policy and Planning. The office is responsible for engaging the public in meaningful dialogue and coordinating the Department's initiatives through its many advisory committees. The Policy Office also manages the agency's regulatory development, review and approval process, and is responsible for principal administration of the Environmental Quality Board and Board of Coal Mine Safety.
Kate joined the DEP Policy Office in 2019 focused on issues related to Oil and Gas, Mining, Radiation Protection and Waste Management.
A dedicated 38-year DEP employee, Krishnan Ramamurthy began his career with DEP in 1980 as an air pollution control engineer in the Southcentral Regional Office before joining the Bureau of Air Quality in 1985. Krishnan has served as the Director of the Bureau of Air Quality since 2016. He has also served in numerous important roles, including the NOx subject coordinator for the Ozone Transport Commission and regulatory advisor for the American Society of Mechanical Engineers committee for Qualification of Resource Recovery Facility Projects. He was a key member of the commonwealth's team for developing the state plan to implement the EPA's Clean Power Plan. He has received numerous DEP Awards of Excellence. Krishnan has his Master's and Bachelor's degrees in Chemical Engineering.
Job Titles:
- Deputy Secretary for the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection 's Office of Oil
Kurt Klapkowski serves as the Acting Deputy Secretary for the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection's Office of Oil and Gas Management. Prior to accepting this position, Kurt served as the Director of the Bureau of Oil and Gas Planning and Program Management from March 2012 until February 2022. As the Bureau Director, Kurt oversaw coordination of the Department's development of policy, regulatory, technical guidance and legislative documents relating to oil and gas development, as well as providing on-going education and outreach to the public and regulated communities. The Bureau consists of three Divisions responsible for Subsurface Activities, Surface Activities and Compliance and Information Management, respectively. Each Division works closely with their counterparts in the various District Offices around the Commonwealth.
Job Titles:
- Deputy Secretary for Conservation
Lauren Imgrund was appointed DCNR's Deputy Secretary for Conservation and Technical Services on August 1, 2016. Since her arrival at DCNR in 2006, Imgrund has held several important roles, including managing the Conservation Landscapes program.
Beginning in October 2011 becoming deputy, she was the director of the Bureau of Recreation and Conservation. This bureau builds connections between citizens and the outdoors through recreation enhancement, natural resource conservation, and community revitalization efforts. It also partners with communities and organizations across Pennsylvania to provide grants and technical assistance support for local recreation projects, trails and greenways, heritage parks, open space and river conservation, and environmental education programs.
Imgrund has more than 25 years of experience in building collaborative partnerships to develop place-based solutions and strategies for land conservation, outdoor recreation, community re-vitalization, water quality improvement and natural resource conservation.
Prior to coming to DCNR, she was Director of the Alliance for Aquatic Resource Monitoring at Dickinson College for 10 years, and served as Assistant Executive Director of the Pennsylvania Wildlife Federation.
Imgrund holds a bachelor of science in biology from Juniata College and a master of arts in community psychology from Pennsylvania State University.
Lisa Daniels has been with DEP in various roles since 1989, and has most recently served as the Director of Safe Drinking Water, where she has overseen the development of the first Maximum Contaminant Level set by Pennsylvania for PFOS and PFOA. She has also been integral in the efforts to improve the staff capacity in the Safe Drinking Water Program, and promote lead-free drinking water across the commonwealth. Lisa serves on the U.S. EPA's National Drinking Water Advisory Council, which she has chaired since 2021. She is also a past president of the Association of State Drinking Water Administrators.
Lisa graduated from Pennsylvania State University with a degree in Biology.
Job Titles:
- Deputy Secretary at the Pennsylvania Department of Education
- Deputy Secretary for Administration
- Green Associate
Mike Walsh joined DCNR in June, 2015. His experience includes over two decades working in both the legislative and executive branches of state government and serving in appointed positions under three governors. In his current role as Deputy Secretary for Administration at DCNR, Mike is responsible for the human resources, budget, and information technology operations of the agency.
Mike co-chairs the DCNR Sustainability Initiative, helping Pennsylvania's conservation agency lead by example with innovative investments in renewable energy, EV and PHEV fleet vehicles, and statewide energy savings projects . His focus on protecting our natural resources spans his career.
During his five years as Deputy Secretary at the Pennsylvania Department of Education, Mike created the "Pathways to Green Schools" program that helped coordinate and promote energy efficiency, environmental education, and health and wellness programs in public and private schools. Pennsylvania received national recognition by the US Department of Education for these efforts. As Director of Policy for Senator Allen Kukovich, Mike focused on land-use planning and urban revitalization issues, and helped to launch the Smart Growth Partnership of Westmoreland County. He received the first Founders Award from the organization in 2003.
Mike, a LEED Green Associate, is a graduate of Saint Vincent College in Latrobe, and received a Master of Public Management degree from the Heinz School at Carnegie Mellon University.
Job Titles:
- Communications
- Director of Communications for the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection
Neil Shader is the Director of Communications for the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, where he oversees communications and outreach efforts across the Department, including media outreach, strategic communications, and our online and social media presence. Neil began his career with the Department in 2015 as Press Secretary, and brings more than a decade of experience in media and public relations to the role.
Prior to joining the Department, Neil worked for The Wilderness Society and Ducks Unlimited. Originally from Washington County in Pennsylvania, he received a Bachelor of Science in communications from Ohio University, and a Master of Arts in political science from American University. He enjoys hiking, fishing, and hunting in Penn's Woods, and can often be found watching the peregrine falcons circling the Rachel Carson State Office Building.
Job Titles:
- Development Advisory Council
The Pennsylvania Grade Crude Development Advisory Council is overseen by Pennsylvania's Department of Community and Economic Development. This council is required to examine and make recommendations regarding regulations and policies developed by the Department of Environmental Protection. The council is charged with exploring the development of a regulatory framework for environmental oversight and enforcement for the conventional oil and gas industry.
Job Titles:
- Governor
- Governor Ben Lukens, Secretary
- Governor Cindy Adams Dunn, Secretary
- Governor Ramez Ziadeh, Acting Secretary