Governor DeWine Announces Key Staff Changes

(COLUMBUS, Ohio)?Ohio Governor Mike DeWine today announced key staff changes within his administration.

Governor DeWine named LeeAnne Cornyn his Director of Cabinet Affairs. Kristi Burre will serve in Cornyn?s previous capacity as the Director of the Governor?s Children?s Initiative.

?Moments after being sworn in as governor, I signed an executive order to prioritize success and opportunities for all of Ohio?s children,? said Governor DeWine. ?I know Director Burre will continue a strong and unparalleled advocacy for addressing problems that affect children the most, including economic disadvantage, the educational gap, foster care, and physical and mental health. I?m grateful for the dedicated leadership of Director Cornyn leadership over the past two years. As the Director of Cabinet Affairs, she will take on an even greater role in my administration, as a liaison between myself and my executive cabinet.?

Ryan Burgess, Governor DeWine?s previous Director of Cabinet Affairs, has begun a new position as the CEO of Goodwill Columbus.

LeeAnne Cornyn, Director of Cabinet Affairs

Cornyn has spent nearly seven years serving Governor Mike DeWine, including in his role as Ohio?s Attorney General. She began her state service as an Assistant Attorney General in 2014, and in 2015, she was named Director of Children?s Initiatives in the Attorney General?s office. Cornyn was among Governor-elect Mike DeWine?s first cabinet appointments, being named as the Director of the Governor?s Children?s Initiative in 2018. In this role, Cornyn focused on coordinating efforts between agencies to improve outcomes in maternal and child health, early childhood education, and foster care.

Cornyn holds a Bachelor of Arts from Miami University and a Juris Doctor from The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law. She is a former Teach for America corps member, having taught 8^th grade science in Los Angeles.

Kristi Burre, Director of the Governor?s Children?s Initiative

Having worked as a caseworker, supervisor, administrator, trainer and director, Burre has over 20 years of experience in the child protection field at the county and state level. For the last two years, Burre headed the Office of Children Services Transformation, a foster care reform initiative launched by Governor DeWine through another executive order he signed after being sworn in. Before that, she served as the Deputy Director of Protective Services at Fairfield County Job & Family Services.

Additionally, Burre has been a trainer for the Ohio Child Welfare Training Program and the Safe & Together Institute. She has held leadership positions for many state and local organizations committed to better protecting children, including the Fairfield County Alcohol, Drug Addiction and Mental Health Board, the Ohio Children?s Trust Fund and the Ohio START Leadership Committee. Burre holds a Bachelor of Arts from Capital University and Master of Arts from Ohio University.

More information on the Governor?s Children?s Initiative is available at www.childrensinitiatives.ohio.gov.

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