Senate President Bill Ferguson (D-Baltimore City) has made a few key hires in his office.
Ferguson informed his colleagues of the new hires in a memo obtained by Maryland Matters on Wednesday.
With Sally M. Robb, Ferguson’s former No. 2 staffer, formally ensconced this week as his new chief of staff, Ferguson has hired former longtime legislative staffer Jody J. Sprinkle to serve as his deputy chief of staff.
Sprinkle comes to Ferguson’s office from Maryland’s Technology Development Corporation, where she spent the past two years as government relations director and doing policy work. But the bulk of her professional career has been as a policy analyst for the General Assembly.
“Jody has more than 20 years of experience working with the General Assembly, including a tremendous depth of experience with the State budget, economic development, and Maryland businesses,” Ferguson told his fellow senators. “She has built trusted relationships with members and staff on both sides of the aisle as she has developed a deep understanding of the legislature. I am confident that Jody’s breadth of knowledge will be a tremendous asset to the Senate of Maryland.”
Ferguson also announced that he would create a communications director position within the Senate president’s office. Filling that role will be David J. Schuhlein, who has served as a crisis communication adviser, public affairs officer, and media relations specialist for the United States Coast Guard, retiring after 20 years of military service.
“Communications strategy and messaging are innate to David and have been the core of his career,” Ferguson wrote. “His professionalism, insight, and ability to excel in complex organizations will enhance the communications of the Senate.”
Ferguson also said that Ross Seidman, who has been a senior adviser in the Senate president’s office and was Ferguson’s top aide when he was a rank-and-file senator, is going to expand his responsibilities, with a portfolio that includes education, energy and health occupations.
“I am happy that this talented group of staffers is able to assist you as we work to represent the people of Maryland,” Ferguson wrote.
Josh Kurtz
Founding editor
Founding Editor Josh Kurtz is a veteran chronicler of Maryland politics and government. He began covering the State House in 1995 for The Gazette newspapers, and has been writing about state and local politics ever since. He was an editor at Roll Call, the Capitol Hill newspaper, for eight years, and for eight years was the editor of E&E Daily, which covers energy and environmental policy on Capitol Hill. For 6 1/2 years Kurtz wrote a weekly column on state politics for Center Maryland and has written for several other Maryland publications as well. Kurtz regularly gives speeches and appears on TV and radio shows to discuss Maryland politics.
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