Governor O’Malley Appoints Barbara Reynolds to GOSV Post

Martin O’Malley, Governor Anthony Brown, Lieutenant Governor

Israel C. Patoka, Executive Director

Governor’s Office on Service and Volunteerism

Frank Johnson, Commission Chair

As a supporting unit of the Governor’s Office of Community Initiatives, the Governor’s Office on Service and Volunteerism creates, promotes and supports volunteer service efforts that engage all Marylanders to strengthen our communities.

Jun 2, 2009 MEDIA CONTACT:

Tony White Public Information Officer

410-767-6248

Governor O’Malley Appoints Barbara Reynolds to GOSV Post

New Director Assumes Position at Historic Time in National Service

Governor Martin O’Malley today announced the appointment of Barbara E. Reynolds as Director of the Governor’s Office on Service and Volunteerism (GOSV). The Governor's Office on Service and Volunteerism creates, promotes and supports volunteer service efforts that engage all Marylanders to strengthen their communities. Through a combination of traditional volunteerism and national service programming, GOSV provides solutions to Maryland's most pressing needs in the areas of education, public safety, health, the environment and homeland security.

“Maryland has a rich tradition of volunteerism. The impact that our volunteers have on the quality of life of others is only magnified during this period when many hard working families are struggling through difficult economic times,” ” said Governor O’Malley. “As President Obama has identified civic engagement as a central cause of his administration and enacted major national service legislation, we need a knowledgeable and experienced leader at the helm of GOSV. Barbara Reynolds gives us that.”

Ms. Reynolds currently serves as the Director of Volunteer Maryland (VM), an AmeriCorps program of the Governor’s Office, where she oversees two AmeriCorps projects that place AmeriCorps members in nonprofit and governmental agencies across Maryland. Over the past 10 years, Volunteer Maryland has won $3.5 million in nationally competitive federal grants, mobilized more than 70,000 community volunteers, and served more than one million Marylanders. VM has infused more than $25 million in goods, services, and funding into local communities.

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“I am honored to work on behalf of the O’Malley-Brown Administration with each of Maryland’s volunteer centers and AmeriCorps programs,” said Ms. Reynolds.  “I am eager to expand our outreach and resources and engage new communities and new partners”

Since joining Volunteer Maryland’s staff in 1995, Ms. Reynolds has recruited, trained, and supervised more than 400 AmeriCorps members across the state. In March 2009, she was named one of Maryland’s Top 100 Women by the Daily Record for her dedication to mentoring young professionals in the nonprofit sector. She will assume the post of GOSV Director on July 1, 2009.

Ms. Reynolds is an Associate Professor at the College of Notre Dame's Graduate Nonprofit Management Program and a Consultant with Campaign Consultation's AmeriCorps Sustainability Institute. She is a graduate of American University’s School of Public Affairs, where she received a Masters of Public Administration. She also earned a Bachelor of Arts degree with honors in French and Classics from Randolph-Macon College.

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