DHCD Leadership: Biographies and Pictures
RAYMOND A. SKINNER, Secretary
Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development
Raymond A. Skinner was appointed by Governor Martin O’Malley as Secretary of the
Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development in February 2007. In this
position, which he also held under Governor Parris Glendening from 1998 to 2003,
Mr. Skinner manages the states’ housing finance, mortgage insurance, community development,
and building code programs. Prior to his appointment he was President and CEO of
The Skinner Group LLC, a consulting firm providing services in affordable housing
finance, community and economic development, and government relations. Mr. Skinner
has more than 25 years of professional experience in affordable housing and community
revitalization and has been an active leader in the field. Previously he served
as Director of the Prince George’s County Maryland Department of Housing and Community
Development and as Executive Director of the DC Office of Business and Economic
Development. Mr. Skinner holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Pennsylvania State
University and a Master of City Planning from the University of Pennsylvania. He
also has completed the Program for Senior Executives in State and Local Government
at Harvard University.
Clarence J. Snuggs, Deputy Secretary
Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development
Clarence J. Snuggs was appointed by the Secretary, effective March 26, 2007, as
Deputy Secretary of the Department of Housing and Community Development. Since 2003,
Mr. Snuggs served as Director of Enterprise Community Partners' Baltimore office.
In that capacity he had overall responsibility for operating the office and its
programs, which focused on affordable housing production, capacity building for
local community leaders and community-based organizations, public education system
reforms and other community development initiatives. Between 1998 and 2003, Mr.
Snuggs was Deputy Executive Director and Corporate Treasurer for the congressionally
chartered Neighborhood Reinvestment Corporation in Washington, D.C. Prior to Neighborhood
Reinvestment, Mr. Snuggs served as Vice President for Community Lending at Maryland
National Bank and Signet Bank. Mr. Snuggs has been active in affordable housing
and community development for nearly 20 years through his leadership and involvement
in a host of regional and local community and civic organizations. He holds a Bachelor
of Arts degree from Winston-Salem State University and a MBA degree from Howard
University. He was also awarded a certificate of completion for the Senior Executives
in State and Local Government Program from Harvard University, Kennedy School of
Government, Executive Education.
Frank Coakley, Assistant Secretary
Division of Development Finance & Community Development Administration
Mr. Coakley returns as Assistant Secretary and Director of CDA, after having held
those offices from 1995 to 2000. In his most recent position as Senior Vice President/Branch
Administration for Harbor Bank of Maryland, Mr. Coakley was responsible for supervision
of the retail branch offices ensuring that banking, sales and administrative functions
were conducted in accordance with internal policies and federal regulations. He
also was responsible for directing the branch operations, administration, policy
development, ATM network, marketing outreach, and member compliance. Mr. Coakley
earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Morgan State University
and matriculated through the University of Maryland’s Bankers School, which educates
bankers regarding credit, administrative, and personnel procedures in the banking
industry.
Carol A. Gilbert, Assistant Secretary
Division of Neighborhood Revitalization
As Assistant Secretary, Ms. Gilbert serves as Director of the Division of Neighborhood
Revitalization, the office responsible for administering the majority of DHCD’s
community development and revitalization programs
, including the Community Legacy Program, the Neighborhood BusinessWorks Program,
and the Community Development Block Grant Program. Before joining DHCD, Ms. Gilbert
served as both a program consultant and program officer with the Goldseker Foundation,
specializing in providing investment strategies and community development expertise
to support nonprofit organizations helping communities and individuals in the Baltimore
metropolitan area. Ms. Gilbert is a former executive director of the Neighborhood
Design Center, a 30 year-old nonprofit organization dedicated to providing lower
income communities access to professional community design services. She also founded
the Baltimore Homeownership Preservation Coalition, a public-private partnership
working to prevent the loss of affordable housing due to mortgage foreclosure and
predatory lending. Ms. Gilbert received a bachelor’s degree in English from the
University of Virginia and a master’s degree in architecture from the University
of Maryland College Park’s Graduate School of Architecture.
Simone C. Johnson, Chief of Staff
As Chief of Staff, Ms. Johnson serves as a senior and trusted advisor to the Secretary
and assists the Secretary in managing the day-to-day operations of the Department’s
Executive Office. Ms. Johnson has over 10 years of experience in Maryland State
Government. Her most recent stint with State government before transferring to the
Department was with the Maryland Aviation Administration (MAA), a Maryland Department
of Transportation modal administration. While with the MAA, she directed the preparation
and update of the Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI)
Terminal Development Plan to identify current and future space deficiencies and
to prepare a plan that meets passenger, visitor, and baggage processing requirements
and accommodates future air passenger volumes; oversaw the planning for the New
Airport Administration Office Building inclusive of a financial and benefit-cost
analysis, site selection, and traffic impact studies; managed the development of
the BWI Airport Strategic Plan; developed an airport circulation plan that used
a flexible network of diverse but complementary forms of transportation; and administered
statewide airport economic impact studies to identify and quantify primary and secondary
economic benefits of BWI, Martin State Airport, and Maryland system airports. Ms.
Johnson has also held positions in the Maryland Department of Human Resources, the
Department of Transportation, the State Highway Administration, and the Maryland
Department of Budget and Management. She also served in the Governor’s Office during
the term of former Governor Parris Glendening as a special assistant to the Chief
of Staff and the Deputy Chief of Staff. Ms. Johnson earned both a bachelor’s degree
in political science and a master’s degree in city and regional planning from Morgan
State University.