NASCA Awards Ellington E. Churchill, Jr. the National Walton Leadership Award

    LEXINGTON, KY, September 21, 2022 /24-7PressRelease/ -- The National Association of State Chief Administrators (NASCA) announced that Maryland Department of General Services' Secretary Ellington E. Churchill, Jr. as been awarded the association's 2022 National Walton Leadership Award. The highly competitive national award recognizes a state Chief Administrator for their passion, outstanding service, leadership and commitment to state government.

"Secretary Churchill exemplifies leadership in state government operations and NASCA is pleased to recognize him with the association's most prestigious annual award," said Pam Goins, executive director of NASCA. "Ellington's long-standing service to the profession, along with his passion for the work, make him truly deserving of the National Walton Leadership award."

Churchill was sworn in as the 11th Secretary of the Maryland Department of General Services on July 26, 2016 and is the fifth longest serving secretary of the 51-year-old department. Over his six years leading General Services, Secretary Churchill has concentrated on implementing transformational change in government operations to align with the Governor's goal of changing Maryland for the better while at the same time prioritizing fiscal responsibility, economic development, and government reform. The Secretary has successfully worked with his executive leadership team to implement major transformational change across all six of the department's primary business units: Business Enterprise Administration; Maryland Capitol Police; Office of Facilities Management; Office of Real Estate; Office of State Procurement; and Office of Design, Construction, and Energy.

A few of his major accomplishments that demonstrate his outstanding leadership include:

• Reorganization and Consolidation of State Procurement
• Transforming the Office of Real Estate
• Modernizing Working Conditions for State Employees
• Modernizing State Facilities Management
• Creating the Business Enterprise Administration
• Restructuring the State's Security Force
• Redesign of Historic Lawyers Mall

Secretary Churchill has been an expert in the field of design, construction and real estate in the private sector for most of his professional career. He brings extensive experience in large-scale business development, property management and contract negotiation to state government operations. The secretary entered state service in September 2015 when he served as the Deputy Secretary for the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development. There he led Project CORE to remove blighted buildings in Baltimore City to provide workable parcels for redevelopment. The secretary's six years of public service have highlighted a consistently high caliber of leadership.

Secretary Churchill serves on 28 boards, commissions and councils as appointed by the Governor and the State Legislature. With a focus on state spending in the arena of commodity, services, IT and capital construction contracts, the secretary presents the department's vast agenda to the Maryland Board of Public Works for final approval. In addition, the secretary sits on the Interagency Commission on School Construction which approves the state's share of all public-school spending for Local Education Agency (LEA) capital projects.

Secretary Churchill joined the NASCA Executive Board in the first alternate class in 2017 and became an At-Large director in 2018. The secretary is currently the fifth longest active CAO in the country and the most senior member of NASCA. He continues to advocate for beneficial changes to NASCA's strategic long-range plans. The Secretary has previously co-chaired the awards committee for three consecutive years, improving and expanding the quantity and types of awards to reflect the impact of NASCA more accurately. Focused on highlighting the value of NASCA, Secretary Churchill has contributed to NASCA podcasts and other content by participating in professional development and marketing initiatives.

The National Walton Leadership Award was established to recognize state Chief Administrators for their passion, outstanding service, leadership and commitment to state government. The award was created to honor Ray Walton for his service and dedication to state government and to NASCA. Ray Walton served as the Executive Director for NASCA from February 2011 through February 2015 and the former Director and Chief Operating Officer for the Iowa Department of Administrative Services.

About NASCA
Founded in 1976, the National Association of State Chief Administrators (NASCA), is a nonprofit, 501(c)3 association representing chief administrative officers (CAOs)—public officials in charge of departments that provide support services such as human resources, information technology, procurement, risk management and general administrative services to other state agencies. NASCA provides a forum for CAOs to exchange information and learn new ideas from each other and private sector partners. NASCA engages states in transforming government operations through the power of shared knowledge, operational excellence and thought leadership.

For more information NASCA's Awards Program, please visit us at nasca.org.

# # #