ATLANTA – Department of Human Services (DHS) Commissioner Robyn A. Crittenden today announced changes to the department’s senior leadership team.

Gerlda Hines, the Department's previous Deputy Commissioner, will now serve as Chief of Staff and Chief Financial Officer (CFO). DHS General Counsel Tonya Cureton Curry has been promoted to Deputy Commissioner and will continue to serve the Department as General Counsel. Demetrius Taylor, who previously served as the Director of the Office of Budget Administration, will now serve as the Department's Deputy CFO.

Ms. Hines, who will serve as Chief of Staff and CFO, will oversee the management of Facilities and Support Services, Strategic Planning and Initiatives, Inspector General, Financial Services and Budget Administration. Ms. Hines has more than 25 years of financial management experience and more than 10 years in State government. She graduated from Loyola University in New Orleans with a Bachelors of Business Administration in Accounting and is also a Certified Public Accountant. She is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, Georgia Society of CPAs, Government Finance Officers Association, and Georgia Fiscal Management Council.

Ms. Curry, who will serve as Deputy Commissioner, will oversee the Office of General Counsel while also assisting with the management of Contracts and Procurement, Enterprise Development, and Human Resources. Ms. Curry has practiced law for more than 26 years while also serving in various leadership capacities in state government. She earned her Bachelor’s degree in English from Georgetown University and her Juris Doctor degree from the Howard University School of Law. 

Mr. Taylor, who will serve as Deputy CFO, will oversee the management of the department’s budget and financial services. He began his career at DHS as the Budget Director within the Division of Family and Children Services, and has more than 16 years of financial and budget management experience with DHS. He earned his Bachelors of Business Administration in Finance from Georgia Southern University.