RALEIGH – Department of Public Safety Secretary Erik A. Hooks today announced the addition of two more members to his leadership team. Casandra Skinner Hoekstra will serve as chief deputy secretary of Administration and Jane Ammons Gilchrist as general counsel.
“I’ve had the pleasure of working with both these fine women in a variety of capacities for many years and have always found them to be extremely professional, knowledgeable and dedicated public servants,” Secretary Hooks stated. “They both bring a lot of experience and we are fortunate to have them on the team.”
Hoekstra started at DPS today. As chief deputy secretary, Hoekstra will oversee the following sections: Budget and Analysis, Controller’s Office, Governor’s Crime Commission, Purchasing and Logistics, Information Technology, Victim Services and Legislative Affairs.
Hoekstra is a trusted advisor with more than 20 years of legal, policy development and government relations experience. Prior to this appointment, she served as the legislative counsel for the North Carolina Association of County Commissioners. Hoekstra has worked with the former Department of Crime Control and Public Safety as chief legal counsel and the North Carolina Administrative Office of the Courts in the capacity of legislative liaison and associate legal counsel. Previously, she served the Office of Governor Michael Easley as the legislative counsel.
Hoekstra holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of North Carolina at Asheville, and a Juris Doctor from North Carolina Central University School of Law.
“I’m looking forward to serving alongside Casandra once again, as I have always found her to be thoughtful in her decision making, collaborative and willing to hear multiple points of view,” said W. David Guice, chief deputy secretary of Adult Correction and Juvenile Justice.
Jane Ammons Gilchrist will start as general counsel for the department on March 1. Previously, Gilchrist was the general counsel to the North Carolina Department of Labor, where she provided legal advice to the Commissioner of Labor, all divisions and bureaus; managed program and personnel litigation; as well as developed and promulgated rules.
Gilchrist’s 25 years of public service began with the District Attorney’s Office in Cumberland County where she worked as an assistant district attorney. In 1994, she joined the North Carolina Department of Justice and for 17 years she provided legal representation and advice in the Labor section and the Law Enforcement Liaison section to include the State Bureau of Investigation, North Carolina Criminal Justice Education and Training Standards Commission and the ABC Commission.
She holds an associate’s degree from Peace College, as well as a bachelor’s degree in journalism and a Juris Doctor from the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill.
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