Council on Foreign Relations Gains Member of Governor Laura Kelly’s Cabinet

~~Department of Administration Secretary and Chief Information Technology Officer Dr. DeAngela Burns-Wallace to lend expertise to Nationally Recognized Council~~ 

TOPEKA – Today, Governor Laura Kelly announced that in addition to her current roles, Department of Administration Secretary and Chief Information Technology Officer Dr. DeAngela Burns-Wallace has been accepted as a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. With this role, she will emphasize the state’s role in cybersecurity and digital governance, as well as diversifying the nation’s diplomatic corps. 

“Secretary Burns-Wallace will be a valuable addition to the Council on Foreign Relations,” Governor Laura Kelly said. “Through her leadership with the Department of Administration and Office of Information Technology Services, she has proven she is up to the task to be a resource to this group of thought and policy leaders.”  

As Secretary of Administration and Chief Information Technology Officer, Dr. Burns-Wallace has overhauled IT operations and financial management in the state. She began her career in public service as a Foreign Service Officer with the US Department of State. In that role, she served as a press attaché in Pretoria, South Africa and was also stationed in Guangzhou, China.  

“The Council on Foreign Relations has been a resource since the beginning of my public service career, and I’m looking forward to engaging the scholarship and policy discussions as a full member,” Dr. Burns-Wallace said

Founded in 1921, the Council on Foreign Relations is an independent, nonpartisan membership organization, think tank, and publisher dedicated to being a resource for its members, government officials, business executives, journalists, educators and students, civic and religious leaders, and other interested citizens to help them better understand the world and the foreign policy choices facing the United States and other countries.  

Secretary Burns-Wallace will continue in her role as Secretary of the Department of Administration and as Chief Information Technology Officer with the Kelly Administration. 

###