UPDATE President Obama has just appointed UCF alumna Julia Pierson as the first female director of the Secret Service. CBS Evening News covered the story. See below:
President Barack Obama has appointed Orlando native and University of Central Florida graduate Julia Pierson as the first female director of the Secret Service, according to a statement released by The White House.
Pierson, a veteran agent of the United States Secret Service and a senior official of the agency, will take over the top job from Mark Sullivan, who announced his retirement last month. She received a B.A. in Criminal Justice from UCF in 1981, a spokesperson for UCF told KnightNews.com
After Obama announced the appointment, The White House issued the following statement:
“I am pleased to announce that I will appoint Julia A. Pierson to be the next Director of the United States Secret Service.
Over her 30 years of experience with the Secret Service, Julia has consistently exemplified the spirit and dedication the men and women of the service demonstrate every day. A veteran of the Miami and Orlando field offices, where she began her career at the Secret Service, Julia has served as the Deputy Assistant Director of the Office of Protective Operations, Assistant Director of Human Resources and Training, and most recently as the Chief of Staff.
Julia is eminently qualified to lead the agency that not only safeguards Americans at major events and secures our financial system, but also protects our leaders and our first families, including my own. Julia has had an exemplary career, and I know these experiences will guide her as she takes on this new challenge to lead the impressive men and women of this important agency.”
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Pierson joined the Secret Service in 1983 as a Special Agent in Miami, Florida. Before that, she served in the Orlando Police Department from 1980 to 1983.
In the past year alone, the Secret Service has gone under great scrutiny following information that surfaced involving a prostitution scandal during preparations for Obama’s trip to Cartagena, Colombia in April.
In total, 13 agents and officers were found to be involved in the scandal that involved the employees bringing female prostitutes back to their hotel in the Caribbean. It was only uncovered after one agent refused to pay a prostitute and the pair argued about payment in a hotel hallway, according to News 13.
Sullivan retired last month after apologizing for the scandal.
Obama made the announcement of Pierson’s appointment on Tuesday.
