Secretary Quigley resigns as head of services for the state’s most vulnerable
“This was always a mission for me and never a job.” — Kevin Quigley, Department of Social and Health Services secretary
The secretary of Washington State’s Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS) announced his resignation on Jan. 5.
Kevin Quigley’s announcement came on the heels of his third anniversary with the agency. Quigley was appointed to the position by Gov. Jay Inslee in January 2013.
“This was always a mission for me and never a job,” Quigley said in a statement released following his resignation. “I’m extremely grateful for the opportunity I’ve had to use the generosity of the people of the state of Washington to transform so many lives and relieve so much suffering among our most vulnerable citizens. I believe DSHS is in great shape to move forward without me.”
DSHS serves vulnerable Washington state residents of all ages. The department provides mental health services, housing assistance programs, disability support
and more.
In a letter to staff members of DSHS, Quigley listed agency-wide highlights of his tenure, including the American Association of Retired People ranking Washington as second-best support program for seniors and the ongoing creation of child outpatient services.
Inslee has proposed adding $40 million to DSHS’s supplemental 2016 budget, which makes adjustments to the biennial 2015-17 budget that was passed last year. Millions of dollars will pay for mental health services, including funding to expand mobile crisis teams, research from University of Washington’s Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences and hiring staff at Western State Hospital — the largest psychiatric hospital in Washington. Funding for the program had recently been threatened due to safety concerns at the hospital.
“If we succeed in getting this budget, or a reasonable facsimile of this budget, adopted by the State Legislature, we will enjoy forward movement in every one of our DSHS administrations,” Quigley wrote in the resignation announcement to staff.
Prior to this role, Quigley served as the president of shipbuilder US FAB, LLC and Everett Shipyards. His leadership experience does not include social work but spans everything from business industry to a tenure as a state senator from 1993 to 1997.
There is a high turnover rate for the position: Out of the last 24 DSHS secretaries in the department’s 46-year history, just two held the position for as long as five years. The remainder had shorter terms. Only four have been women.
Quigley will stay in office until Inslee appoints a successor. Once that occurs, he plans to quite literally climb other peaks. A mountaineer, he hopes to scale parts of Mount Denali and California’s Half Dome.