Rachael Stephens Parker was appointed to serve as the Executive Director of the Maryland Governor’s Workforce Development Board (GWDB) under the Moore-Miller administration in August 2023. The GWDB serves as the Governor's chief strategy and policy-making body on workforce development. It is responsible for creating, leading and accelerating the implementation of workforce development strategies, policies, and partnerships that support Governor Moore’s vision for a thriving economy that lifts up every Maryland family and leaves no one behind.
Before joining the Moore-Miller administration, Rachael served as the director of the workforce development and economic policy program at the bipartisan National Governors Association. She oversaw research, policy guidance and technical assistance provision to governors and state leaders on removing barriers to economic participation; fostering economic dynamism; supporting quality job growth; and developing accessible learning opportunities that support employers’ talent needs and lead to family-sustaining careers. Her career is founded on the belief that talent is widely distributed but opportunity is not, and that we all have a role to play in redistributing opportunity.
Rachael was born and raised in Maryland. She holds a master’s in public policy from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University and a bachelor of arts in economics from Bryn Mawr College, where she graduated magna cum laude as the sole recipient of the Jeanne Quistgaard Memorial Prize for Excellence in Economics.