Olszewski Announces Key Administration Appointments

This week, Baltimore County Executive Johnny Olszewski named several new directors in his administration.

Olszewski nominated Pete Gutwald to serve as Director of the Department of Permits, Approvals, and Inspections, Steve Lafferty to serve as Director of the Department of Planning, and Jennifer M. Lynch, PhD. as Baltimore County’s Director of Educational Partnership. All three have a wealth of public service experience in Baltimore County.

According to a County press release:

“As we begin our third year in office, I’m thrilled that these talented and dedicated public servants will put their experience and passion to work on behalf of all our residents and communities,” Olszewski said.

Director Permits, Approvals and Inspections
Since May 2019, Pete Gutwald has served as the Director of the Department of Planning, where he has led the County’s public engagement efforts for the Comprehensive Zoning Map Process (CZMP) and other critical community projects amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Director of Planning
Since August 2019, Steve Lafferty has served as Baltimore County’s first Chief Sustainability Officer where he has led the county’s efforts to mitigate the impact of climate change and to promote sustainability initiatives. Under his tenure Baltimore County has made significant progress, including starting development of a countywide Climate Action Plan, launching a landfill gas-to-energy system to capture methane and generate renewable energy, restarting glass recycling, and convening a Youth Climate Working Group to better engage young people in the County’s sustainability efforts.

Director of Educational Partnership
In this role, Dr. Lynch will advise the County Executive on issues related to the Baltimore County Public Schools (BCPS), serve as a liaison to the Board of Education and BCPS administration, engage key stakeholders and community members on behalf of the County Executive, coordinate the County’s school-focused COVID-19 related activities, and partner with the BCStat team to track key metrics in alignment with the County’s Strategic Plan.

She joins County government after serving in BCPS since 2006, where she worked as a school psychologist before becoming an Assistant Principal in 2014. In 2017, she was named principal of Hillcrest Elementary School, where she has led a school community of over 700 students and 90 employees.

For more information, view the full press release.