The newly appointed director of the Arkansas Department of Veterans Affairs is looking for a new deputy director after Charles Johnson, who held the position for about two years, resigned.
Gov. Asa Hutchinson appointed Lt. Col. Matt Snead as director Feb. 10. Snead, who was previously a public affairs officer with the Arkansas National Guard, officially took over Feb. 23.
Johnson left the agency last week to join the faculty at Catholic High School as the senior military instructor for the school's Marine Corps Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps, or JROTC.
"It's a normal transition of things," Johnson said. "If they need me for something, I'll make myself available as best I can."
Johnson said he initially sought the Catholic High position after he retired from the U.S. Marine Corps in 2011, but the job was not available. When it opened up again, he "decided to make the call."
As deputy director of the VA, Johnson served as project manager for the new Central Arkansas Veterans Home planned for North Little Rock. He also managed day-to-day operations for the agency, which oversees the state's veterans cemeteries and the veterans home in Fayetteville. It also helps connect the state's 250,000 veterans to available services.
Johnson acted as the director of the department for about a month after Cissy Rucker, Snead's predecessor, retired in January.
Snead said he asked the governor's office Friday to allow the agency to advertise the job. Hutchinson signed executive orders in January requiring state agencies to get his approval before filling vacant positions.
According to the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration, the pay grade for the position starts at a salary of $76,041 and is capped at $95,051.
"I don't have anybody in mind at all right now," Snead said. "We could request an emergency hire and just pick someone, but I want to cast a net and see who all is out there."
Snead said he doesn't have a timeline of when a deputy director will be named, but "the sooner, the better."
"I'm new, and we've got a lot going on within ADVA [Arkansas Department of Veterans Affairs]," he said.
Johnson was hired for the post in 2012 by Rucker, who fired then-deputy director Lawrence Pickard in Rucker's first week on the job.
Gov. Mike Beebe appointed Rucker during what she called a "dark time" for the department. It had been disclosed that the agency illegally had collected fees from residents at the Little Rock Veterans Home and that the home was operating in a dilapidated building.
After the Little Rock home was closed, Rucker and Johnson sought approval for a new one -- with the agency deciding on a site in North Little Rock -- and secured funding through the state and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.
Earlier this month, a Little Rock-based construction company was awarded an approximately $19 million contract to build the home. Construction is expected to start this summer.
"When I went to work with the state, the goal was to help clean things up," Johnson said.
In January, Johnson told the Arkansas Veterans Commission -- which serves an advisory role to the State Department -- that he was forming a long-term strategic plan for the department's future.
Johnson said Snead is continuing with that effort.
"I've said before, we were in a place where we wanted to start looking more forward than we'd been able to do, and he's doing exactly that," Johnson said. "He's going to do really well."
Snead said he held the first in a series of meetings Tuesday with volunteers from the veterans community to start developing a strategic plan. The plan will be announced in the next couple of months.
The agency is coming into contact with only a portion of the state's veteran population, Snead said. He plans to develop a new vision and mission statement for the department, as well as improve management and business practices, he said.
"We're leaning forward and looking to the future," Snead said. "I've been going through tons of information and listening to anyone who has an idea. There's a lot of momentum right now. I'm trying to keep that momentum going."
Metro on 03/19/2015