Obama appoints first female director of Secret Service. Why Julia Pierson?

Julia Pierson is tasked with helping to restore credibility to the Secret Service after the agency's prostitution scandal. Reaction to her appointment has been favorable.

By Allison Terry,?Correspondent / March 27, 2013

US Secret Service agent Julia Pierson has been appointed the agency?s first female director.

US Secret Service/AP/File

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President Obama announced his appointment of the first female director of the US Secret Service on Tuesday, a milestone for the agency tasked with protecting political leaders and investigating currency fraud.

Skip to next paragraph Allison Terry

Allison Terry works on national news desk for the Christian Science Monitor. She previously worked on the cover page desk and contributes to the culture section of the Monitor.

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Law enforcement experts and political officials say that Ms. Pierson?s appointment comes at a crucial time in the agency?s history as it continues to recover from a scandal in April 2012, when agents in Colombia were disciplined for soliciting prostitutes. Pierson?s main tasks include reforming a male-dominated culture within the agency and reestablishing its credibility.

?During the Colombia prostitution scandal, the Secret Service lost the trust of many Americans, and failed to live up to the high expectations placed on it," Sen. Chuck Grassley (R) of Iowa told Reuters on Tuesday. ?Ms. Pierson has a lot of work ahead of her to create a culture that respects the important job the agency is tasked with. I hope she succeeds in restoring lost credibility in the Secret Service.?

Barbara Riggs, a mentor to Pierson and the agency?s first female deputy director, said that the scandal was not representative of the level of professionalism at the Secret Service and that Pierson will play a role in restoring its public image.

?She has a challenge in front of her because unfortunately in the public eye that?s what?s branding the Secret Service,? Riggs told The New York Times. ?She has a challenge to move the agency beyond that.?

Pierson joined the Secret Service in 1983, working in the Miami and Orlando, Fla., field offices. She served as special agent in charge of the office of protective services from 2000 to 2001. She was on presidential protective detail on 9/11 in charge of making sure former President Clinton and President George W. Bush were accounted for, not knowing if there would be more attacks. From 2006 to 2008, she was the assistant director of Human Resources and Training, during which she oversaw the agency?s technology upgrade.

She became the chief of staff in 2008, the same year she received the Presidential Meritorious Award for superior performance in management throughout her career.

In an interview with Smithsonian Magazine in 2007, Pierson said she knew she wanted a career in law enforcement, starting with the Orlando Police Department while still in college. The Secret Service gave her the chance be an investigator and also travel, but it also has its challenges.

?We're a small agency with a large mission. Our size gives us the ability to have more personal knowledge of each other as employees,? she said in the interview. ?Some people call it a cult, other people call it a family, but I do think it's unique.?

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/vAv_p6lxCes/Obama-appoints-first-female-director-of-Secret-Service.-Why-Julia-Pierson

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