Kenney appoints spokeswoman, digital director
Mayor-elect Jim Kenney, who as a Philadelphia city councilman was known for his off-the-cuff and at times controversial comments, on Tuesday announced two appointments to the team charged with managing his communications.
Mayor-elect Jim Kenney, who as a Philadelphia city councilman was known for his off-the-cuff and at times controversial comments, on Tuesday announced two appointments to the team charged with managing his communications.
Lauren Hitt, his current spokeswoman, will serve as communications director. In a news release she sent out, Hitt said that before joining Kenney's campaign, she worked as press secretary for the Democratic nominee in the 2014 Ohio gubernatorial race, Ed FitzGerald, and as a deputy communications director on New York Mayor Bill de Blasio's election campaign.
Stephanie Waters will serve as digital director, a new position tasked with ensuring the city better utilizes technology in how it interacts with residents. That includes managing the city's social media accounts while also working closely with the Office of Innovation and Technology, Hitt said.
Waters most recently held the same title on Kenney's campaign staff. She previously served as digital director for the gubernatorial campaigns of Martha Coakley in Massachusetts and Barbara Buono in New Jersey.
Kenney on Tuesday also named Jeff Guaracino as president and CEO of Welcome America Inc., the nonprofit that has been the official producer of the city's Fourth of July celebration. Kenney said the nonprofit would expand its focus to produce, support, and attract citywide events year-round.
Guaracino is the executive director of the Atlantic City Alliance, a nonprofit that markets Atlantic City. He previously worked for 10 years at the Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corp., now known as Visit Philadelphia.
Hitt said she expects about a dozen more appointments will be announced before Kenney's inauguration Monday. She said about 10 others will be announced after the inauguration, including three positions Kenney announced last week that he is conducting a national search for: prisons commissioner, fire commissioner, and director of human services.
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