Leadership; Supervisor
*Choose a leader from a public Agency.
David Hansell Commissioner
Describe the agency that the Public manger is in charge of.
NYC Administration for Children Service protects and promotes the safety and well-being of New York City's
children, young people, families, and communities by providing excellent child welfare, juvenile justice, and
early care and education services.
Provide background and history of the leader you are studying.
David Hansell was appointed Commissioner of NYC Children Service back in 2017 by Mayor de Blasio.
Commissioner Hansell has committed his career to serving vulnerable communities and expanding opportunity
for low-income individuals and families. An accomplished manager, he has decades of experience in social
services work across the public, private, and non-profit sectors.
From years 2009 to 2011, he served as Acting Assistant Secretary and Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary
for the Administration for Children and Families in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. At
HHS, Hansell helped oversee a division with an approximately $50 billion annual budget, with responsibilities
including child welfare, economic support, early childhood education, and special population programs.
At New York State, Hansell was Commissioner of the Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance, where
among other things he helped achieve a historic level of household participation in the Supplemental Nutrition
Assistance Program (SNAP) through the Working Families Food Stamp Initiative, and helped reform New York
State’s child support programs to heighten compliance and increase payments to custodial parents and
children. He has also served as Chief of Staff in the NYC Human Resources Administration, and in various
leadership roles at the NYC Department of Health & Mental Hygiene, where he managed a portfolio of HIV
treatment and prevention programs.
Hansell has served as a consultant to several non-profit, government, and philanthropic organizations on a
diverse array of health and social services policy and advocacy issues. Just prior to coming to ACS, he was
Head of KPMG’s Health & Human Services Center of Excellence. Commissioner Hansell is a graduate of Yale