Cynthia Gilliam Pierre Named Chief Operating Officer of EEOC

WASHINGTON – Charlotte A. Burrows, Chair of the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), has named Cynthia Gilliam Pierre to be the agency's chief operating officer, the agency announced today. The chief operating officer manages all aspects of the Commission's day-to-day operations.

“Cynthia has a proven track record of success and a wealth of institutional knowledge about the EEOC,” said Chair Burrows. “Her background and leadership will be invaluable as we position the agency to be as effective as possible both now and far into the future.”

Pierre returns to the agency where she first started her service in 1982 as a program analyst in EEOC’s Houston District Office. She spent 26 years at the EEOC in various positions, including director of the EEOC's Birmingham District Office and director of Field Management Programs. This will be Pierre’s second stint as chief operating officer at the EEOC, after serving in that role from 2015 to 2018 for former Chair Jenny R. Yang and Acting Chair Victoria A. Lipnic. She has also worked at the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Civil Rights, where she was regional director in Atlanta, and, prior to that, enforcement director. She currently teaches graduate classes in intercultural communications and leadership at the University of Maryland’s Transformational Leadership master’s program and leading diverse and inclusive Organizations at the George Washington University.

“I want to thank Chair Burrows for the incredible privilege to return to civil rights work at the EEOC,” said Pierre. “The EEOC touches the lives of so many workers and employers by providing protection and legal guidance in employment matters. I look forward to assisting my colleagues in fulfilling the EEOC’s mission of stopping and remedying workplace discrimination.”

A native of Lawrenceville, Va., Pierre holds a B.A. degree from the University of Pennsylvania; an M.A. from Antioch University; and a Ph.D. in public administration from the George Washington University. She also has completed the Senior Managers in Government program at Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government.

The EEOC advances opportunity in the workplace by enforcing federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination. More information is available at www.eeoc.gov. Stay connected with the latest EEOC news by subscribing to our email updates.