Helene Grady chosen to be Maryland's next secretary of budget and management

Helene Grady, who has spent 12 years in key finance and administration roles at Johns Hopkins, most recently serving as the university's first chief financial officer, has been nominated by Maryland Gov.-elect Wes Moore as the state's next secretary of budget and management. She will assume her new role in January.

Image caption: Helene Grady

As secretary of budget and management, Grady will serve as Moore's principal adviser on fiscal matters and will sit on the Governor's Executive Council. Her nomination was announced today by Moore, a member of the JHU Class of 2001 and a former Rhodes Scholar who was elected to Maryland's highest office last week.

"From helping implement a historic expansion of financial aid to steering us through the unprecedented fiscal challenges of the pandemic, Helene's leadership at Johns Hopkins over the last dozen years has been indispensable," JHU President Ron Daniels said. "She has been a treasured colleague, and I'm so glad that the people of Maryland will now all get to benefit from her talent, dedication, and expertise."

Grady joined Johns Hopkins in 2010 as associate dean for finance and administration in the School of Nursing. Two years later she was promoted to the new role of vice president for planning and budget, a position she held for eight years, leading the university's budget office, guiding financial planning, and providing analysis on the allocation of the university's capital and operating funds.

Grady was elevated in 2020 to the newly created role of vice president, chief financial officer, and treasurer, taking on additional responsibility for managing the university's financial functions and overseeing the investment program for the endowment and other assets.

During her Hopkins tenure, Grady developed a 10-year financial projection model, a critical tool for guiding the university's strategic decision-making. She has worked to improve the university's investment strategy and debt policy to provide greater support for Hopkins' mission, and she has provided critical support to major university initiatives—including the development of the SNF Agora building and institute and JHU's new building at 555 Pennsylvania Ave. in Washington, D.C., and the implementation of the historic $1.8 billion financial aid gift for undergraduate students.

"I want to thank Helene for her many years of excellent service as she embarks on this next, exciting chapter of her career," said Laurent Heller, senior vice president for finance and administration. "In getting to know her over my first year at Johns Hopkins, I have been impressed not only with her technical acumen and strong financial stewardship, but also with her leadership and unwavering commitment to supporting our faculty, students, and staff, as well as the broader community we serve in so many ways in Baltimore."

Before joining Hopkins, Grady served as deputy director of finance for the City of Baltimore and, prior to that, as deputy budget director for the City of Philadelphia. She has been a commissioner of the Maryland Health Care Commission and a board member of the College Savings Plans of Maryland.

University Controller Scott Jonas, who has held roles of increasing responsibility within the controller's office since arriving at Johns Hopkins in 2005, will take on the chief financial officer role on an interim basis. A search is already underway for a permanent replacement, Heller said.