MONTGOMERY -- Gov. Robert Bentley said he was looking for three things when it came time to pick a new Finance Director: Intelligence, character and tenaciousness. Alabama A&M University Alum, Dr.Marquita Furness Davis, 44, fit the bill, he said.
"She'll make tough decisions, and that is what you need," Bentley said.
Dr. Davis takes the reins as state finance director next month, making history along the way as the first woman to serve in the position. Dr. Davis has served as commissioner of the Department of Children's Affairs since 2008.
And despite her rise in state government, she is a self-professed independent voter and political outsider who said she initially found the political waters of Montgomery tough to navigate.
"I found my fit in Birmingham, but I'm very much an outsider in Montgomery," Davis said.
Dr. Davis grew up in Peoria, Ill. Her mother was a teacher. Her father, a former paratrooper and semiprofessional football player, worked for Caterpillar Inc. and died at the age of 37.
Dr. Davis, who is fourth-generation college educated on her mother's side, said she was raised to focus on academics. When Davis headed to college, she assumed like many 18-year-olds in the 1980s that a career in business and a fancy BMW would be in her future. But plans changed when the Generation Xer was drawn to a future in public service.
"I always knew I was interested in public service, helping children and families," Davis said.
She earned a bachelor's degree in family social services from Northern Illinois University. She wanted to attended a historically black college for graduate school and picked Alabama A&M to complete her Masters degree. She then earned a Ph.D. in early childhood education and child development from the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
Dr. Davis was the Head Start director at the Jefferson County Committee for Economic Opportunity in Birmingham when she was tapped by then-Gov. Bob Riley to be the director of the Office of School Readiness and Alabama's voluntary pre-kindergarten program. Riley, and later Bentley, appointed her commissioner of the Department of Children's Affairs, a cabinet level position.
'I believe in outcomes'
Efficient government has to be a priority, she said.
"I believe in data. I believe in outcomes," Dr. Davis said. "How do we make sure that the citizens of the state are getting what they need -- and need and want are two different things," Davis said.
A colleague praised Davis' managerial style, saying she is a collaborator who tries to keep people focused on the broad picture. "She's such a team player. She doesn't just make snap decisions. She gets everybody's opinion," said Susan McKim, deputy commissioner of Children's Affairs. McKim said Davis has been innovative at Children's Affairs. When the department's proposed budget was slashed, Davis spearheaded a federal grant writing effort to make up the difference.
Davis' degrees are not in finance. Her professional background is in academics and in the administration of children's programs. But Gov Robert Bentley said a major job of the finance director is to be a manager overseeing multiple state divisions. Currently, Dr. Davis manages more than 350 emplyees with a $20 million budget. Davis points out that recent finance directors have been lawyers.
Dr. Davis is the first female and the second African-American to hold the position of state finance director. This is Dr. Davis's second cabinet position appointed by the second Alabama Republican governor. Davis acknowledges she is an independent and doesn't vote any party line.
Dr. Davis is married to Michael A. Davis, the principal of W.J. Christian School in Birmingham. When she is not in her Montgomery office or driving back and forth to her home in Hoover, Davis said she simply likes spending time with her husband and friends.
Dr. Davis said she didn't intend to stay in the South when she came to Alabama for graduate school decades ago. But she is glad she did. "I'm a believer. I think you will be where God intends you to be," Davis said.
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Source: Edited from bhamnews.com via. al.com kchandler@bhamnews.com.
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