Announcements – April 29, 2009

Rep. Kingston gets new staffer:  Mike Donnal is the new staff assistant for Rep. Jack Kingston (R-Ga.). A 2008 graduate of the University of Virginia, Donnal previously interned for Rep. Rodney Alexander (R-La.) and then did campaign work for strategic media services after graduation.

He enjoys managing the front office for Kingston and meeting everyone who comes to his office on business. “Plus all the Coca-Cola and peanuts I can eat!” he said.

{mosads}Donnal’s idol is William Rogers Clark. “He was an adventurer, soldier and statesman who led the exploration of half of the U.S. and then became governor of the Missouri Territory,” Donnal said.

Immigration Law Foundation hires new director of Immigration Policy Center: The American Immigration Law Foundation (AILF) hired Mary Giovagnoli as the new director of the Immigration Policy Center. Most recently, Giovagnoli served as senior director of policy for the National Immigration Forum. She also served as a trial attorney and associate general counsel with the Immigration and Naturalization Service and as an associate chief counsel for United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS). She will replace Angela Kelley, who accepted the position of vice president for immigration policy at the Center for American Progress.

U.N. sister organization appoints new deputy director: The Better World Campaign (BWC) has appointed Mike Beard to the position of deputy director. BWC is the United Nations sister organization that is focused on the relationship between Americans and the U.N. Prior to this position, Beard worked for five years with Reps. Jackie Speier (D-Calif.) and the late Tom Lantos (D-Calif.).