Energy finds permanent CIO

After more than a year of rotating temporary appointments to fill its chief information officer position, the Energy Department has named Karen Evans as its permanent CIO.

Evans officially took over Jan. 28, replacing DOE's acting CIO, Linda Cureton.

Before joining DOE, Evans was director of the Information Resources Management Division in the Justice Department's Office of Justice Programs (OJP).

During her tenure at Justice, Evans led the implementation of an online grants management system to process grants from discretionary, formula and large block programs. She also helped streamline the agency's ability to quickly process claims to provide benefits for families of public safety officers after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

Before joining OJP, Evans was the assistant director for information services at Justice headquarters, where she managed the department's Internet resources, including e-mail and security services.

Evans, who was unavailable to comment for this report, also has previous government experience at the National Park Service, the Office of Personnel Management and the Agriculture Department's Farmers Home Administration.

She holds a bachelor's degree in chemistry and a master's of business administration from West Virginia University.