Pamela Hyde

Ms. Hyde is the former Administrator of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. She was nominated by President Barack Obama and confirmed by the U.S. Senate in November 2009 as Administrator of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), a public health agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The agency’s mission is to reduce the impact of substance abuse and mental illness on America’s communities. Ms. Hyde is an attorney and comes to SAMHSA with more than 35 years’ experience in management and consulting for public health care and human services agencies. She has served as a state mental health director, state human services director, city housing and human services director, as well as CEO of a private, nonprofit managed behavioral health care firm. In 2003 Ms. Hyde was appointed cabinet secretary of the New Mexico Human Services Department by Governor Bill Richardson, where she worked effectively to provide greater access to quality health services for everyone.

Ms. Hyde is a member of or has served as a consultant to many national organizations, including the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the ACMHA: The College for Behavioral Health Leadership, the President’s New Freedom Commission on Mental Health, and the U.S. Department of Justice. She has been recognized by many groups, including the American Medical Association, the National Governors Association, and the Seattle Management Association for her creativity and leadership in policy and program development and organizational management issues. Ms. Hyde has received special acknowledgment for her ability to build teams, develop coalitions and consensus, develop strategic plans, and form the basis for action and achieve identified goals in a constantly changing environment. She received her J.D. from the University of Michigan Law School (1976) and her B.A. from Southwest Missouri State University (1972).