Marc Cherna, MSW
Director of Allegheny County Department of Human Services

           Marc Cherna was appointed Director of the Allegheny County Department of Human Services twelve years ago. This integrated department, with a budget of over one billion dollars, includes five programmatic offices: Aging, Behavioral Health, Children, Youth and Families, Community Services, and Mental Retardation/Developmental Disabilities. Marc first came to Allegheny County as a result of a national search to take charge of the county's child protective service agency and immediately implemented system-wide changes that have resulted in better permanency outcomes for children. These reforms received national recognition and were showcased twice by ABC World News Tonight as well as CNN’s NewsNight.

           Under Marc’s direction, the DHS State Forensics Program was the recipient of a 2005, Innovations in American Government award given by the Ash Institute for Democratic Governance and Innovation at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government. His innovative practice and leadership abilities have also garnered him prestigious awards by numerous child welfare, humanitarian, and civic organizations such as; the Betsey R. Rosenbaum Award for Excellence in Child Welfare Administration from the National Assn. of Public Child Welfare Administrators; the Urban League’s Ronald H. Brown Civic Leadership Award; the Good Government Award from the League of Women Voters, the Social Work Citizen of the Year from the National Assn. of Social Workers, and the Coleman Award for Excellence in Community Service from the University of Pittsburgh’s Institute of Politics. He serves on many boards and committees including the University of Pittsburgh’s School of Social Work’s Board of Visitors, the University of Pittsburgh’s Institute of Politics Board of Fellows, and the Executive Committee of the National Assn. of Public Child Welfare Administrators. He has also served on Governor Rendell’s Transition Team for Child Welfare, the Philadelphia Child Welfare Review Panel and currently serves on the Mayor of Philadelphia’s Community Oversight Board. Marc is an Adjunct Professor at Carnegie Mellon University Heinz School for Public Policy and Management and was previously an Adjunct Professor at the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public and International Affairs.

           Marc began his career in human services as a youth worker over 35 years ago. He has extensive work experience in the field, including four years as the Director of Planning, Allocations and Agency Relations with the United Way of Union County, New Jersey and 13 years with the New Jersey Dept. of Human Services as an Assistant Director with the New Jersey Division of Youth and Family Services.

           Marc received his B.A. degree from the State University of New York at Binghamton and an M.S.W. from the Hunter College School of Social Work in New York. He has three children and five grandchildren.