Carnegie Mellon administrator Rick Siger nominated by Gov.-elect Shapiro for cabinet post

A Carnegie Mellon University administrator and former Obama administration official is Gov.-elect Josh Shapiro’s pick to serve as secretary of the state Department of Community and Economic Development.

Rick Siger, chief of staff and senior adviser to the president at Carnegie Mellon, will begin the job next Tuesday after Shapiro is sworn in as governor, according to university officials. His nomination, announced Thursday, is among Shapiro’s four latest cabinet picks.

As secretary, Siger will lead a department with a staff of about 300 people and a budget of more than $300 million. He also will be senior adviser to Shapiro on matters of economic and business development, job creation and community engagement.

“Gov.-elect Shapiro has said his top priority is to grow our economy and build a better future for all Pennsylvanians,” Siger said in a statement released by the university. “As secretary … I will work tirelessly to help our small businesses grow, foster innovation and increase opportunities in forgotten communities across our commonwealth.”

He added that he is “honored to carry out Gov.-elect Shapiro’s vision to help ensure every Pennsylvanian has access to good-paying jobs and an opportunity to thrive as we become a national leader in growth and innovation.”

Siger joined Carnegie Mellon seven years ago and has been chief of staff in President Farnam Jahanian’s office since 2020. As a member of the executive management team, he is involved in strategic planning, decision-making and execution of decisions for various university endeavors, according to CMU.

Siger previously served in President Obama’s administration for seven years, with positions including chief of staff at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy and deputy chief of staff at the Department of Commerce.

Siger holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from Columbia University in New York, according to Carnegie Mellon.

Shapiro’s predecessor, outgoing Gov. Tom Wolf, also picked someone from Western Pennsylvania to lead the DCED. Dennis Davin had served as director of Allegheny County Economic Development before being named DCED secretary in 2015. He served as secretary for about seven years before stepping down last February.

Shapiro also nominated former Democratic state Rep. Mike Carroll as secretary of Transportation; Sarah Hammer, managing director of the Stevens Center for Innovation in Finance at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School, as Banking and Securities secretary; and former Republican state Sen. Pat Browne as Revenue secretary.