Two African-Americans tabbed in newly elected governor’s cabinet
February 4, 2011 by Las Vegas Black Image Magazine
Filed under Feature
Larry Mosley heads the state's Department of Employment Training and Rehabilitation.
Terry Johnson leads the Nevada Department of Business and Industry.
In the cabinet of newly inaugurated Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval, two African-American directors are helping chart a course to return the state to economic stability.
Terry Johnson leads the state Department of Business and Industry. Larry Mosley is head of the Department of Employment Training and Rehabilitation, having held the same post in the administration of former Gov. Jim Gibbons.
“Gov. Gibbons is my friend and always will be,” said Mosley. “Under him I was able to bring several high-level minority men and women into the agency and other boards. This is a fact many people aren’t aware of.”
Mosley, who founded 100 Black Men in Nevada, believes that Sandoval, the first Hispanic elected to the state’s highest office, understands the issues facing all Nevadans. “Gov. Sandoval is very sensitive to the needs of minorities,” he said, “and especially aware of the unemployment rate among African-American teens — which is incredibly high and unacceptable.” He points to the new governor’s emphasis on job training programs, “especially targeted through the Workforce Investment, so that we can get those teens and the other minority populations prepared for the new economy.
“Gov. Sandoval is extremely engaging. He is the type of person who gets involved and rolls up his sleeves and gets to work on behalf of Nevada. When he asked for my thoughts on the state of the country, I replied that we must have strategic alignments of resources if we are to turn the economy around.”
Even as he works to reverse the unemployment crisis, Mosley is meeting challenges along the way: Nevada was recognized recently for handling unemployment claims more effectively than other medium-sized states.
“Nevada has a current unemployment rate that is the highest in the nation at 14.3 percent. African-Americans in Nevada are the highest unemployed at 21 percent,” noted Mosley. “We are doing some major transformations, and the job connects will soon be one-stop-shops for securing employment opportunities.”
