Patrick Corvington, who for the past 15 months has headed the Corporation for National and Community Service, told the staff Friday that he is leaving at the end of May. CNCS spokeswoman Ranit Schmelzer confirmed late today that Corvington is leaving.
Corvington, who formerly worked as a senior associate at the Annie E. Casey Foundation in Baltimore, did not say where he would work next, only that it will be in the nonprofit sector.
Corvington was selected by President Barack Obama to head the agency that oversees AmeriCorps and other service agencies after a Nike vice president, Maria Eitel, withdrew her nomination for personal reasons. His selection was announced in October 2009 and he was sworn in during February 2010.
Although the corporation was largely protected in the recent drastic budget-cutting on Capitol Hill – retaining most of its 2010 appropriation in the face of threats to kill off the agency – the effort was led by AnnMaura Connally, a City Year executive. Corvington participated in many events with First Lady Michele Obama, who has continued her interest in CNCS, but never became a dominant figure in the service field.
There was no immediate indication of when a replacement might be named.
