Manju Ganeriwala, a cabinet official in the erstwhile Virginia government of Democratic Governor Timothy M Kaine, has been reappointed by the new Republican Governor Bob McDonnell to the same position of State Treasurer, making her the first and senior-most Indian American official in the new administration.
The Akola-born, Mumbai-raised Ganeriwala, who immigrated to the United States with her husband in 1976, had been appointed State Treasurer in January 2009 by Governor Kaine after having served for three years as Deputy Secretary of Finance in the state administration -- a cabinet rank position.
Her reappointment by McDonnell, is seen as a clear manifestation of the trust and confidence McDonnell places in her years of professional expertise and experience.
As State Treasurer in the McDonnell administration, Ganeriwala will oversee the investment of over $ 9 billion in public funds; management of over $15 billion in debt; insurance of bonds; provision of banking services; and administration of the state's insurance and unclaimed property programs.
She also serves as the chairwoman of the Treasury Board, and is a member of 10 other boards, including the Virginia College Savings Plan, Virginia Housing Development Authority, Virginia Poet Authority, and Virginia Resources Authority.
In an interview with rediff.com, Ganeriwala said, "It is the Governor's prerogative to choose their team and I am honored and privileged that he did choose to reappoint me and I look forward to serving in his administration."
At the time she was appointed State Treasurer by Kaine in January 2009, after serving as his Deputy Secretary of Finance for three years, she had told rediff.com that working with Kaine was "an amazing experience -- he's very driven and had an ambitious agenda and the finance people are always the right hand of the Governor because basically he articulates policies through the budget and funding is always required whenever you are trying to implement new initiatives."
"So, as a finance person, you are always in on every meeting or discussion that the Governor is having, whether it's economic development trying to bring a prospect to Virginiaor implementing a social program or programs for needy Virginians like a health care programor environmental programs. So, it's been so very rewarding to work with him."
And at the time, her then cabinet colleague, Aneesh Chopra, who was Secretary, Technology in the Kaine Administration, and is now Chief Technology Officer in the Obama administration had told rediff.com, "This is very exciting news -- the Governor has just promoted Manju to serve as the Commonwealth's Treasurer. This is such an incredible honour and would signal Manju as one of the most successful Indian Americans in public service."
He said, "She really does represent excellence in public service," and noted that "she entered as a protégé of our current Secretary of Finance early in her career and has earned the unique distinction of progressing up the administrative ladder and serving as a political appointee to one of the most important positions in the Commonwealth."
"I just love the fact that every check from the Commonwealth will now be signed by a 'Ganeriwala' -- talk about progress!" Chopra said.
Before her stint as the Deputy Secretary of Finance in the Kaine administration, Ganeriwala served as Deputy Director for Finance and Administration in the Department of Medical Assistance Services from June 2000 to January 2006, and has been working in state government since July 1985.
During her stint with the Virginia Department of Medical Assistance Services, she directed the financial and administrative functions of Virginia's Medicaid program which serves approximately 650,000 persons and has an annual budget of over $5 billion.
One of her major accomplishments included overseeing the implementation of a new Medicaid Management Information System.
She is an alumnus of the University of Bombay, from where she received her bachelor of commerce degree, and the University of Texas at Austin, from where she received her masters in business administration.
Ganeriwala is the 2009 recipient of the YWCA's Outstanding Women Award and currently serves as the Southern Regional vice president of the National Association of State Treasurers.
A resident of Virginia since 1993, she resides in Henrico County with her husband Suri, born in Fatehpur, Rajasthan, but also raised in Mumbai, who holds a doctorate in engineering from the University of Texas at Austin, is owner and president of Spectra Quest, Inc.
They have two sons -- Rakesh, an Iraq War veteran who served as First Lieutenant with the US Army who last year returned after a 15-month deployment in Iraq and is now pursuing a master's degree at the University of Colorado in Boulder in interdisciplinary studies in telecommunications, and Rishi, an engineering student who is a senior at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.
