John Berry

Morrell John Berry (born February 10, 1959) is an American former government official. Berry was director of the United States Office of Personnel Management from 2009 to 2013 and United States Ambassador to Australia from 2013 to 2016.

Berry was born in Maryland, to parents who worked for the federal government. He completed degrees at the University of Maryland, and Syracuse University and worked in local government and as a legislative aide in state government from 1982 to 1985. From 1985 to 1994, he worked as legislative director for U.S. Representative Steny Hoyer. He held posts in the U.S. Treasury Department, the Smithsonian Institution, and the U.S. Department of the Interior until 2000, and worked as director of the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and the National Zoological Park until 2009, when he was nominated by President Barack Obama as director of the United States Office of Personnel Management. Berry took office after being confirmed by the United States Senate in April 2009. In June 2013, President Obama nominated Berry to replace Jeff Bleich as U.S. Ambassador to Australia. He was confirmed by unanimous consent of the U.S. Senate in August 2013.

Early life and education Morrell John Berry was born in 1959 in Maryland, United States. His father served in the U.S. Marine Corps, his mother worked for the U.S. Census Bureau, and he has a brother and a sister. Berry graduated from high school in 1977 and finished a Bachelor of Arts in government and politics from the University of Maryland in 1980. Berry assisted Hoyer on employment issues of the federal government, and played a leading role in negotiations that led to the Federal Employees Pay Comparability Act of 1990, which established the locality pay system. From 1994 to 1995, Berry served as Deputy Assistant Secretary and acting Assistant Secretary for Law Enforcement in the U.S. Treasury Department. From 1995 to 1997, Berry worked as director of government relations and as senior policy advisor at the Smithsonian Institution.

Department of the Interior Berry was appointed Assistant Secretary for Policy, Management and Budget at the U.S. Department of the Interior during the Clinton administration, serving from 1997 to 2001. He helped establish an office supply store for Interior employees, which he staffed with disabled workers. Berry created a strategic planning and modernization process for the zoo. President Barack Obama announced his intention to nominate Berry as director of the Office of Personnel Management on March 3, 2009, The nomination hearing before the Senate Homeland Security Committee on March 26, 2009, led to expectation of easy confirmation for Berry, despite opposition from conservative activists based on Berry's homosexuality. He pledged to preserve veterans preference and supplement it with training programs to prepare veterans for federal jobs, and promised reviews of proposals to improve the security clearance and hiring processes. The ceremonial swearing in on April 23 was attended by First Lady Michelle Obama. At the time, Berry was, according to the Human Rights Campaign, the highest-ranking openly gay official to serve in the executive branch in any U.S. administration. On August 1, 2013, the United States Senate confirmed Berry by unanimous consent. Australian media coverage of Berry's appointment was overwhelmingly positive with a video he posted to the US Embassy website being described as the "friendliest introduction video in diplomatic history" while Berry himself was described as "modest", with an "impressive record". Federal News Radio in the US reported that, "more than 200 people had posted responses" to the video, "most of which were warm and cordial".

AAA In 2016 he was appointed president of the American Australian Association.

Personal life Before being appointed as ambassador to Australia, Berry lived in Washington, D.C.