Secretary Karen Timberlake

Karen Timberlake was appointed by Governor Jim Doyle as Secretary of the Department of Health Services (formerly the Department of Health and Family Services) in April 2008. Karen has been with the Department since March 2007, serving first as Executive Assistant and then as Deputy Secretary.

Prior to joining DHS, Karen served in Governor Doyle's cabinet as the Director of the Office of State Employment Relations (OSER) from 2003 to 2007, where she was responsible for setting human resources policy for Wisconsin state government's civil service employees. She also handled collective bargaining with the 19 labor unions representing state employees and led the state's affirmative action program. Prior to her OSER appointment, Karen was an assistant attorney general from 1995 - 2000 with the Wisconsin Department of Justice, where she specialized in employment litigation and in the defense of state statutes and state agency programs. Karen was the deputy administrator of the Department of Justice Division of Legal Services from 2000 through 2002. Karen chaired the Governor's Task Force on Autism in 2004 and served on the state Group Insurance Board from 2000 through March 2007.

Last Revised: October 24, 2008