Commissioner Sarah Adelman has led the New Jersey Department of Human Services since January 2021, and was confirmed as Commissioner in March 2022. Under her leadership, the Department has helped residents through the pandemic by making significant investments in child care and food assistance, improving and expanding services for older adults and individuals with disabilities, protecting health coverage for more than 2 million residents, and continuing to enhance mental health and addiction services.

Adelman joined the Department in 2018, initially serving as a Deputy Commissioner, overseeing the Division of Developmental Disabilities, Division of Aging Services, and the Division of Medical Assistance and Health Services, which operates the Medicaid/NJ FamilyCare program. She also served on the Board of the New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency.

The Department's programs serve one in three New Jersey children and one in five adults, with a budget of approximately $20 billion in state and federal funds and a staff of about 7,500.

Before joining Governor Murphy's Administration, Adelman served as Vice President at the New Jersey Association of Health Plans and Chief of Staff at the New Jersey Health Care Quality Institute. She also served on the Board of Trustees for Samaritan Healthcare and Hospice and the Board of Directors for a statewide child abuse and neglect prevention program.

Adelman received her Bachelor of Arts summa cum laude from Rowan University and a certificate in Advanced Healthcare Leadership from Seton Hall University as a fellow in the inaugural class of the New Jersey Healthcare Executives Leadership Academy.

Jonathan Chebra is Deputy Commissioner for Operations & Chief of Staff at the New Jersey Department of Human Services overseeing department operations and external relations. Chebra has spent his career in public service and health policy. Previously, he worked for the New Jersey Hospital Association, Assembly Health Chairman Herb Conaway, M.D. and U.S. Senator Frank Lautenberg. Chebra is a graduate of Rider University and resides in Bordentown City. 

Kaylee McGuire is the Deputy Commissioner for Aging and Disability Services overseeing the Division of Aging Services, the Commission for the Blind and Visually Impaired, the Division of the Deaf & Hard of Hearing, the Division of Developmental Disabilities, Division of Disability Services and supporting the New Jersey Council on Developmental Disabilities and the Office of the Public Guardian. 

McGuire’s background includes working with individuals with disabilities and complex medical needs. Personal caregiving experiences with aging family members led her to public service.

Before joining the Department, McGuire worked as a Senior Policy Advisor to Governor Phil Murphy, where she led on the Administration’s health and human services policy agenda and COVID-19 response. Before joining the Murphy Administration, she served as a health policy analyst in the Assembly Majority Office under Speaker Craig Coughlin, and formerly held a management role at one of the largest pediatric rehabilitation systems in the nation.

McGuire has more than ten years of experience in leading disability services, community programs, and providing recreational therapy and child life services in a variety of settings including medical day care, long-term care, and inpatient rehabilitation.

McGuire received her Master’s in Business Administration from Rutgers University and a Bachelor of Arts in Therapeutic Recreation from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington. She was raised in Ocean County, is a loving aunt of seven, and is committed to making New Jersey more inclusive and age-friendly.

Valerie Mielke is the Deputy Commissioner for Health Services, overseeing the Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services and the Division of Medical Assistance and Health Services. which manages the NJFamilyCare health insurance program. NJ FamilyCare is New Jersey’s Medicaid program. She also oversees the Department’s work on First Lady Murphy’s Nurture NJ maternal health initiative and supports the Catastrophic Illness in Children’s Relief Fund.

Mielke had been the Assistant Commissioner leading the Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services, where she was responsible for the coordination, administration, management and supervision of the community mental health system, and regulating, monitoring, planning and funding of substance use prevention, treatment and recovery support services.  

Mielke holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Fairfield University and a Master of Social Work degree from Rutgers University, and has been with the state for 20 years.

Mielke also serves as a board member of the National Association of State Alcohol and Drug Abuse Directors as First Vice President; on the advisory board of the Council of State Governments Justice Center; and as Secretary on the NRI Board of Directors; and she previously served on the National Association of State Mental Health Program Directors Board of Directors, including as president from 2019 - 2021.

Mielke has also been honored several times for her efforts, including the State Leadership Award from the National Association of State Alcohol & Drug Abuse Directors

Michael J. Wilson is the Deputy Commissioner for Social Services, overseeing the Division of Family Development, Office of New Americans and Human Services’ Office of Emergency Management.

Wilson previously served as executive director of Baltimore-based Maryland Hunger Solutions, where he developed and led efforts to increase access to nutritious foods and eliminate hunger in schools and communities. He has worked with state agencies on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and the Women, Infants and Children program, including successfully advocating before the Maryland General Assembly for expanded school meals.

Wilson also served as an International Vice President of the UFCW International Union and Director of the Legislative and Political Department, as well as in the U.S. Department of Labor in the Clinton Administration, where he helped to administer the Family and Medical Leave Act and laws regarding minimum wage and overtime.

In addition, he served in a leadership role in several local food councils throughout the state of Maryland, including co-chairing the Maryland Food System Resilience Council, which included state agencies, food councils, food banks, and anti-hunger advocates.
Wilson has been honored multiple times for his efforts, including winning the 2023 Henrietta Lacks Award for the research and advocacy partnership with the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health.
He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Michigan State University.

Eric Kaufmann is the Senior Advisor to the Commissioner, overseeing the Offices of Research, Evaluation and Special Projects; Information Systems; and Boards and Commissions.  

Kaufmann began his career in public service at the NJ Office of Management and Budget in 2005 and joined Human Services in 2010, where he has worked in various finance, operations and policy roles, including as the Department's Assistant Chief Financial Officer.

Kaufmann holds a JD from Fordham Law and an MS in Accounting from the UConn School of Business, including an Advanced Business Certificate in Accounting Analytics.  He is admitted to the bar in New York and New Jersey.