Gov. Terry E. Branstad and Lt. Gov. Kim Reynolds, Sunday (today) announced the retirement of Iowa Workforce Development (IWD) Director Teresa Wahlert. Wahlert formally notified the governor late Friday that she would retire effective today, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2015.

In his statement, Branstad thanked Wahlert for her work to help lead initiatives like Skilled Iowa, Home Base Iowa, and the National Career Readiness Certificate. Reynolds said “Under her direction, Iowa Workforce Development was a key partner as 168,700 jobs were created in the past 4 years.”

Branstad appointed Beth Townsend, current executive director of the Iowa Civil Rights Commission, as acting director of IWD. He appointed Don Grove, former Iowa Civil Rights Commission director and current Iowa Civil Rights Commission employee, the acting executive director of the Iowa Civil Rights Commission. The governor will appoint a permanent director at a later date. A timeline for naming a permanent director has not been set.