The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced that Rita M. Sampson has been named Director of the agency’s Office of Equal Employment Opportunity (OEEO).  

"Rita brings a wealth of experience to the Office of Equal Employment Opportunity, and the SEC will greatly benefit from her leadership," said SEC Chair Gary Gensler. "I’d also like to thank Stacey Bach for serving as Acting Director of the OEEO."

OEEO is a neutral and independent office within the SEC that creates and applies best practices to achieve equality in the workplace and compliance with anti-discrimination laws. OEEO has significant expertise in legal and social science analysis, proactive prevention of workplace discrimination and harassment, conflict management, investigative techniques, federal sector equal employment opportunity rules and processes, and program management.

"I’m excited to join the SEC team in championing equal opportunity practices and strategic initiatives that promote the agency as the inclusive workplace and model employer it is," said Ms. Sampson, who began her new role this week.

Most recently, Ms. Sampson served as the Director of the Office of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA) at the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM). Prior to her role at OPM, Ms. Sampson served 12 years within the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, including several as the U.S. Intelligence Community’s Chief Diversity Officer and Director of Equal Employment Opportunity. Ms. Sampson previously held numerous attorney leadership roles within the U.S. Department of Justice, including EEO Director at the Executive Office for United States Attorneys (EOUSA), and senior attorney roles within the EOUSA and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Ms. Sampson began her legal career as a trial attorney in the Office of the Attorney General for the Commonwealth of Virginia. Ms. Sampson earned a bachelor’s degree from the College of William and Mary and a law degree from Wake Forest University School of Law.