El Dorado County appoints Olivia Byron-Cooper as director of Health and Human Services

EL DORADO COUNTY, Calif. — During its meeting Tuesday, the El Dorado County Board of Supervisors unanimously appointed Olivia Byron-Cooper as the County’s Director of Health and Human Services Agency. Byron-Cooper has been Interim Director for the last nine months.

“We are thrilled to have Olivia at the helm of this large and complex agency, applying her steady and collaborative approach to leadership,” said Board chair, Wendy Thomas. “She has demonstrated her thoughtful leadership skills since becoming Interim Director late last year, particularly in the area of the establishment of the County’s temporary Navigation Center and participation in the Strategic Plan refresh. She is clearly the right
woman at the right time to take these reins.”

Byron-Cooper began her career with El Dorado County in 2008 and has held positions as an epidemiologist, program manager, agency quality improvement manager, and Director of Public Health before being named Interim Director. Prior to coming to the County, she received her master’s degree in public health from the University of Michigan and worked in the Amazon Basin of Peru, and the Inter-Tribal Council in Lac Du Flambeau, Wisconsin regarding tribal health issues. She received her bachelor’s degree from California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo.

“I’m humbled and honored to have the Board’s support to lead the Agency to ultimately improve the health and wellbeing for all residents in El Dorado County,” said Byron-Cooper. “I look forward to the myriad opportunities that exist within the department to create more efficiency and working across the County to improve the services we provide to our citizens.”

The appointment is effective September 23, 2023, at a salary of approximately $236,000.