Ginnie Mae recently filled two executive roles, naming Sam Valverde as its first Hispanic executive vice president and Felecia Rotellini as senior advisor and chief of staff to the president.
Alanna McCargo, president of Ginnie Mae, announced the appointments during the National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals conference that took place in Washington D.C. last week.
During the conference, McCargo stressed the importance of having diversity in leadership. She also expressed the need to make liquidity available for smaller community-based players.
“We must have leaders that look like and understand the communities we ultimately serve,” McCargo said.
Both Valverde and Rotellini have a background in law and regulatory compliance.
Prior to his appointment at Ginnie Mae, Valverde worked at the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) as a supervisory attorney advisor in the division of conservatorship oversight and readiness.
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During his time at the FHFA from 2017 to 2022 , Valverde led agency-wide projects intended to support greater access to mortgage credit and affordable rental opportunities for working families. Additionally, Valverde worked to develop a post-conservatorship regulatory framework for the government-sponsored enterprises.
Valverde also served as a counselor for domestic finance at the U.S. Treasury Department from 2010 to 2017.
Rotellini joins Ginnie Mae from DriveTime, a used car retailer and finance company, where she worked from 2015 to 2021 as a director of compliance. Rotellini also worked as an attorney for five years at Zwillinger Greek Zwillinger & Knecht, PC, a commercial law firm. And she has a 13-year stint under her belt as an assistant attorney general at Arizona’s Attorney General’s Office from 1992 to 2005, according to Linkedin.
Ginnie Mae, in a press release, said that Rotellini has experience in building diverse coalitions which will help advance the public and stakeholder engagement strategy for the government guarantor.
“Sam and Felecia are great complements to our executive leadership team and will be integral to the organization as we advance our strategic roadmap and strengthen our service to the nation’s diverse housing market,” McCargo added. “I am thrilled to have their counsel and support as we work with all of our stakeholders to create broader and more equitable access to affordable homeownership and rental housing.”
