Pritzker appoints US Navy vet to take over state VA
Gov. J.B. Pritzker named Navy veteran Terry Prince as director of the Illinois Department of Veterans’ Affairs on Friday, pending confirmation by the state Senate.
The appointment comes two months after former Director Linda Chapa LaVia stepped down amid widespread criticism of the agency’s handling of a coronavirus outbreak that killed 36 veterans in a state facility in LaSalle.
The facility’s administrator was fired in December. A state inspector general review of the outbreak is ongoing.
Prince previously served as the superintendent of Ohio’s veterans homes, director of the U.S. Navy Hospital Corps and force master chief of Navy Medicine. As IDVA director, Prince would be paid $136,146 a year.
“As the proud son and grandson of Naval officers, it’s my mission that Illinois will provide every possible support for our military men and women, their families and our veterans, and I have complete confidence in Terry’s ability to advance that mission on behalf of those who have made sacrifice upon sacrifice for the nation we proudly call home,” Pritzker said in a statement.
As director of the United States Navy Hospital Corps, Prince served as a senior adviser to the surgeon general of the United States Navy and as a member of the
Navy Medicine’s Executive Steering Committee.
He began his military career in 1986, serving in the Dental Technician and Hospital Corpsman ratings. He earned a Bachelor of Arts from Chapman University and is a graduate of the Navy Senior Enlisted Academy, Command Master Chief Program and the National Defense University Keystone Fellowship.
“I’ve dedicated my life to serving those who’ve served us, and as a veteran myself, I know the value of compassionate and meaningful support centered around our nation’s greatest heroes and their families,” Prince said in a statement.