Biography of Suzanne M. Ambrose

Suzanne M. Ambrose has served as the Executive Officer of the State Personnel Board since May 2007.

Ms. Ambrose's public service career spans over 40 years at five different departments in the State of California. Prior to her appointment as Executive Officer, Ms. Ambrose served as Director of the former Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH), California’s civil rights enforcement agency. She had previously served as Staff Counsel, Assistant Chief Counsel, and Chief Counsel with DFEH where she litigated complaints alleging employment, housing, and public accommodation discrimination, and acts of hate violence. Ms. Ambrose also worked at the Attorney General’s Office as a Deputy Attorney General and Supervising Deputy Attorney General in the Civil Rights Enforcement Section where she represented the DFEH, the Fair Employment and Housing Commission and the Native American Heritage Commission. Ms. Ambrose focused primarily on investigating alleged violations of the disability access laws in public accommodations throughout the state and enhancing the protections of persons with disabilities through legislation. Early in her state career, Ms. Ambrose worked as a student for the State Controller's Office and the Chancellor's Office of the California Community Colleges while in college and law school.

She received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of California, Berkeley, and a Juris Doctor degree from the University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law.

Ms. Ambrose served as Chair of the Executive Committee of the Labor and Employment Law Section of the California State Bar. She also served on the Executive Committee of the Public Law Section of the California Lawyers Association, the California Governor's Committee on Employment of People with Disabilities, the Division of the State Architect's Implementation Committee for the California Certified Access Specialist Program, and the California Association of Workplace Investigators.