Nitschke was elevated to the position of Division Chief after serving as acting Chief since December 2003.
"Ken has given us outstanding oversight of the Division, and has a strong policy and planning background to help us improve the quality of our members' retirement services," said Kathie Vaughn, Assistant Executive Officer of the Member and Benefits Services Branch. "Our members can expect great things down the road from Ken."
Nitschke will coordinate the Branch's additional involvement in the multi-agency Cost Effectiveness Measurement program and analyze initiatives proposed by the California Performance Review, a comprehensive effort to revitalize and reform State government.
He will also continue to provide guidance on retirement program policy and design-related administrative issues, lead the Branch's efforts on policy directives and regulations, develop issue papers, and track requests for legal opinions.
Nitschke has been with the OPPD since March 2000. Before that, he served as federal legislative coordinator and earlier as a technical staff supervisor for the State Department of Social Services. He is a graduate of the University of California, Davis.
CalPERS is the nation's largest public pension fund, with assets totaling more than $168 billion. The System provides retirement and health benefits to more than 1.4 million State and local public employees and their families. For further information on CalPERS, visit www.calpers.ca.gov.
