Mary K. E. Maples is the Chief Strategy & Infrastructure Officer at the New Jersey Economic Development Authority.  A thought leader and strategic partner on complex, large-scale priority projects, her responsibilities include guiding the Strategic Planning, Real Estate, Infrastructure and Business Support efforts at the Authority.  Included among these responsibilities are the delivery of significant Authority objectives, such as the development of the New Jersey Wind Port in Salem County, the Maternal and Infant Health Innovation Center in Trenton and the redevelopment of the academic health campus of Rutgers University and University Hospital in Newark.  In addition, Mary oversees the leadership of the NJEDA’s Business Support Division, spanning procurement, human resources, and finance disciplines.  Mary is also guiding the Authority through a process to set a multi-year Strategic Plan to focus and continue driving the organization’s success.

Prior to her role at NJEDA, Mary served as Interim President & CEO, and previously Chief Legal Officer & Corporate Secretary, of University Hospital in Newark.  In this role, she guided all aspects of hospital operations and strategic direction for the State’s only public academic health center, which serves as the state-designated Level I Trauma Center for Northern New Jersey and the principal teaching hospital for all Newark-based medical education, including Rutgers New Jersey Medical School and School of Dental Medicine.  As CLO, she directed the legal, corporate and external relations of the hospital, handling all traditional duties of the general counsel’s office, and acted as the primary liaison and counsel to the Hospital’s Board of Directors.  While at University Hospital, Mary was named to the ROI-NJ Influencers list for Women in Business in 2022 and 2023, and among the Next Generation of Leaders by NJBIZ in 2021.

Mary’s career in public service includes her role as Deputy Chief Counsel to New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy, where she led the Governor’s Authorities Unit. She was initially appointed to the office by Governor Chris Christie, under whom she served as Senior Counsel.  A non-partisan leader and a skilled negotiator, she represented both governors’ interests before various state and bi-state boards, commissions, and corporations spanning the healthcare, transportation, economic development, financing, water/sewage treatment, and gaming industries. On behalf of the Governor, she also served on the boards of the NJEDA and NJ Transit.

Before returning home to New Jersey, Mary spent over a decade at the Central Intelligence Agency. As Assistant General Counsel, she advised senior government officials, including Presidential appointees, on matters ranging from litigation and legislative affairs to investigations, including high-profile congressional investigations and support for counterterrorism litigation teams pursuing military commissions of high value detainees, such as the perpetrators of the 9/11 and USS Cole attacks. She began her CIA career as a Special Investigator, where she was a seasoned security professional with significant experience handling internal investigations in the criminal, ethics, and unauthorized disclosure areas, gaining extensive training in investigative techniques, behavioral analysis, and cross-cultural communications.

Mary holds a Bachelor’s degree from Georgetown University and a Juris Doctor cum laude from American University, Washington College of Law.