Claire A. Cunningham was appointed as the Director of the San Mateo County Human Services Agency (HSA) in July 2023. HSA is the second-largest County department with almost 800 employees and a budget of over $316 million. HSA provides safety net services and administers federal and state-mandated programs to over 198,000 children, families, and adults.
Claire first joined the County in 2007 as a Deputy County Attorney, after several years in private practice at a San Francisco litigation firm. Claire spent over a decade as HSA’s in-house legal counsel and represented many other County departments and local school districts during her tenure in the County Attorney’s Office, where she most recently served as a Chief Deputy. Claire also served in a leadership role in the Coalition for Safe Schools and Communities, which developed emergency response protocols, a student threat assessment protocol, a suicide prevention protocol, expanded mental health supports for students and other potential life-saving measures.
Claire received her Bachelor’s degree in Government and French Studies from Smith College and her law degree from U.C. Law San Francisco (formerly UC Hastings). She is the proud parent of two children who attend local public schools.
