OUR TEAM

Chief Financial Officer/Assistant Cabinet Secretary Sarah Long

Effective November 7, 2017, Sarah Long was appointed as the Chief Financial Officer for the State of West Virginia and Assistant Cabinet Secretary for the Department of Administration. A Certified Public Accountant, Long has spent many years in the public sector. A native Charlestonian, she went to Charleston Catholic High School and graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Marietta College in 1993, double majoring in Accounting and Management.

Upon graduation, Long worked in the private sector at a national "Big Four" accounting firm specializing in auditing governmental agencies, including the overall audit of the State of West Virginia. She began her public service career as a financial consultant for the Finance Division where she served as Interim Chief Financial Officer for the Public Employees Insurance Agency. She then became Deputy Director and Chief Financial Officer for the Board of Risk and Insurance Management. Prior to her current appointment, she was Deputy Treasurer for the State Treasurer, overseeing the cash management function for the State of West Virginia.

Director of Finance, Melody Duke

Melody Duke was named the Director of Division of Finance on March 17, 2025. Ms. Duke

served as the Executive Director for the Board of Risk and Insurance Management (BRIM) from

April 2022. She also held positions as the Deputy Director (2020) and Underwriting Manager

(2014). Ms. Duke is a tenured employee of state government with nearly 31 years of service.

Her previous positions include Controller for BRIM from December 1994 to May 2013 and an

Accountant Auditor with the Department of Administration from June 2013 to December 2014.

Ms. Duke is a 1996 graduate of West Virginia State University with a bachelor's degree in

Business Administration and a 2012 recipient of a Post Baccalaureate Certificate in Accounting.

Ms. Duke is involved with the State Risk and Insurance Management Association (STRIMA)

where she has served as the President and is currently the Treasurer. She was born in Iowa

but has lived in West Virginia since 1974.

Director/Financial Accounting & Reporting Section (FARS), Stephanie Bailes

Stephanie Bailes has served as the Director of the Financial Accounting and Reporting Section

for the Division of Finance since February 5, 2018. In this role, she oversees both the State’s

financial and compliance audits along with the preparation of the State’s Annual Comprehensive

Financial Report and Single Audit. Bailes has spent many years in the public sector, with 30

years of governmental experience including Federal, City and State governments. Bailes has

been an employee of the State for 23 years, during those years she served as the Chief

Financial Officer for the Children’s Health Insurance Program. She then became the Executive

Director for Cash Management for the State Treasurer, overseeing the cash management function for

the State of West Virginia. A native of Ripley, West Virginia, Bailes earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting from West Virginia University at Parkersburg. She is a Certified Public Accountant and a Certified Public Treasury Manager.