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Margo Chaly Esq. serves as Acting Secretary of Higher Education and was appointed by the Sherrill-Caldwell Administration in January 2026.

Ms. Chaly was appointed Executive Director of the New Jersey Higher Education Student Assistance Authority by Governor Phil Murphy in March 2024. Immediately prior to her appointment, Ms. Chaly served as Chief of Staff of the Authority since February 2021, during which time she played an important role in advancing the mission of the Authority and Governor Murphy’s affordability agenda.

Prior to joining Governor Murphy’s Administration, Ms. Chaly was Manager of Litigation & Operations at a law firm. Prior to that, she worked for more than a decade at multinational insurance companies.

Ms. Chaly, a first-generation Guatemalan-American and lifelong New Jersey resident, holds a Juris Doctor from Seton Hall University School of Law and a Bachelor of Arts from Ithaca College.