BLACKWOOD, N.J. – Deputy Commissioner Catherine Frugé Starghill, Esq., of the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development, was honored on Thursday by the South Jersey Journal as one of the, “State’s leaders who stand head and shoulders above others and boldly reflect the rich diversity and excellence of the African American community throughout the Garden State.”

Deputy Commissioner Starghill was named as one of New Jersey’s 25 Most Influential African Americans along with Senator Cory Booker, State Senator Ronald Rice, Congresswoman Bonnie Watson-Coleman, and Assemblyman Troy Singleton. 

“I am honored and humbled to be among such impressive company,” said Deputy Commissioner Starghill. “I will continue to work hard to strengthen New Jersey’s workforce.”

“We are grateful to have Catherine’s leadership as a vital part of the Department of Labor’s mission and she is well-deserving of all that this award represents,” said Commissioner Aaron R. Fichtner, Ph.D.

Catherine Frugé Starghill, Esq. was named Deputy Commissioner of the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development in October 2016. As Deputy Commissioner, she directly oversees many of the department’s program areas including Research and Information, Income Security, and Labor Standards and Safety Enforcement.

Starghill has been with the department since 2012, previously serving as Executive Director of Workforce Operations and Business Services where she oversaw the day-to-day operations of the One-Stop Career Centers and the integrated business outreach of Workforce field staff with other state and local workforce partners. In that role, she was responsible for more than 300 employees and a $45 million budget.

Prior to joining the department, Starghill was the Acting Director of the Division of Housing and Community Resources and Equal Employment Opportunity Officer at the state Department of Community Affairs. Much of her state government career was spent as the expert on the Open Public Records Act in the Government Records Council and the Privacy Study Commission.

Before joining the public sector, she spent many years in the private sector, working in Tax and Legal Services at PricewaterhouseCoopers and on the Corporate Finance Staff of Ford Motor Company.

Starghill earned a Bachelor of Business Administration and Masters of Accounting simultaneously from the University of Michigan. She earned a Juris Doctor degree from Wayne State University Law School and a Six Sigma Black Belt from the New Jersey Institute of Technology.

She was married to the late Rev. Dr. Britt A. Starghill and is the mother of two young children, Britt Andrew and Brie Alexandra.

The list of New Jersey’s 25 Most Influential African Americans also includes Congressman Donald Payne, Jr., and President and CEO of the African American Chamber of Commerce of New Jersey, John Harmon.

(L-R): Labor Commissioner Aaron R. Fichtner, Deputy Commissioner Catherine Frugé Starghill,
Assemblyman Troy Singleton