Leadership

Daryl E. Blacher, Grants Administrator for the Mayor’s Office of Community Development, has worked in program and grants management for more than 20 years for various state, city and federally-funded projects in addition to nationally known entities such the Smithsonian Institution (Reading is FUNdamental) and AARP. She manages a multimillion-dollar portfolio of government grants to community-based organizations focusing on various Public Services, Economic and Community Development initiatives, including Homelessness and Affordable Housing. Daryl also serves as the Project Director for the Baton Rouge Advancing Health Literacy federal grant and also as the OCD Homeless liaison.

She previously served as ReCAST Program Manager, Office of the Mayor-President, for 3 ½ years where she led, managed and coordinated ReCAST Baton Rouge grant activities and a 32-person Coalition of trauma-informed and other community-based organizations to address the stress and trauma due to the civil unrest experienced in Baton Rouge during the summer of 2016, following the shooting of Alton Sterling, the police ambush and the August floods. Daryl also supports the Mayor’s Office in writing grants and the composition of White or Issue Papers. She has also served as the Mayor’s Cities United representative and currently represents the city in working with the National League of Cities Strong Southern Cities Initiative. While employed by ReCAST Baton Rouge, Daryl led the development of its Strategic Plan, envisioned what is now referred to as the Baton Rouge Institute for Growth and Healing after Trauma (BRIGHT) and its annual Resiliency Summit to promote trauma-informed approaches. While employed as the Associate State Director for Community Outreach, Daryl served as the community outreach liaison for the AARP Louisiana State Office overseeing various volunteer programs including AARP Chapters, District Impact teams and AARP Foundation low-income programs. Daryl earned a Master’s in Public Administration (December 2015) and a B.A Degree (August 1977), from Southern University and A&M College in Baton Rouge, LA. She also received a Certificate of Completion in Community Development from the University of Arkansas at Conway.

Tony T. Scott, M.S., Ed.S, Program Manager for the Mayor’s Office of Community Development. He is a Native of Greenville, MS. He has a passion for education, mental health and social services. Tony has been able to utilize his passion to aggressively pursue his career. Because of his will to advance his community he has been able to manage and spearhead gratifying and rewarding work in his position as Program Manager of the Baton Rouge Advancing Healthcare Literacy (BRAHL), a multimillion dollar grant awarded to the City of Baton Rouge. Tony stands true to the poem written by Dr. Maya Angelou that repeats, “Nobody No Nobody can make it out here alone.” Because this quote lays deeply in Tony’s heart his life and efforts reflects his current and past work experiences. Most of Tony’s career experience is in the field of Rehabilitation Counseling.

For eight years Tony was a Transitional Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor for the Texas Department of Rehabilitation Services where he counseled with disabled high school students ranging ages 14-22. In this position Tony was able to counsel students with a disability and an impediment through employment preparation, career development, career exploration, disability adjustment trainings, job coaching, and job placement. He was able to help over 170 students gain and maintain employment.

With a multidimensional career Tony’s expertise also extends into the field of mental health; Tony has worked as a mental health provider for over 12yrs. In 2008 he was employed with Hinds Behavioral Health in Jackson, MS as an Adult Mental Health Counselor. His career in mental health also allowed him the opportunity of employment with Houston Independent School District as a Behavior Specialist. The career expansion did not stop there, Tony has also been afforded the opportunity of employment with The Harris Center for Mental Health and IDD where he passionately tenured the position of Psychiatric Technician. While in Houston, Texas Tony also worked as an adjunct professor at College of the Mainland in Texas City, TX. Tony is no stranger to teaching, he is a licensed educator and worked as a middle school art teacher for four years. While the education environment is where most of Tony’s career has thrived; Tony has also worked as a disability examiner For the Mississippi Department of Rehabilitation Services.

Tony earned a Specialist Degree in Educational Psychometry (August 2022), a Masters of Rehabilitation Counseling (August 2011), from Jackson State University and a Bachelors of Arts Degree from Tougaloo College (May 2006). Tony is also a Member of Alpha Lambda Delta International Honor Society and Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc.