Primary Contact Email: mkeeley@co.whatcom.wa.us
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Request confirmation of the County Executive's appointment of Deborah Arthur as Deputy Executive/Administrative Services Director effective April 13, 2026
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SUMMARY STATEMENT OR LEGAL NOTICE LANGUAGE:
Debbie Arthur joins the Whatcom County Executive's Office with more than thirty years of executive leadership and administrative experience across government, higher education, private industry, and emergency response. Her career is distinguished by a strong focus on internal service functions, long-range financial strategy, capital planning, and organizational performance within complex, publicly accountable systems.
Debbie joined Whatcom County in Fall 2025 as EMS Administrator, where she has strengthened stakeholder relationships, improved transparency, and enhanced fiduciary management of the County's EMS levy.
Prior to joining the County, Arthur served at Western Washington University, most recently as Associate Director for University Residences, Business Operations. In this role, she directed the financial and operational strategy of a $60 million enterprise system supporting more than 4,400 students and $1 billion in capital assets.
Earlier, Arthur served as Operations Manager for Western Washington University's Woodring College of Education, where she was responsible for financial and administrative operations across six statewide locations. She managed over $16 million in state and self-sustaining funds while providing executive-level financial analysis and policy guidance to senior leadership.
Arthur's private sector experience includes two decades as Director of Development and Vice President for Fownes Bros. & Co. / Tabar Inc., where she led multi-million-dollar operations, negotiated global contracts, and oversaw finance and cross-functional teams. She also held leadership roles at W.L. Gore & Associates, a Fortune 500 company, in the GORE-TEX(r) Fabrics Divis...
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