When it came to choosing who would lead the Arizona Department of Child Safety, Gov. Doug Ducey had only one candidate in mind.
Records show Mike Faust, deputy director of support services at the agency, was the only person interviewed for the job, the Arizona Republic reported Monday.
The Republican governor announced last week Faust's appointment to replace Greg McKay, who announced his departure last month.
McKay, who held the post for four years, is leaving to become the chief executive of the nonprofit Childhelp USA.
The governor's office released Faust's resume when the newspaper put in a request for background on all the finalists.
"Mike Faust was clearly the right person for this job, and there was no reason to look any further," Ducey spokesman Patrick Ptak wrote in a statement.
Faust will take over in September. His annual salary will be $200,000.
Faust has served as the agency's deputy director since December 2016. He started with the agency the prior year, working with the state's Government Transformation Office.
"He immediately expressed interest in the position, and both our team and the governor were blown away by his vision for the agency, commitment to protecting children and understanding of how to get the job done," Ptak said of Faust.
The Arizona Council of Human Service Providers had also sought for Faust to get the job because of his familiarity with the agency.
"We felt it would be better to build stability rather than bring in someone new," said Emily Jenkins, the council's president and CEO.
