DOE Finance Job For Ex-Bear Stearns Exec

The Department of Education has turned to a top official of the troubled investment firm Bear Stearns to fill the position of its Chief Financial Officer.

George Raab, a former managing director of investment banking at the global investment bank, has been approached for the long-vacant CFO position by the DOE, although his hiring is contingent on a background check.

Kathleen Grimm, the Deputy Chancellor for Finance and Administration at the DOE, has been its interim CFO since January 2006, covering both positions after longtime civil servant Bruce Feig left the job. But with warnings of impending financial crisis in the city and a recent audit by Comptroller William B. Thompson that cited the DOE for poor spending habits, the agency has finally tapped an official successor.

Mr. Raab worked at Bear Stearns for 10 years. The firm was recently sold to JPMorgan Chase after financial difficulties resulting from the subprime mortgage crisis.