Montgomery County names trio of new female leaders
Montgomery County has named three women to lead county government departments — Tawana Jones has been named director of community and economic development; Josselyn Burris will be director of facilities management; and Amy Bohardt will lead the Animal Resource Center (ARC), the county said.
“To see this growth from the women who find careers within the county is nothing short of inspiring,” Montgomery County Commissioner Judy Dodge said in an announcement last week.
“We are honored to see these capable women ascend to the top positions in their respective departments. Each of these promotions is well deserved, and I look forward to following Tawana, Josselyn and Amy as they continue to serve our community.”
■ Tawana Jones served as interim county development director after the December retirement of Erik Collins.
Jones was instrumental in securing $22 million in federal funds for emergency rental assistance, the county said.
“It is evident in every one of her interactions, that Tawana cares about the community,” said County Commission President Debbie Lieberman. “She will ensure Montgomery County continues to be somewhere people want to live, work and play.”
■ Josselyn Burris replaces Phil Miller, who is retiring from the county after 32 years of service. She will be the county’s director of facilities management effective March 1.
Burris started as an intern before working with the county engineer’s office for eight years. She served as the assistant director of facilities since 2020.
Burris helped the county build the soon-to-open Western Regional Court in Trotwood and the 34,000-squarefoot renovation of the fifth floor in the Reibold building, the county said.
“Josselyn has been a key member of our facilities management,” County Commissioner Carolyn Rice said. “The county has several projects in the works, like converting our waste pretreatment facility into our new coroner crime lab and constructing a new environmental services lab. Josselyn is an essential asset in executing these plans successfully.”
■ Amy Bohardt will lead the ARC after Director Bob Gruhl retires Feb. 28, concluding 31 years with the county.
Bohardt has served as Shelter Manager for the past four years and has been with Montgomery County for 16 years. Prior to joining the ARC, Bohardt supervised the Legal Support Unit for Montgomery County’s Child Support Enforcement Agency where she earlier served as a program specialist and an administrative assistant.
“Amy is organized and determined. She played a huge part in building new processes and creating a great new team for our ARC,” County Administrator Michael Colbert said.
“Bob (Gruhl) led ARC staff through a turbulent time,” Colbert also said. “His leadership resulted in the kennel’s live release rates increasing from 50% to 88%. The ARC was also awarded the Ohio County Dog Warden’s Association 2020 Agency of the Year.”