DEBORAH A. FELDMAN
Debbie Feldman has served as Montgomery County's Administrator since June, 1997. Prior to County Administrator, Ms. Feldman served as:
- Assistant Administrator,
- Human Resources Director, and
- Financial Analyst in the county's Office of Management and Budget.
With a total of almost 30 years of service to Montgomery County, Ms. Feldman has been involved with all aspects of county government.
As County Administrator Ms. Feldman serves, under the direction of the Board of County Commissioners, as the chief operating officer of the county and is responsible for the effective operations of all Commission departments. Her responsibilities as Administrator include overseeing and directing the affairs and activities of all departments and the approximately 1800 employees under the Board of County Commissioners including Human Services, Job Center, Office of Family and Children First, Environmental Services, Community and Economic Development, Stillwater Center, a 106 bed facility for individuals with severe and profound developmental disabilities, who are physically challenged and/or have significant medical needs, Office of Management and Budget and Administrative Services; preparation and recommendation to the Board of County Commissioners of the County’s $900 million annual budget; and recommending and advising the Commission on a wide range of policy and community matters.
Ms. Feldman has been a leader in many critical community issues including the following:
- Economic Development Initiatives such as Montgomery County’s ED/GE program which combines grants to local governments to assist business growth and expansion with one of the few local government tax sharing programs in the country; advanced growth strategies for the county which include downtown redevelopment efforts such Riverscape, Dayton’s successful urban park along the Great Miami River; and the development of the Austin Road interchange on I-75 in southern Montgomery County.
- The Montgomery County Job Center: Serves as the focal point for the workforce development system in Montgomery County which continues to be a national model for one-stop employment and training centers with over 500,000 customers annually. The Center is internationally recognized for its ability to bring employers, educators, and social service agencies together to address workforce issues. This success was instrumental in the Montgomery County Department of Job and Family Services selection as a site for a national study on the advancement of low wage workers by Manpower Development Research Corporation, in cooperation with the US Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services and Agriculture. Most recently the Job Center has led a coordinated and focused effort to assist displaced GM and Delphi workers transition into new employment.
- The Montgomery County Out-of-School Youth Task Force: Served as chairperson of a County-wide taskforce which focused on the problem of high school dropouts in Montgomery County. She has remained a strong advocate for young people at risk presently serving as the Chair of the Out-of-School Youth Advisory Committee. Through the efforts of the Out of School initiative in cooperation with area school districts, Montgomery County has seen its overall dropout rate decline from 25% in 1999 to 12% in 2007.
- The Homeless Solutions Leadership Team: Served as chairperson of the Homeless Solutions Leadership Team which was created to develop a ten year plan to end chronic homelessness and reduce overall homelessness in Dayton and Montgomery County. Completed in June of 2006, the Plan provides a detailed analysis of the nature of homelessness in Montgomery County and a blueprint for addressing this vital human and economic challenge. The plan has successfully reduced the number of chronically homeless by over 50%. Ms. Feldman remains active in this important initiative and chairs the county’s Affordable Housing Committee. Ms. Feldman was named the 2006 Dayton Daily News Person of the Year for her leadership of this plan.
- The Montgomery County Healthcare Safety Net Task Force: Coordinated the efforts of a community-wide task force charged with understanding the healthcare safety net in Montgomery County and to recommend an innovative vision and achievable set of strategies to improve the access to health care for vulnerable populations. Actively participated in the implementation of two recommendations, the creation of the Community Health Centers of Greater Dayton, a non-profit Federally Qualified Health Center, serving over 12,000 patients and Montgomery County Cares, a health care services program that provides cost-effective primary care for qualifying individuals who are uninsured and who are not eligible for Medicare or Medicaid.
- Ms. Feldman is an active volunteer in the community and participates on the Boards of Central State University, Ohio’s historically black college (Finance Chairperson), the Community Health Centers of Greater Dayton (Treasurer) Downtown Dayton Partnership; and is a past board member of Children Services, Girl Scouts of Buckeye Trails, Big Brothers/Big Sisters, Hillel Academy, Inventing Flight, County Administrator’s Association of Ohio, 2004; President, Jewish Federation of Greater Dayton, 2003-2006; President. She is a member of numerous professional organizations including the International City and County Managers Association, a member of the National and Ohio Association of Counties, Leadership Dayton Association, and the Dayton Area Mayors and Managers Association.
Honorary Awards: YWCA Women of Influence Award, Dayton Daily News Top Ten Women Award, Named by the Dayton Daily News as its 2006 Person of the Year and by the Dayton Business Journal as one of 2011’s ten most influential people.
Ms. Feldman obtained her Bachelor of Arts Degree in Political Science from Miami University, and her Masters of Public Administration from the Maxwell School at Syracuse University. She is married to Bruce Feldman and the mother of two children, Amy Feldman (26) and Jason Feldman (20).
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