At its meeting on Tuesday, Aug. 25, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors appointed Jessica L. Werder as deputy county executive for health and human services (HHS), effective Sept. 5. She succeeds Christopher Leonard, who is retiring after nearly three decades of service to the county.

Werder will oversee the county’s human services agencies and programs, which provide a broad range of services supporting the health, safety and well-being of residents. 

Werder brings more than 20 years of health and human services experience, including nearly 15 years with Fairfax County. Most recently, she has served as deputy director of Public Health Operations for the Health Department, where she directs administrative operations and manages an annual budget of nearly $100 million. She also oversees agencywide human resources functions for approximately 800 employees and supervises senior leaders responsible for administrative operations, environmental health, information technology and informatics, and the Public Health Laboratory.

Previously, Werder served as director of Business Integration for Fairfax County Health and Human Services, leading interagency initiatives involving data integration, business processes and technology. 

From 2014 to 2017, Werder served in the Office of the County Executive as policy and strategic initiatives advisor for Health and Human Services, advising the deputy county executive and HHS leadership on budget development, capital planning, performance management and other strategic initiatives. She began her county career in 2011 as the Health Department’s community outreach manager.

Before joining Fairfax County, Werder managed national health and safety programs for the Association of Farmworker Opportunity Programs and served as a Peace Corps community health promoter in Nicaragua.

Werder holds a Master of Public Health from the University at Albany and a bachelor’s degree in biology from William Smith College. She is also a Certified Public Manager and completed the George Washington University/Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments Regional Executive Development Program.