The Orange County Board of Supervisors is pleased to announce that Theodore (Ted) L. Voorhees, ICMA-CM, has been hired as Orange County Administrator effective April 5, 2020. Voorhees reported to work on April 6.
Previously, Voorhees served as Powhatan County Administrator from May 2017 to January 2020. Prior to his service in Powhatan County, Voorhees served for nearly four years as the City Manager for Fayetteville, NC and as the Deputy City Manager of Operations for Durham, NC for ten years. He has also served as Assistant City Manager of Wilmington, NC, City manager in King, NC, and Town Manager of Bowling Green, VA. Voorhees began his local government career as an aide to a member of the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors and spent two years at the Pentagon as a Department of the Army civilian.
While serving in these positions, Voorhees’ accomplishments include improvements in staff development and technologies; implementation of a performance management system with performance metrics; establishment of employee-generated core values for the organization; establishment of an award-winning economic development program; conducting the National Citizens Survey; and managing procurement of a new 800MHz digital radio system. Other areas of accomplishments in various communities where he has served include managing strategic planning efforts, establishing sound fiscal management policies, and implementing mobile applications for citizens.
Voorhees is an International City/County Management Association (ICMA) Credentialed Manager who has served on various ICMA committees. He holds a Bachelor of Science from American University and earned a Master of Public Administration from George Mason University. Voorhees graduated from the Municipal Administration Program at the UNC-Chapel Hill School of Government and has completed the Senior Executive Institute program at the Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service at the University of Virginia.
Voorhees is the son of a career Army officer and bogey golfer. His wife Michele is an elementary educator and avid runner. Together they have four children. In his free time, Voorhees enjoys playing golf, running, reading, and spending time with his family.
“I am looking forward to joining the Orange County team and appreciate the opportunity that the Board has given me to help them achieve their goals for the community,” said Voorhees. “During these extraordinary times, I will initially be focusing my attention on supporting employees and community partners working to protect us all from the impacts of COVID-19. By working together to heed ‘stay at home’ orders from Governor Northam and best practices from the CDC, we have the best chance of mitigating effects on our community and our loved ones.”
Chairman of the Board of Supervisors Jim Crozier said, “Ted comes to us with great experience and a desire to continue moving Orange County ahead into the future with the Board and County staff. I am very excited to have him onboard.”