Orange County Announces Senior Leadership Promotions By: Orange County Communications Department
Orange County is excited to announce several senior leadership promotions to become effective on November 9, 2025. Current Assistant County Administrator Stephanie Straub will assume the role of Deputy County Administrator, current Human Resources Director Jenny Carpenter will now serve as Assistant County Administrator, and Management Analyst Ashley Jacobs will become Orange County’s new Human Resources Director.
Stephanie Straub joined Orange County as a Procurement and Grant Coordinator in December 2012 and has held the positions of Financial Management Specialist, Director of Management Services, Assistant to the County Administrator, Public Information Officer, and most recently, Assistant County Administrator for Operations. Mrs. Straub received her Bachelor of Arts degree from the College of William and Mary. Additionally, she completed the Senior Executive Institute sponsored by the University of Virginia’s Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service, and the Virginia Women’s Municipal Leadership Institute, sponsored by Virginia Tech. During her tenure with Orange County, Mrs. Straub has been responsible for improvements to capital improvement planning, procurement, and communications. She has also helped implement several capital projects, including broadband, the state-of-the-art public safety communications system, park facilities, and a new set of hangars at the Orange County Airport.
Jenny Carpenter began her career with Orange County when she was hired as Human Resources Director in February 2021 following eight years of private sector human resources experience. She is an Orange County native and has worked diligently during her tenure to streamline, expand, and advance the department and organization — including overseeing improvements to personnel policies, revisions to employee benefits, updates to staff classification scales, launching the County’s holistic employee wellness program, and helping to guide the County’s culture initiative. Mrs. Carpenter holds an undergraduate degree in business administration from Old Dominion University and an MBA from Liberty University. Additionally, she is a graduate of the University of Virginia’s Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service’s "LEAD" Leadership Development Program.
Ashley Jacobs has been serving in local government for more than 15 years. She began with Orange County in 2011 as Chief Deputy Clerk, and has extensive experience that spans departments and disciplines, including overseeing human resources as the Town Manager of Grottoes, Va. In Orange County, she has made significant positive impacts in the areas of strategic planning, program development, partnership building, grant writing, outreach, and more. In her current role as Management Analyst, she has been critically important to the development and implementation of program-based budgeting and revising departmental performance measures. Mrs. Jacobs earned a B.S. in Public Administration from James Madison University and is a graduate of the University of Virginia’s Weldon Cooper Center for Public Service’s "LEAD" Leadership Development Program.
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OCI November 2025
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