photo by: Contributed and Journal-World File Photos

Lawrence-Douglas County Public Health Director Dan Partridge is pictured along with the department's home in the Community Health Facility, 200 Maine St.

Dan Partridge, who has served as the director of Lawrence-Douglas County Public Health for more than 15 years, is set to retire.

The Lawrence-Douglas County Public Health Board discussed Partridge’s retirement during its Monday meeting. Partridge submitted his resignation letter to the board last Thursday, but his final day is still a while off. He notes in the letter that he intends for June 15, 2023, to be his last day of employment.

Board members said they’re planning to pull together a transition committee to find his replacement in the next several weeks. The Rev. Verdell Taylor, the board’s chair, said the committee will be led by board member Erika Dvorske.

The board will talk about a timeline for the search process at its December meeting.

“I’m, like you, very confident that it’s all in good hands,” Partridge told the board Monday evening. “This board will pick a good candidate, I’m sure.”

Partridge joined the health department as director in January of 2007, replacing longtime director Kay Kent. Partridge notes in his resignation letter that much has happened during the nearly 16 years since then, including helping to guide the community through its response to not just one but two pandemics.

“Through H1N1 (in 2009), accreditation and COVID-19 staff have addressed the fundamental drivers of health that produce health inequities and leave people behind by embracing new capacities, roles and responsibilities,” the letter reads. “While the challenge to continue to build organizational capacity to serve endures, the staff you have seen in action give me confidence that our mission is in good hands.”