photo by: Contributed

Jonathan Smith

Lawrence-Douglas County Public Health has hired a new director to replace its longtime director, who is retiring this week.

On Tuesday, the health department’s board announced that Jonathan Smith, who has lived in Lawrence since 2019, will take over as director starting July 26.

Smith comes to the health department from Atchison Community Health Clinic, where he has served as the operations director. According to the news release announcing Smith’s hire, this represents a career shift for him as he moves away from a focus on clinical operations. He has also spent time at other clinics throughout Michigan and the state of Kansas, according to the release, and has worked with the Health Information Exchange through KAMMCO Health Solutions in Topeka.

“I’m humbled to have been selected by the LDCPH board to help lead the work in addressing social determinants of health for all of Douglas County,” Smith said in the release. “I’m beyond excited to work with the talented staff at LDCPH to ensure that whole-person care is accessible to everyone in our community.”

Smith will replace outgoing director Dan Partridge, who has been director since 2007. In April, the LDCPH board tabbed Sonia Jordan, the health department’s director of informatics, to serve as interim director starting June 16. She’ll remain in the role through July 25.