Former mayor aiding new chief exec
By Jeff Gallatin
North Olmsted
Published Jan. 13, 2010

Jane Leaver

What does a former two-term mayor do when she wants to stay involved in municipal activities, but not have to deal with as many of the meetings and other responsibilities?

In the case of Jane Leaver, the former two-term mayor of Medina, she goes from being the chief executive of that city through 2009 to being the new executive assistant to recently-elected North Olmsted Mayor Kevin Kennedy. The previous assistant, Annie Kilbane, has moved to the law department.

“There really wasn’t much down time in this for me,” she said. “I went from my last day in Medina last Thursday (Dec. 31) to coming right in here this week.”

Leaver said she had wanted to stay active but hadn’t sought another municipal position like the assistant’s post specifically.

“This intrigued me when Kevin called me about it,” she said. “It sounded interesting, and he’s a pretty good guy I’m finding, so when he called back the day after Christmas I was interested because it would involve a lot of the same activities I was involved with previously, but without a lot of the final responsibility for making a decision.”

Leaver said her reasons for wanting to remain active but not having the same set of responsibilities focus on family and time.

“I’ve got kids in school and I’d like to be able to see them in activities or to go see them at school and not have to worry about being at different city meetings or activities,” she said. “I loved serving as mayor and working in my other jobs but I also love my family and want to be able to spend some more time with them before they’re completely gone and out of the house.”

In addition to being mayor, Leaver also served as safety director. Prior to holding those posts, she was a social worker and probation officer for Medina County. She also worked as an emergency dispatcher for the Medina County Sheriff’s Department.

“All of those positions gave me valuable experience which will help out when I’m working with different parts of the city,” she said.

Kennedy also is pleased to add Leaver to the city staff.

“This is not the type of person you find available every day,” Kennedy said. “I saw she was available and really wanted to bring her in here because she can help out in so many ways.”

Kennedy noted that Medina and North Olmsted are similarly sized cities, and Leaver has experienced all the different issues common to communities of that size.

“She certainly will be able to handle anything that comes at her,” he said. “She’ll be able to sort through things efficiently.”

Kennedy has plans to try and consider changes in the city charter to possibly merge or shift different directors’ responsibilities. He said Leaver will also be a major help as North Olmsted deals with a tight budget and tries to find the best way to redefine the directors’ jobs.

“She’s been a director on her own as well as being mayor,” he said. “She also has worked in staff positions, so she has a good handle on what those type of workers have to deal with.”

Kennedy, a Democrat himself, also said he enjoys the fact that Leaver is a Republican politically.

“You’ve got to have different viewpoints,” he said with a smile.

Other city officials liked the move.

“I’m looking forward to working with her because that experience will be a big help,” Finance Director Carrie Copfer said.

Ward 2 Councilman Paul Barker said he likes Leaver’s qualifications.

“She certainly will know a lot of different ways to get things done and find the best ways to work with people,” he said.

Ward 3 Councilwoman Nicole Dailey Jones said Leaver can consider different perspectives.

“Look at all the different jobs and what’s she’s experienced in them,” she said. “She can look at how she and the people she has dealt with have handled different matters.”

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