Mr. Young follows John Budesky, who resigned effective June 30, 2020 and became County Administrator in Hanover County, and Derek L. Stamey, who has served as Interim County Administrator since July 1, 2020. Young will begin his duties as County Administrator effective September 14, 2020.
Kenneth “Kenny” A. Young brings more than 25 years of local government and private sector management experience and holds the distinction of being an International City/County Management Association (ICMA) Credentialed Manager. Young began his local government career in 1991 as a budget and management intern for the City of Las Cruces, New Mexico, while he attended graduate school. Young most recently served as an Assistant County Administrator for Loudoun County, Virginia, where he oversaw the County community development agencies which included the Departments of Economic Development, Building and Development, Planning and Zoning, and served as the liaison to Virginia Cooperative Extension--Loudoun County. Loudoun County is one of the fastest growing counties in the United States. Loudoun’s digital infrastructure has made it a key player in the world’s technology economy, which was accomplished while also preserving the western portion of the counties rural character.
“The county received numerous and well qualified applications from throughout the country,” remarked Board Chair Susan F. Lascolette, “Mr. Young distinguished himself throughout the process with his experience in a growing rural locality and his desire to serve.” “We are delighted to welcome Mr. Young and his family to the Goochland community.”
Young was selected after the Board of Supervisors initiated a nationwide recruitment to hire a new County Administrator.
“I am very honored, appreciative, and humbled to have been selected to serve as Goochland’s next County Administrator,” said Kenneth A. Young. I look forward to working with the Board of Supervisors, the exceptional staff and community in providing a high performing and customer focused County government, and I am excited to be a part of it.”
Prior to his position as Assistant County Administrator, Young served in a series of progressively responsible positions in jurisdictions across the country including Assistant Town Administrator in Capitol Heights, Maryland; Acting Assistant City Manager and Director of Housing and Neighborhood Services in North Las Vegas, Nevada; Vice President of Strategic Solutions, a government affairs consulting firm based in Las Vegas, Nevada; and served in the County Manager’s Office as a Senior Management Analyst for Clark County, Nevada.
Young comes from a military family and grew up in El Paso, Texas and earned a Bachelor of Arts in Government and a Master of Public Administration degree from New Mexico State University in Las Cruces, New Mexico. He is a graduate of the Economic Development Institute of the University of Oklahoma and is a member of the International City/County Management Association (ICMA), and the National Forum of Black Public Administrators (NFBPA).
Young and his wife Cynthia, who have been married for 25 years, and his daughter Keisha and son Marcus look forward to embracing and becoming active in the Goochland community.