Ed Smyth
Former City Manager, City of Hawthorne
I came late in life to the profession, from the private sector. I worked for 10 years with what came to be US West Communications, starting as a long distance operator and advancing to become a technical service writer and participating in the management training program with the phone company. During that time I received my BA from Loretto Heights College. My first position in local government was as the Assistant to the City Manager in Steamboat Springs, Colorado on a limited duration contract. Despite many attempts to find other positions in local government after that contract ended, I discovered that I needed an MPA if I was to continue in the profession. At age 44 I began my graduate studies at Rutgers University, as a nontraditional student for their program, and completed my degree requirements in just under 2 years. My first position after receiving my MPA was as a Program Manager for a rural Main Street program in Virginia. I moved from there back to Colorado as an Assistant to the City Manager for a year, worked as a consultant to a number of Main Street programs throughout Virginia & North Carolina, and in 1998 became Town Manager in Crewe, Virginia. In 1999 I was appoint Assistant County Administrator in Mathews County, VA, and in 2002 I was recruited to Leesburg.
Phone: 352.217.2145
E-mail: efsmyth@gmail.com
