11-05-2025
Miller: At the the end of the day, I just want to be a great city manager.
May 10—MORGANTOWN — On April 16, Morgantown City Council convened for a 90-second special meeting to announce the result of a four-month national search for its next city manager.
The body voted unanimously to hire Jamie Miller.
Miller, 36, is originally from the Parma Heights area near Cleveland, but has spent most of her adult life in Florida, where she first entered municipal government as a human resources specialist before rising to deputy city manager and interim city manager for Port Orange, a coastal city of 65, 000.
She comes to Morgantown from Paris, Ky., where she was hired as city manager on April 26, 2022. The seat of Bourbon County, Paris has just over 10, 000 residents and a current operating budget of $12.3 million.
According to media reports, Miller was a finalist for city manager jobs in Manhattan, Kan., and Davenport, Iowa, in the past year.
She will take over as Morgantown's chief executive by June 23 with a starting salary of $175, 000.
She recently spoke with The Dominion Post about what drew her to the University City and her expectations for the job.
What interested you in the city of Morgantown ?
I'm very happy in my current community and wasn't necessarily looking to leave, but Morgantown really caught my eye when I saw the opportunity. I was drawn to it. I feel it's a dynamic community. I think it has a strong sense of civic pride and the city has a real mix of natural beauty. The university presence is great and I think it's a community really filled with a lot of opportunities, and that stood out to me.
As I started the process and the interviews and talking to people, I felt there was a real alignment with, you know ... I believe in providing high quality municipal services — the highest quality we can at what we can afford to do it with. I felt that those I interacted with during the interview shared that vision and shared that drive to want to do good things for Morgantown. So, I felt very connected. I see Morgantown as a place where thoughtful leadership can make a meaningful impact and I think that's extremely important.
How did you get into municipal government and how would you describe your leadership style ?
I didn't necessarily go through a traditional path where I sought to get into local government, but that is where my career led me. I have a master's degree in industrial and organizational psychology. So, I started my career in human resources. I ended up practicing human resources for a local government in Port Orange, Fla., and as I got into local government, it really gets into your blood. Public service is something that's either for you or it isn't. It has to be for you if you're going to continue it. I had the opportunity to work under a lot of fantastic people who poured into me, who developed me and challenged me to be my best, and I loved the public service.
So, great people along the way saw things in me, and I think that leads to how I value my leadership style — looking for the greatness in others and bringing that out in them. In leadership, it's very important that you're able to respond to different situations. Situational leadership is very important. You need to be able to adapt. But I would say, overall, to describe my leadership style, it's going to be people-focused and collaborative.
What do you see as the benefits and challenges of leading a city that's home to a major university with priorities that don't always align with the city ?
It's definitely an opportunity. I'm excited to get in and build those relationships. I know the university is also going through some leadership changes, so I think it's a great opportunity for us to pull together and really reflect and say, "How can we do things that meet the common goal of the community as a whole ? How can we build on the things that we share perspectives on and build from those strengths instead of the things that can push us apart.?"
Certainly, we can't ignore those, and we have to work on them. But I'm a big believer that as we talk about those, we have to work to understand the different perspectives and make sure we're using the same language. I find a lot of concerns can come down to communication and understanding — not just what people are saying, but why they're saying it. What is driving that need, or that fear or that missing piece that they're looking for ?
So, making sure at the end of the day, can we find something where we do have a common goal and push that forward because I think everybody wants Morgantown to be great. I think that's something that everybody can agree on.
The interwoven topics of social services, homelessness, addiction and mental health have received a tremendous amount of attention in recent years. What role should government play in addressing those issues, or should they be left to social service providers ?
I think it has to be a mix. I mentioned previously, collaboration is my style. There are definitely services and things that may not be the city's core function to provide, and bringing in partners to be able to address those issues is important because they're very complex and they don't have simple solutions. You often have to tackle those items from multiple perspectives. So, I think you have to take a combined approach to it.
I am aware that there's been some concern that's come up, but I also know that there's some great things that the city does offer. I know that they employ a social worker with the police department who's focused on connecting people with resources. Certainly, the city financially assists in some of those areas and provides support for social services, which is great to see. There has to be collaboration between government and social services as well the private and public sectors of the community. It is such a complex item to address. More partners will make us more successful.
You will be the first woman hired to be Morgantown's city manager. Is that something that holds significance for you ?
You know, it's not. I don't think too much about it. I was the first woman in Paris, as well. At the end of the day, I just want to be a great city manager. I'm certainly proud of the things I've been able to accomplish in my career, but that's not something I pay too much attention to.
Morgantown's had a recent run of city managers who have stayed in the position for four years or less. Do you see yourself here long term ?
I do. I do hope to have that vision. From a personal standpoint, I have a 15-year-old daughter and an 11-year-old son. I would certainly love to see them all the way through WVU. That would be the ultimate goal. So, I do see a long-term future in Morgantown.
What would you like the people of Morgantown to know ?
What I want the community to know is pretty simple — I'm here to serve them. I take the responsibility of city management very seriously and I want to be great for the community as a public servant. I'm here for them.
