Posted March 28, 2024
Granville County will welcome Jennifer Baird as Finance Director on April 15. Baird brings 19 years of state and local government finance experience and leadership to her new role, and she will lead Finance Office operations while current Finance Director Steve McNally transitions to his retirement in the coming months.
Baird joins Granville County after three years with the City of Durham as Senior Fiscal Analyst and Accounting Operations Supervisor. During her time in Durham, Baird helped develop the personnel and operating budget for the Water and Sewer Fund and managed all operations of the city’s Utility Finance Department. Prior to her time in Durham, Baird served as Business Officer II, Assistant Finance Manager and other accounting and finance positions for the State of North Carolina departments of Health and Human Services, Public Instruction, and Agriculture and Consumer Services. In these roles she prepared state budget requests and certifications for various grant programs and managed accounts payable operations for the state-wide Child Nutrition Grant. She also served as the Chief Finance Officer for Granville-Vance Public Health for two years in between her time with the State of North Carolina and the City of Durham. Baird began her career as a Family Preservation Case Worker for Person County Cooperative Extension before moving into accounting.
“I am thrilled and honored to have been selected as Granville County’s next Finance Director,” said Baird. “I look forward to working with County Administration, our Board of Commissioners, and staff from all county departments to ensure that taxpayer dollars are spent responsibly, and the county’s finances are protected. Granville County has a sterling reputation of financial management, and I am proud to join and continue that legacy.”
A Person County native, Baird graduated from Person High School in Roxboro and holds degrees in Accounting and Human Services from Vance-Granville Community College and Piedmont Community College. She is also completing the North Carolina Finance Officer Certification Course at the School of Government at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill. Baird moved to Granville County in 1993 and still resides in the Berea community. She and her husband Gary have two children – Austin and Courtney – and two grandchildren – Reid and Miles. During her free time, Baird enjoys being active by teaching group fitness classes and participating in Spartan obstacle races. She has also served as a therapeutic foster parent and dedicates volunteer hours to the anti-human trafficking nonprofit Cry Freedom Missions in Person County.