ssanoski@vicksburgpost.com

Mayor Paul Winfield has created two new administrative positions, a chief of staff and director of policy and intergovernmental relations, which he said will increase City Hall’s effectiveness and efficiency.

On Friday, the Vicksburg Board of Mayor and Aldermen approved hiring Kenya Burks for the chief of staff position in executive session, while Marie Thompson has been working as the policy and intergovernmental relations director since Winfield began working in City Hall on July 7. Winfield said Burks will be paid $70,000 annually, while Thompson will receive $41,000.

“Both these ladies are very bright, they’re very effective and they’re very time-orientated. I believe they’re going to push our board to another level, and that’s really what I’m seeking,” said Winfield. “I believe these are wise expenditures, and I believe we’re going to get a lot more back than we’re putting out.”

Both of the positions will involve liaison work between the community, non-governmental agencies and other governmental boards at the county, state and federal levels. The mayor called the new positions “very necessary” in making City Hall more efficient by allowing department heads and other city employees to focus on the main tasks for which they’re responsible.

“For a long time, we’ve had a number of people in various roles of this city’s government who have been doing tasks that weren’t necessarily — or shouldn’t have been — delineated to them,” said Winfield. “We’ve been operating Vicksburg a lot like a town, and Vicksburg is too large to operate in that capacity.”   

Burks is a native of Lake Providence, has a bachelors degree from Northeast Louisiana University and, in 2003, received a master’s degree in business administration from the Keller Graduate School of Management in Irvine, Texas. Prior to coming to City Hall, she worked in product management in Jackson and said she is looking to relocate to Vicksburg.

“She’s going to handle chiefly the operation of my office, from scheduling to project coordination and time lines. She’ll also be promoting the agenda of the board and my office, so she’ll be working within city operations as well as out in the community,” Winfield said of Burks, adding she will not have any authority over department heads, but will work as a liaison between them and the board. 

Thompson is a native of Dallas and has lived in Vicksburg since the fall of 2001. She previously worked as executive director of MPOWER in Scott County, an organization that lobbied for equality and respect among poultry-processing workers. She worked on Winfield’s mayoral campaign and for the Latinos for Obama during the presidential election.

“She will primarily provide research and advice on policy matters that require interaction with the county government, state government and federal government,” Winfield said. “She’s really been wearing five hats since I took office.”

Thompson has also been performing secretarial duties for Winfield, who has not hired a full-time secretary as former Mayor Laurence Leyens had, and had been working on a few large grants that were submitted earlier this month.

“I hope the citizens of Vicksburg can see that their mayor is a forward thinker — that’s why he’s putting us in these positions,” said Thompson. “A clarification of roles is part of it, but it goes beyond that. We hope to inspire Vicksburg and move the city forward. It’s going to take time, and we ask for people’s patience as we transition, but we are going to move the city forward.”

Winfield said he intends to look at reorganizing the city’s charter once the fiscal year 2010 budget is finished, and has said additional personnel changes could come after his first 60 to 90 days in office.

“With regard to the operation of our city, we need to make some adjustments. I’m not interested in reinventing the wheel, and that’s not what I’m calling for; but we need a more effective and efficient municipal government,” he said. “I’m not talking about interfering with people’s jobs…but there may be some restructuring so we can run more smoothly.”

Other positions the mayor said he will consider creating include a chief administrative officer, a director of economic development and a media relations specialist.