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Jeanne Oakes
By Rob Alway, Editor-in-Chief
LUDINGTON — Jeanne Oakes has been appointed by City Council to serve as interim city manager following the resignation of Mitch Foster. Oakes had been serving as the third ward councilor.
Oakes has a bachelor’s degree with a major in education from Central Michigan University and a master’s degree in education leadership from Western Michigan University. She served as superintendent of the Mason-Lake Intermediate School District from 2001 to 2009 and as superintendent of the Oceana Intermediate School District from 2005 to 2009. Since her retirement both districts have merged into the West Shore Educational School District.
She is a native of Dimondale, located in Eaton County. She originally came to Mason County when her husband, Mike, was hired as superintendent of Mason County Eastern Schools in the 1980s. The couple moved away after Mike accepted another administrator position elsewhere but moved back to Mason County in 1996 when Mike was hired as superintendent of Ludington Area School District.
Following her retirement from the ISDs, Oakes served four years as interim executive director of the Community Foundation for Mason County. She has served on several community organization and business boards including the hospital, United Way of Mason County, Ludington Rotary Club, Community Foundation for Mason County, and West Shore Bank. She is also an active volunteer of Caritas Food Pantry at St. Mary’s Church in Custer.
In November 2023, Oakes was appointed by the City Council to fill the third ward councilor seat left vacant by Les Johnson who was appointed by the Mason County Board of Commissioners to serve as the second district commissioner. The current third ward term expires on Dec. 31 of this year. Oakes said she had intended to only serve until the end of the term.
On Monday, June 24, City Council accepted the resignation of Mitch Foster as city manager. Foster has accepted a position as vice president of administrative services at West Shore Community College. He was hired as Ludington city manager in January 2019.
“I believe that service to one’s community gives life purpose,” Oakes said. “I feel strongly about our community and it’s important to have a smooth transition of leadership. I also accepted this position having full confidence in the dedicated city staff. The people who work for this city are the best. They love their jobs and they love their town. I really see my role as being the bridge between Mitch and a new city manager. It’s going to be a great summer here in Ludington and I appreciate the support of the city staff and council.”
“The City Council also recognized that there are several other municipalities in our area who are also in between administrators, which makes it challenging to hire someone temporarily.”
The City of Scottville and the villages of Pentwater and Shelby are also searching for administrators and currently have interim administrators.
Oakes said a search consultant has been hired with hopes of hiring a full time city manager by the end of August.
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