John P. Thomas

Contact Information
jpt6n@virginia.edu
(434) 982-5545
Location/delivery address: 

Room 212
2400 Old Ivy Road
Charlottesville, VA 22903-4827

Mailing Address: 

PO Box 400206
Charlottesville, VA 22904-4206

John P. Thomas, Director

Overseeing a university-based public service center requires the ability to move between the often-different cultures of the academy and government. Since 1996, Center Director John P. Thomas has moved with ease between the two.

John has a doctorate in public administration and has been the executive director of the Florida Association of Counties, the National Association of Counties and the American Society for Public Administration. In his early career he was a school teacher and administration. The mix of these worlds, practice and theory, provide an effective background for overseeing the Cooper Center's programs that link the University of Virginia with public affairs.

Education: 

D.P.A., University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA
M.P.A., University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA
M.A., University of Toledo, Toledo, OH
B.A., College of Wooster, Wooster, OH

Expertise: 

Public Sector Leadership
Intergovernmental Relations - Collaboration
Civic Engagement – Social Capital
Public finance
County government
Local government administration
Non-Profit Organization
Applied Research in Public Settings

Experience: 

Executive Director, American Society for Public Administration
Executive Director, National Association of Counties
Executive Director, Florida Association of Counties
Director, New County USA Center, NACo
Assistant Director, Illinois Department of Public Aid
Teacher, Administrator, Toledo, Ohio, Public Schools