Franklin County Honors Jeanine Hummer

Franklin County Board of Commissioners 

Most of what Jeanine Hummer does never makes the front page. The late-night calls from commissioners. The legal analysis that turns a "we can't" into "here's how we can." The ethics guidance that underpins every major county decision. On April 21, the Franklin County Board of Commissioners paused its General Session to put all of it on the record. 

Hummer, First Assistant and Chief Counsel to Franklin County Prosecutor Shayla Favor, was recognized as one of 250 public servants selected nationwide to receive the Public Service 250 Award from the National Academy of Public Administration. County Administrator Kenneth Wilson noted she is one of only six Ohioans chosen for the honor, which recognizes local government leaders for sustained contributions to public service. 

The recognition came as a genuine surprise. Hummer received a decoy redline agenda that morning. What she walked into was a full tribute from the dais, the Prosecutor's Office, her own family, and county administration. 

Prosecutor Favor opened the remarks by asking staff from the civil division to stand. "Quite literally, our county does not run without your leadership," she told Hummer. "You are valued, you are appreciated." 

Commissioner Kevin L. Boyce framed his tribute around the invisible infrastructure of county government. "What you don't see are the late-night calls that she gets from commissioners or the prosecutor or the sheriff. What you don't see is how she undergirds our entire ethics platform for Franklin County." He credited her directly with outcomes residents take for granted: the county's AAA bond rating, its legislative prudence, its reputation for sound governance. "None of those things happen without the thumb or direction of Jeanine Hummer," he said. 

Commissioner Erica C. Crawley called Hummer "salt of the earth" and credited her with always being reachable in moments of need. Board President John O'Grady said the quality he values most is the way Hummer holds all of it while staying connected to the people around her. "You send me a text about my family. Those are things that make you special." 

Hummer's daughter, who spoke at the session, described watching her mother show up for her career and her family at the same time. Hummer's husband, Judge Mark Hummer, shared the story of how a teenage Jeanine, the daughter of immigrant parents, followed a Toledo congressman to every public event she could for six months until he gave her a congressional page position and she went on to serve as one of four assistants to Speaker Tip O'Neill. 

Kenneth Wilson closed county administration's remarks simply: "There should be Jeanine Hummer Day in Upper Arlington." 

Hummer, accepting the recognition, credited her staff. "I am as good as the people who surround me," she said. "They are soldiers."