By Andrew Tellijohn

When Jenny Max joined the League of Minnesota Cities (LMC) Board in 2020, pandemic restrictions meant meetings were held on Zoom. So, when she later joined the executive board the following year, she wasn’t entirely sure what to expect.

But Max’s energy, curiosity, and commitment to learning quickly made an impression on more experienced leaders, who say she brought a fresh perspective and helped guide the organization through several important issues as she rose through the ranks.

“She was organized, she was well spoken, and she was very smart,” said Ron Johnson, former Bemidji city council member and past League president. “She was also very friendly and very approachable — a real team player.”

Finding a path to public service

Max grew up in California and stayed through college. After marrying a Minnesotan and looking for a change, she traded steaming hot summers for frigid winters. Aside from a brief return to California for a role in Granite Bay, she hasn’t looked back — though public service wasn’t her original plan. She initially became a certified public accountant to do public accounting until an opportunity with the City of Crosslake shifted her path. That job led to a position with Pequot Lakes Public Schools, before she took the role of city administrator for Nisswa in August of 2017.

In 2020, she joined the LMC Board and moved on to the executive committee the next year — an unusually fast progression.

“I was the administrator in the group of elected officials,” Max said. “We really gelled and could share thoughts and ideas.”

Tackling city challenges

Max helped shape the League’s agenda by bringing firsthand experience to issues like local sales tax authority and city support for first responders experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and other mental health challenges.

There’s a disconnect in how the process works when someone requests duty disability benefits from the Public Employee’s Retirement Association (PERA), Max said. In Nisswa, she explained, the situation was going to create a 20-year financial obligation for the city. “I want to provide whatever benefits and resources law enforcement needs. That’s a standard, I think, that everybody wants, but we also need to be at the table and be part of the conversation to understand what decisions are being made at the state level.”

In 2023, the Legislature approved a onetime funding allocation to support cities dealing with PTSD-related costs. Discussions on long-term solutions are ongoing.

Max also valued the chance to travel the state to hear from other city officials about the issues they were facing.

“There were so many moments throughout the year that I will look back on with appreciation,” she said. “It has been such a great experience being on the League Board. It went by fast, but it was wonderful.”

Leading through transition

Max also played a key role in the search for a new executive director following the retirement of former LMC Executive Director Dave Unmacht.

Max helped screen the applicants and brought the perspective of city staff to the selection committee, which had more elected officials. “She would point out things that we weren’t looking for and she really helped,” Johnson said. “That was a big one.”

The Board ultimately promoted Luke Fischer from within. He started in May 2023 and credits Max and the Board with helping to make the transition smooth.

“She did a great job of providing a lot of stability in the organization through a transition that could have been complicated,” Fischer said. “She did a lot to make the transition smooth and easy.”

That’s in line with her work in general, said Fischer, who enjoyed the opportunity to travel the state to visit member cities with Max.

“Jenny has been a phenomenal steward of the organization during her time on our Board,” Fischer said. “She’s a very bright person and a very capable city administrator.”

Looking ahead

Max says she will always cherish her time on the LMC Board.

“It was a great, great group to be a part of and I’m appreciative of the support they gave me,” she said.

She’s looking forward to reestablishing a routine with her family and exploring new opportunities for civic engagement.

She also recently made her next professional move — becoming city administrator in Champlin, where she replaced retired administrator Bret Heitkamp. It’s the next step for her in a career that has become her passion.

“I had never planned to pursue a career in local government and had never learned much about it in school,” she said. “It was generally not on my radar. But not long after I started my first job at the city, I knew this was something I wanted to pursue with intention. I simply fell in love with the work.”

Andrew Tellijohn is a freelance writer.