Judie Zimomra is a native of Newton Falls, Ohio. Her family originally moved to her hometown and built their home in Newton Township when her grandparents relocated from the coal mines of southeast Ohio for local steel mill jobs in 1928. She currently is a resident of Grove City, Ohio.
Zimomra is a proud graduate of Newton Falls High School, Class of 1975. She earned her Bachelor of Arts Degree from Kent State University, her master’s degree in Public Administration from the Ohio State University and her Juris Doctorate Degree from Capital University. She is also a graduate of the Harvard University John F. Kennedy School of Government Senior Executives in State and Local Government Program.
After a very successful career in public service, 22 years in Ohio (working for the City of Worthington, Hamilton County and the City of Cleveland) and 20 years in Florida (as City Manager of Sanibel Island) she accepted an offer to join the staff of the Ohio State University John Glenn College of Public Affairs as a member of the Adjunct Faculty.
At the Ohio State University Zimomra teaches courses in Writing and Communications in Public Affair and the Capstone class. This Spring semester in addition to teaching the Capstone class Zimomra taught a graduate level “Disaster Preparedness and Response” course offered jointly by the Knowlton School of Architecture, Landscape and Planning and the John Glenn College of Public Affairs. Additionally Zimomra is an instructor in the College’s Management Advancement for the Public Service (MAPS) program where she teaches courses to mid-career professionals in emergency management and communication skill enhancement.
Since 2021 she has also served as a member of the Board of the Friends of Mahoning River. Spring 2022 she joined the Board of Heritage Accord, the non-profit dedicated to preserving and restoring the historic Newton Falls Community Center. Zimomra also serves as a Ohio State University John Glenn College of Public Affairs Alumni Association Board of Directors, where she is the in-coming Chair of the Student Enrichment Committee. She has also recently been appointed to a three-year term on the Ohio State University Faculty Council on the Committee on the University’s Physical Environment. Judie is also the incoming Faculty Advisor of the International City Management Association (ICMA) Student Chapter at the Ohio State University.
In 2016 and 2021 Judie received the Local Government Service Award from the International City/County Management Association (ICMA). The Local Government Service Award recognizes and honors a City Manager's dedication to public service and professional management at the local level. During the years Zimomra served the citizens of Sanibel as City Manager, the small town secured more than $65.3 million dollars in grants, many for water quality and environmental initiatives.
She is a past recipient of the Committee of the Islands Citizen of the Year, the Sanibel-Captiva Rotary Club Citizen of the Year, and the Sanibel and Captiva Islands Chamber of Commerce Citizen of the Year. She has also been named a "Power Woman of Lee County" by Florida Weekly, "Public Official of the Year" by the Fort Myers News-Press, Outstanding Alumnus of the Ohio State University John Glen School of Public Administration, and named as one of, "100 Buckeyes You Should Know", of Ohio State University.
During her tenure, the City completed a $73 million sanitary sewer system and effluent reuse system. Additionally, the City navigated through the recovery of the impacts of Hurricanes Charlie and Irma and the Red Tide devastation of 2018 during her tenure.
During her time as City Manager, the City was recognized by the American Planning Association (APA) with the National Planning Landmark Award, the Government Finance Officer’s Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting and Budgeting every year, the National Hurricane Conference, the Governor’s Hurricane Conference and has been designated as one of only two cities in Florida to be designated a “Gold Level” Bike Friendly Community by the League of American Bicyclists.
Zimomra has previously made presentations before the Duke Energy Hurricane Preparedness Seminar, the National Conference of the Government Finance Officers Association, the National Hurricane Conference, Florida Governor's Hurricane Conference, and the Barrier Islands Governmental Council. She was previously selected as the commencement speaker for her alma mater Newton Falls (Ohio) High School.
She is a past member of the Kent State Alumni Association National Board of Directors.
In 2022 was a speaker at the Florida City and County Managers Association on the topic “Transitioning to Academia”.
Judie Zimomra’s first job in public service was as a summer Comprehensive Employment and Training Act (CETA) worker assigned to the City of Newton Falls, Ohio.