Job Description
Welcome to La Crosse County — Where Your Work Truly Matters
Every day, our unique teams contribute to our vision of a community that is vibrant, safe, and resilient. Whether you're supporting families, safeguarding natural resources, maintaining infrastructure, or delivering essential services, your work here creates real impact for the people who live, work, and visit our county.
What You’ll Gain by Joining Us
• A Future You Can Count On: Wisconsin Retirement System (WRS), one of the most respected pension programs in the nation.
• Reliable, Affordable Coverage: Countywide insurance plans plus growing access to local, no-cost care options for everyday health needs.
• Time Off That Works For You: You’ll have two dedicated banks of vacation and sick time, giving you the freedom to plan real downtime when you need it—and the peace of mind to take care of yourself when you’re under the weather.
◦ Start earning vacation and sick time your very first day
◦ Bank up to 2× your annual vacation accrual
◦ Build up to 150 sick days as a full time employee
A Place Where Everyone Belongs
We believe our workforce should reflect the community we serve. We’re committed to fostering a culture of respect, inclusion, and belonging—because diverse perspectives lead to better outcomes for everyone.
FLSA: EXEMPT. The Public Health Planner position acts as a strategist that leads intentional and strategic service outcomes. The purpose of this position is to lead community health planning initiatives and support departmental grant writing, reporting, and strategic planning. This role is responsible for providing technical expertise, project management, and leadership related to the development, implementation, and facilitation of the La Crosse County Health Department’s (LCHD) Community Health Assessment (CHA) and Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP).
The Public Health Planner will have a portfolio of projects related to emerging public health issues focused on systems and policies. This position will translate community input along with public health evidence into prevention and control recommendations to ensure the appropriate public health measures are adopted. This role is responsible for working as a liaison to the public health system including other non-profit agencies, schools, health care systems, policymakers, and other county programs.
The Public Health Planner will support departmental efforts for accreditation, strategic planning, communication, and grant-writing. The position reports to the Health Department Director, will work directly with Health Leadership, and oversees supervision of program staff.
Essential Leadership Functions
Act with Integrity and Build Trust
• Demonstrate mutual respect, humility, and honesty in all interactions.
• Speak up appropriately, even when expressing unpopular viewpoints.
• Actively listen and remain open-minded to diverse perspectives.
Drive for Results
• Set clear goals and objectives to motivate self and others to achieve outcomes.
• Seek new opportunities to improve processes and drive sustainable results.
• Hold self and others accountable through consistent evaluation and monitoring.
Develop Talent and Effective Teams
• Foster a collaborative environment that encourages knowledge sharing and growth.
• Provide mentorship and support to help self and others reach full potential.
• Recognize and leverage diverse strengths within self and team.
Lead with Vision and Strategy
• Understand and communicate a compelling vision that aligns with organizational goals.
• Develop and execute comprehensive strategies to achieve long-term objectives.
• Connect daily work to the bigger picture, inspiring self and others to contribute meaningfully.
Lead with Paradoxical, Critical, and Agile Thinking
• Navigate complex situations by considering multiple perspectives.
• Adapt quickly to changes and uncertainties in the work environment.
• Make critical decisions using analytical skills, experience, and input from others.
Build and Maintain Effective Relationships
• Communicate and collaborate effectively with stakeholders across the organization.
• Influence others through coaching, consulting, and team-minded thinking.
• Develop and sustain partnerships that create positive outcomes for all stakeholders.
Cultivate Community Engagement and Provide Excellent Service
• Understand and address the needs and concerns of the community.
• Incorporate community perspectives into decision-making processes.
• Drive initiatives that create positive impacts beyond the organization.
Demonstrate Emotional Intelligence
• Show self-awareness and manage emotions effectively in challenging situations.
• Seek and respond constructively to feedback, even in the face of setbacks.
• Balance empathy with accountability when leading self and working with others.
Essential Job Functions
The following duties are most critical for this position. These are not to be construed as exclusive or all-inclusive. Other duties may be required and assigned.
Supervisory Functions
• Provides orientation, instructions, and training for staff that report to this position
• Assigns tasks, reviews work, and prepares performance evaluations
• Recommends professional development when appropriate
Community Health Improvement
• Leads community health planning initiatives, including the Community Health Assessment (CHA) and Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP).
• Develops and implements public health strategies, initiatives, and activities for community health improvement.
• Leads the collaborative development of a community health assessment using comprehensive broad-based data to describe demographics, health challenges, inequities, community concerns, and community assets.
• Assists in the development and implementation of the work plan to address goals, objectives, and strategies for improving health priorities identified by combining researched best-practices with community input.
• Monitors the implementation of the Community Health Improvement Plan and recommends revisions, as needed.
Public Health Strategy
• Contributes community health planning expertise to the community needs assessment process, health improvement goal setting, identification of public health policy and action options, program development, and creation of monitoring and evaluation plans.
• Performs functions to achieve the agency’s mission in areas of essential public health services and demonstrates foundational skills in the Core Competencies for Public Health Professionals.
• Assists with performance improvement efforts, including aiding in the facilitation and development of performance goals and measures across the agency.
• Support and participate in Public Health accreditation, 140 review, annual report, and department strategic plan as assigned by the Director.
• Works closely with the Accreditation Team to ensure timely submission of annual reports to PHAB, as well as assisting in the coordination of reaccreditation efforts.
• Participates in, maintains, expands, and strengthens community coalitions, partnerships, and committees for community health improvement.
• Maintains emergency preparedness core Public Health competencies by participating in preparedness training, exercises, and assists in emergency response.
Communication and Collaboration
• Engages the community through public presentations, meetings with organizational leaders, residents, and others to promote health in all policies.
• Assists with updating preparedness plans and preparedness drills and participates in emergency preparedness activities with community partners as needed.
• Manages a department-wide approach for developing and implementing communication strategies designed to encourage actions to promote health.
• Ensures unified public health messages through coordination with community partners, the governing entity, and other health departments.
• Selects methods and technologies to deliver messages and delivers messages effectively using identified strategies.
Policy, Systems, and Environmental Change
• Provides support for policy understanding, creation, and advocacy across all divisions in the Health Department.
• Educates others on the focus of policy, systems, and environment.
• Recommends policy, systems, and environmental (PSE) changes to improve population health.
• Uses data findings to inform the development or revisions of health policies, programs, or interventions.
• Cultivates, maintains, and manages strategic relationships with community partners, leaders, community members, policymakers, and organizations, and facilitates coordination of community efforts with health systems.
Grant-writing and Supervision
• Oversee grant-writing process and all grant work for staff who report to this position.
• Participates in grant writing and submission efforts to increase funding for the work of the organization.
• Assists in the management of grants, including supporting development of programs, tracking deadlines, and timely reporting on all grant-related activities.
• Monitors grant development, implementation, evaluation, and outcomes of program progress.
• Monitors and is responsible for the execution of project budgets; provides recommendations in aspects of project organization and administration.
Physical demands: Approximately half of time is spent in office sitting at desk, reading, writing, using clear and concise oral communication, hearing, using computer terminal, judgment and near vision. Sits, stands and bends intermittently throughout the day. A significant amount of time is spent moving about the office buildings and traveling to other community sites for meetings and presentations.
Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities
Knowledge of the core functions of public health, the 10 Essential Public Health Services, the Core Competencies for Public Health Professionals, and social and structural determinants of health.
Knowledge of public policies, systems, and environmental changes that support healthy communities.
Knowledge of program development and community change theory and methods, and community health assessment and planning models, methods, tools, and techniques.
Knowledge of community outreach, engagement, health communication, and social media and digital communication methods.
Knowledge of program management, public health program development, planning, implementation, research, evaluation methods, needs assessment, and grants management.
Excellent interpersonal, written and verbal communication skills.
Strong time management and organizational skills.
Skilled in communicating effectively and collaboratively with individuals and groups from a wide variety of backgrounds and experiences.
Relationship-building skills and organizational skills, including the ability to organize work activities to meet objectives and manage programs.
Critical thinking, problem-solving, and innovative solution-finding skills.
Skilled in using Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook).
Ability to multitask, prioritize, manage time efficiently, and work independently or as part of a team.
Ability to establish and maintain effective relationships with a wide range of persons, including community members, medical providers, businesses, schools, community-based agencies, and departmental staff.
Ability to synthesize complex information and present it in an understandable way to varying audiences from leadership to the public.
Ability to supervise staff, prepare performance evaluations, and make recommendations
Training, Experience and Other Requirements
Qualified candidates will have a bachelor’s degree in public health or a related field, with at least three years of experience in a related field. A master’s degree in a related field is strongly preferred, as is specialized training or certification in public health preparedness or community health. Candidates should have expertise in assessments, program planning, data analysis, and grant writing. Strong communication, community engagement, and knowledge of public health policies, disease prevention, and health promotion are essential. Familiarity with facilitating community meetings and building partnerships is preferred. Prior experience with community health assessments and community health improvement planning. Experience with academic writing, research, and/or grant writing. Supervisory experience is preferred.
For many positions, must have a valid driver's license and access to personal transportation (or access to other reliable means of transportation for county-wide travel).
Equal Opportunity Employer
We’re proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer committed to building a workforce that reflects the community we serve.
Need an Accommodation?
If you require a disability-related accommodation at any stage of the hiring process, reach out to Human Resources at jobs@lacrossecounty.org — we're here to help.
Ready to Apply?
Submit your application through our online career site. Please double-check your materials before submitting them; complete applications help us move quickly and give every candidate fair consideration.
