Keith Rogers Jr., a VCU Wilder School alumnus and longtime public administrator, began his role in June as county administrator of Charles City County.
A Hampton native, Rogers (’10 MPA, ’08 B.S.) returns to the area after leading local governments in Dumfries, Virginia and Rocky Mount, North Carolina. He said he’s ready to bring his experience home.
“It feels great to be serving Virginians again and to be close to the city I spent a good portion of my life in,” Rogers said.
The role of county administrator
County administrators aren’t elected — they’re appointed by boards of supervisors to manage daily operations. Rogers describes the job as equal parts strategy, staff management and public engagement.
“It’s a myriad of meetings with staff, elected officials and board members,” he said. “But it also means being out in the community — at local events, talking one-on-one with residents. Sometimes my staff teases me because I don’t eat lunch. Lunch slows me down.”
His first priority in Charles City County is what he calls “getting your house in order.” That means balancing opportunity and challenge.
The rural locality is a potential site for new data centers, which could boost the tax base but also bring land-use pressures and a heightened need for economic development.
“For local government, we have to tailor our approach to take advantage of new technology,” Rogers said. “I don't ever want to innovate just for the sake of innovation. I want it to be a practical use or a problem that we're solving.”
He stresses that while artificial intelligence and other tools are more accessible than ever, government remains people-centered.
“I'd rather first identify the root of a problem, then figure out what technology is available to solve it,” he said.
A public service journey
Rogers’ path to Charles City County reflects more than 15 years of public service across Virginia and North Carolina.
“When the Charles City position became available and I was able to take a look at what needed to be done, I felt my background and education at VCU would prepare me to help bring the county into the future,” he said.
The son of a social worker, Rogers developed an interest in politics early. His mother’s leadership — along with L. Douglas Wilder’s historic tenure as Mayor of Richmond while Rogers was a student — inspired him to pursue a master’s in public administration at the Wilder School.
“I can't think of a better training ground than VCU. You've got federal, state and local government in close proximity. The doors VCU opens to gain hands-on experience is tremendous. Without it, I would not be here.”
– Keith Rogers Jr. (’10 MPA, ’08 B.S.)
One of those doors was the Virginia Capital Semester Program, which led him to serve as a legislative aide in the Virginia House of Delegates.
“Because of that internship, I actually became a legislative aide for Delegate Frank Hall,” he said. “I attended floor meetings, studied bills and shadowed prominent elected officials.”
>>Apply to the Virginia Capitol Semester program
From there, his career broadened: serving in various roles for the city of Richmond from 2009 to 2019, town manager of Dumfries and later city manager of Rocky Mount, N.C., where he focused on strategic planning and well-managed government.
Rogers has worked in communities of all sizes — from Dumfries, a town of about 5,000 residents, to Rocky Mount, a city of nearly 55,000. What stands out to him is not the differences but the similarities.
“I think when you're in communities of varying sizes, one thing that sticks out to me is the commonalities,” he said. “There are still many similarities in different local governments, whether it's a big city, county or rural town. For me, how similar they are is more impactful than the differences.”
For Rogers, good government has no cookie-cutter model. It demands flexibility, transparency and listening skills that put constituents first.
“There’s hundreds of years of theory on the politics of administration,” he said. “But I never got lost in theory without practical application. In my role, I really only have one job, and that is to serve the people.”
The reward, he added, comes when that service leads to an immediate, positive impact on someone’s life.
Wilder School foundations
Rogers credits the Wilder School with shaping his approach to public service — balancing theory with real-world application.
“The only way to gain context is to step outside of the classroom and engage in the field,” he said. “So, like I said, I would not be here without VCU.”
To today’s students, he offers simple advice: take advantage of the opportunities VCU’s location provides and don’t be afraid to experiment.
.jpg)
