City of Columbia names new executive

Listen to this article

Henry Simons, formerly system director of support services for Palmetto Health, has been named the City of Columbia’s assistant city manager for operations.

Simons began his new position on Monday. He will oversee city departments including parks and recreation, fleet services and the Columbia-Richland communications center.

“We are excited that Henry Simons has joined our executive management staff, and we look forward to working with him to make the city’s operations team even stronger,” Teresa Wilson, Columbia city manager, said in a news release. “We are always focused on ways to improve efficiency and increase effectiveness, and Henry’s vast experience will certainly move us closer to the level of excellence that we are working to achieve.”

In his Palmetto Health role, Simons led six support departments in four hospitals within the former Palmetto Health system, now Prisma Health. He has a master’s degree in health care administration from the University of South Carolina and a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from Benedict College.

“I am very thankful for an opportunity to work for the City of Columbia,” Simmons said. “I look forward to working with our city leaders and our community to make a difference in the lives of our citizens.”