MARGARET LAVANCHA

The Children’s Home of Jefferson County (CHJC) recently added MARGARET LAVANCHA as its newly appointed human-resources director. In this role, she is a critical member of the agency’s leadership team, participating in strategic change initiatives. She will provide leadership and supervision for the agency’s human resources department, including staff recruitment, retention, and daily oversight of benefits. Additionally,  LaVancha will ensure compliance with employment law and agency policy, and maintain and implement employee benefits, along with promote employee satisfaction. LaVancha received her bachelor’s degree in business management from Ithaca College and is also an alumnus of Jefferson Community College. After college, she worked in several short-term accounting-related positions, first in Waltham, Massachusetts and then in Watertown, New York. LaVancha had previously worked in the accounting department at the Stebbins Engineering and Manufacturing Company, where she was promoted to payroll manager. She worked for five years in accounting and payroll before being promoted to the director of human resources in 2002 and maintained that position until 2020. In 2020, LaVancha was appointed chief resource officer/director of human resources and at that time passed certification exams to hold seven state contractors’ licenses for Stebbins.