Franklin County has named Jerry Jones as its new Animal Services Director, responsible for overseeing the daily operations of Franklin County Animal Services.
“I am honored to continue to serve the residents and animals of Franklin County as the Animal Services Director,” Jones said. “We have made a tremendous amount of progress over the last year, and we will continue to work with the community in the days to come.”
Jones had been serving as interim director since September 3, 2024. He previously held the position of Sheriff in Franklin County from 2002 to 2006 and again from 2011 to 2014.
“We appreciate Jerry’s willingness to continue in this role as the permanent director of Animal Services,” said Franklin County Manager Ryan Preble. “Jerry has done a great job over the last year.”
Franklin County is experiencing growth in its industrial and manufacturing sectors while maintaining its agricultural roots. The county offers historic downtowns, local dining options, and community events within reach of Raleigh and Research Triangle Park.
In related education data, recent ACT results show that college readiness among students in Franklin County remains a challenge. For example, only about 14.9% of senior students who took the science portion of the ACT were considered ready for college during the 2022-23 school year (https://www.dpi.nc.gov/). Among juniors taking science, just over 13% met college readiness benchmarks (https://www.dpi.nc.gov/). Reading scores showed that nearly one-quarter of seniors (23.9%) were deemed ready for college (https://www.dpi.nc.gov/), while juniors had a similar rate at 22.5% (https://www.dpi.nc.gov/). Math readiness was lower: only about 12.7% of seniors (https://www.dpi.nc.gov/) and roughly 10.9% of juniors (https://www.dpi.nc.gov/) reached college-ready levels on their ACT exams.
