Former selectwoman Marie Sobalvarro is the town’s new human resources director and assistant town administrator, a part-time position created this spring at Annual Town Meeting.
The vote on Tuesday, August 5, to appoint Sobalvarro, one of two finalists, was unanimous.
When Sobalvarro steps into her new role, her first tasks will be to consolidate the policies and procedures for employees of the schools and the town and to develop strategies for recruiting and retaining personnel. She will also take responsibility for the array of benefits—including health insurance, retirement plans, workers comp—that the town provides. She will report directly to Town Administrator Tim Bragan, and over time, her role as assistant town administrator is expected to grow.
Before their vote, the board interviewed both Sobalvarro and a second candidate, Jennifer Cederberg of Charlton, but hesitated when it came time to decide.
“It’s very hard for me to be as objective as I’d like to be,” said Selectman Leo Blair. “As everyone knows, I have nothing but the highest respect for Marie.” But he had also been impressed by the second candidate, he said, and wanted to avoid the appearance that the decision was in any way political.
Former selectwoman Marie Sobalvarro at a BOS meeting in June. (Photo by Lisa Aciukewicz)
Selectwoman Lucy Wallace suggested they ask Bragan for his recommendation, but first Selectman Ron Ricci wanted to hear how Bragan and his advisory committee had chosen the two finalists, seeking assurance the process had been fair.
According to Bragan, who confirmed his answers in a follow-up interview with the Press this week, the town received 21 applications for the job. An ad hoc committee that included Bragan, Finance Director Lorraine Leonard, Treasurer-Collector Tammy Coller, and Executive Assistant Julie Doucet “narrowed that field down,” eliminating those who didn’t meet the criteria spelled out in the job description posted at the town’s website.
“Our lists were different as to who was in and who was out,” said Bragan. After discussing those differences, the group chose the five candidates they deemed the “best qualified”—a list that included both Sobalvarro and Cederberg—and invited them for interviews.
Bragan worked with Police Chief Ed Denmark to run background checks on the finalists and had checked their references. He said he also made clear to his team early in the process that one of the applications would be a “surprise,” but that “the individual was not to be treated any differently than any of the [20 others], plain and simple.” When it came time for the interviews, he asked his team if anyone was “uncomfortable.” He said they agreed the circumstances were “a little odd” but that Sobalvarro would “win or lose” based on her own credentials.
The five candidates were interviewed by Bragan, Leonard, Coller, and Doucet, who further whittled the list to three. Those candidates were then interviewed by Bragan, Board of Selectmen Chairman Stu Sklar, Superintendent of Schools Linda Dwight, and Finance Director Lorraine Leonard. In the end, said Bragan, they were left with two candidates, “equally viable, equally qualified,” though with different strengths, “and those two went on to the Board of Selectmen.” The committee “would never have [proposed] Sobalvarro to the Board of Selectmen if we hadn’t thought she was qualified,” added Bragan. “All four of us agreed that the final two would do well and be a benefit … and fit into the dynamic that we have as a working group.”
Bragan says he was not surprised when the selectmen asked for his recommendation last week. But, he said, “I would have thought they would have had their own discussion of pluses and minuses after interviewing both candidates.”
The best choice for the job
In the end, Bragan concluded that Sobalvarro was the best choice for the job, “for purely selfish reasons,” he said this week. “She’s someone I personally don’t have to bring up to speed” on the town administrator’s job. “Will Marie be able to do the job? Yes, without a doubt. Will she hit the ground running? Maybe, maybe not. I’m sure there are nuances to the job that she’s going to have to learn. Do I think she is the best candidate in the long run for the town? Absolutely. She will be here for a long time to come. I don’t see her going anywhere.”
After hearing Bragan’s choice last week, Selectman Blair moved that the board accept the town administrator’s recommendation. Ricci seconded the motion, saying he was satisfied the selection process had been fair. The vote was unanimous.
Although it has yet to be officially announced, Sobalvarro is expected to start work in Town Hall on August 25. “I’m looking forward to … using both components of my MBA concentration and [professional] work on behalf of the town,” Sobalvarro told the Press in a brief Monday email.
The biggest initial sigh of relief, according to both Bragan and Superintendent Dwight, will come from the several employees who have handled personnel issues for the town and schools over the past decade, especially Mary Zadroga, admininstrative assistant to the superintendent.
Ironically, considering her role in shaping the Plan 1B design for renovating the aging Town Hall, Sobalvarro will likely find herself seated among the file cabinets and boxes stacked in front of the second floor stage, yet another town employee awaiting a decision on the future location of town offices.
