HADLEY — Carolyn F. Brennan will begin her tenure as Hadley town administrator in mid-September following the Select Board’s unanimous approval of a contract Wednesday.
“I’m very excited, it’s been a goal I’ve had for about seven to eight years,” Brennan told the board. “I’m happy to be in this place.”
Brennan, executive director of the East Longmeadow Council on Aging and chairwoman of the Wilbraham Finance Committee, is scheduled to start in Hadley on Sept. 15.
She will work alongside current Town Administrator David Nixon until the end of 2020, when he leaves the position he has held since 2005. Brennan becomes Hadley’s third permanent administrator.
Select Board member Joyce Chunglo, who was on the board when Nixon was hired, said Nixon will be a great teacher for Brennan.
The precise terms of the contract are not yet available as it is being reviewed by town attorneys. The position was advertised with an annual salary range of $90,000 to $110,000.
Brennan, who has been working professionally in municipal government for more than 25 years, said she is familiar with Hadley from her time as an undergraduate at the University of Massachusetts and working at the former Shady Lawn Rest Home.
Pursuing a job as town administrator has been a goal for Brennan since 2016 when she began an MBA program at American International College and in 2018 received a certificate in Local Government Leadership and Management from the Moakley Center for Public Management and Massachusetts Municipal Association.
“This was exactly the type of community I knew I could become a part of and I am excited to start this new phase of my career here,” Brennan said.
Brennan’s selection came after contract negotiations with the board’s initial choice, Thomas M. Guerino, fell through earlier this month.
Scott Merzbach can be reached at smerzbach@gazettenet.com.
