LYNNFIELD — The Select Board met Monday evening to interview candidates for the town clerk and senior center director positions, unanimously deciding on Stephanie Jarosz for town clerk and Kelley Lesko for senior center director.
The Board began the meeting by interviewing the top two candidates for town clerk: Jarosz and Shawn Williams. They then interviewed top two candidates for senior center director: Lesko and Dale Palma.
Jarosz emphasized that “not a lot of people wake up wanting to be a town clerk. I am one of those people, so I feel like this position is just the natural trajectory of my career.”
She said she has a very lax management style and likes going “above and beyond” when it comes to customer service. She added that transparency is “the best approach” and that she tries to be “positive” and “energetic.”
Jarosz said her strong suit was overseeing elections. She has been through 25 elections, three of which were presidential, and all of which she described as “successful.” She added that she’s been through recounts and audits.
When considering how she would handle the additional requirements associated with early voting, Jarosz didn’t flinch. She immediately explained that there are a lot of time requirements, but “it’s not something that’s new to me.” She said she has “adjusted to the kind of chaotic work schedule around elections.”
Lesko began her interview portion of Monday’s meeting by sharing that she has “always enjoyed working with older adults.” She comes from the affordable housing arena and currently works with older adults as a resident services director.
Lesko described her management style as “lead by example,” adding that she also thinks “it’s really important to recognize the strengths of your staff members and really ask for their input so that people feel like they’re part of the mission.”
She said she has a tendency to “want to celebrate success, no matter how small, because everybody likes to have a pat on the back, and it’s just a really nice way to recognize your staff.” When considering volunteers, she added, “I always make sure my volunteers just know how impactful their time is and know the effect that they’re having on residents that they work with.”
When considering budgeting, Lesko shared that she is “pretty responsible. As far as making sure that every dollar counts, I really want to look at each expenditure and make sure that there is a return on community impact.” She added that she has written and managed multiple grants.
Lesko said she sees the senior center as a “hub for engagement and connection.
“I would like for the current needs, obviously, to continue to be met, but I think it’s also important to anticipate the changing expectations of future members,” she said. “I think diverse programming is important. You want to make sure you’re addressing health, maybe lifelong learning. I think intergenerational programming is really important, so I want to see more of that.”
She said strengthening community partnerships was integral since “the senior center is a hub for the entire community. It’s not just a senior center — it’s a shared resource.” Lesko also emphasized her collaborative nature.
The Select Board deliberated after all four candidates were interviewed.
Beverly Merritt of the town clerk search committee said the committee had unanimously voted to recommend Jarosz for the position after it interviewed five candidates.
“One of the main reasons was she had wonderful, long-time experience as an assistant clerk, so she could probably walk into that position very comfortably — and very important, I, myself, have worked at the polls for 30 years, and she had a ton of experience working at the polls, and the elections can get pretty hard to handle if the town clerk doesn’t know what’s going on,” Merritt said.
Merritt added, “She really will hold the job. I think she will do a very good job.”
Select Board member Alexis Leahy mentioned during deliberation that she “did find that Stephanie’s experience and approach to some of the ways she responded made me feel the same sentiment, that she would really walk into the role and be able to do it well without much training.”
Select Board member Dick Dalton added his take, as he chaired the town clerk search committee.
“It wasn’t just a unanimous vote,” Dalton said. “I would call it a real endorsement without any reservation.”
Anne Hourihan from the senior center director search committee then came forward, noting that the committee had interviewed eight candidates.
“When we weighed everything out, we felt more excited that Kelley could bring something new and invigorating to the senior center after Linda had been there for 25 years,” Hourihan said, adding that the committee voted unanimously to recommend Lesko was selected for the position.
Select Board Chair Phil Crawford, who was on the senior center director search committee, said Lesko “shined” from her very first interview. Dalton echoed Hourihan’s sentiment that Lesko could “maybe look at things a different way and bring some new life to the organization.”
The Select Board unanimously voted to appoint Jarosz to the town clerk role and Lesko to the senior center director position. Both Jarosz and Lesko will take on their new roles in September.
