WESTBROOK – Westbrook has selected its first chief financial officer for the city and school department.
A former finance director for municipalities in New Hampshire, Dawn Ouellette will start working in Westbrook on May 3, pending approval from the City Council Monday and from the School Committee Wednesday.
The new position is a consolidation of the school department’s business manager and the city’s finance director. Those jobs were most recently held, respectively, by Michael Kuscma, who resigned in October to take a similar position with the school department in Sanford, and Susan Rossignol, who was not reappointed by Mayor Colleen Hilton in January.
“I’m very excited to be working for a government that’s looking for a common sense approach,” Ouellette said Wednesday before meeting other City Hall staff. “I can’t wait to get started.”
The proposed salary for the new position is $85,000. This year, the school business manager was salaried at $78,600 and the finance director was at $81,000.
“I’m thrilled,” Hilton said about Ouellette. “What’s important is that this is a true collaboration between the city and the school and it’s such a critical area. We’re very encouraged about her starting.”
Most recently, Ouellette was the senior municipal auditor at Plodzik & Sanderson, an accounting firm in Concord, N.H. Previously, she served as finance director for the towns of Bow and Pembroke and the city of Franklin, all in New Hampshire. A certified public accountant, Ouellette, 35, holds a bachelor’s of science in accounting from Franklin Pierce University and a master’s degree in public administration from the University of New Hampshire.
According to an announcement sent to city employees by Human Resources Director Kristy Gould, Ouellette was unanimously chosen by an interview committee, which consisted of representatives of the city and the schools. She will be splitting her time equally between City Hall and the school department’s central office.
“She really has the depth of knowledge and experience and to bring people together,” said Superintendent Reza Namin, who was on the committee. “She has the personality. She has talent. We look forward to having her work in our community.”
City Councilor Michael Foley, who also was on the interview committee and serves as the chairman of the city’s Finance Committee, said he’s excited about Ouellette coming to Westbrook and believes she’ll be able to help shape the new position to meet the schools’ and city’s needs.
“I think she’s a perfect fit for the position,” he said. “I think everybody’s going to like her.”
This isn’t the first time Ouellette will step into a newly created position. She was hired as the first finance director for the town of Pembroke, N.H., which previously only had a bookkeeper.
According to Pembroke’s former Town Administrator David Stack, it was after an audit done by Ouellette that the town decided it needed to upgrade the position.
“I ended up tracking her down to see if she was interested,” said Stack, who is now the town administrator in Northwood, N.H. “She had a real good knowledge of the accounting end.”
But, according to Stack, because municipal positions require working with staff and elected officials, they also require a bit more finesse.
“You can be real good with the numbers … but you also have to practically be able to apply that,” he said. “It’s a real art to blend the two.”
Stark, who also attended graduate school with Ouellette, said she came with a strong financial background and, he believes, has acquired the managerial skills, too.
The School Committee has already taken a first reading on its $33.2 million budget for next year, and the administration is presenting its budget to the council Monday. Foley said he thinks it’s “the perfect time” for Ouellette to jump into the process.
“She’ll be going through the budget, just like we all will,” he said.
In Kucsma’s absence, Namin has been handling the school department business manager’s duties. Following Rossignol’s dismissal, the city hired Rocco Marzilli, a former finance director for South Portland, for 20 hours per week at rate of $40 per hour to help with the city’s finances. City Administrator Jerre Bryant said Marzilli will continue that work through Ouellette’s transition into the position, but he wasn’t sure for how long.
Meanwhile, Hilton is still dealing with the backlash of her decision not to reappoint Rossignol, who was the city’s finance director for 32 years.
In the months following Hilton’s announcement, the mayor said Rossignol displayed disruptive behavior, including continuing to come into City Hall to meet with employees and begging Hilton to be rehired.
In March, Hilton filed a complaint for protection from harassment against the former city official and police issued Rossignol a criminal trespass notice, banning her from City Hall for a year.
“I think legal action was necessary and has been helpful,” Hilton said Wednesday.
A hearing regarding the harassment complaint is scheduled for Monday in Cumberland County District Court. Hilton said a temporary protection order was issued last month. On Monday, she said, she plans to ask for the order to be extended for a year.
Dawn Ouellette was recently hired as Westbrook’s first combined chief financial officer for the school department and city government. (Staff photo by Leslie Bridgers)Send questions/comments to the editors.
