Clallam County, County Administrator Candidates
What: Meet, greet four candidates for Clallam County Administrator
When: 5 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 6
Where: County Commissioners Meeting Room (Room 160), 223 E. Fourth St., Port Angeles
Notes: Enter at side door entrance, west of the main courthouse doors; meeting will also be livestreamed to public
Four finalists including Port of Port Angeles Commissioner Colleen McAleer have been selected to succeed longtime Clallam County Administrator Jim Jones.
County commissioners announced the finalists in an Aug. 20 news release.
Jones, the county’s top executive since 2006, will resign by Oct. 31, Commissioner Mark Ozias said last week.
The news release did not include the candidates’ cities of residence.
The position will pay between $130,201 and $158,652, the latter of which is Jones’ salary.
The range includes benefits totaling 35 percent of the salary that is decided by the commissioners, county Human Resources Director Rich Sill said.
The applicants are as follows:
• Colleen McAleer: McAleer was elected to a second four-year term as a port commissioner in November 2017.
McAleer was laid off as senior director of programs and administration at Airborne Environmental Control Systems, a port tenant in Port Angeles, in July after being hired in March, she said Monday.
Before becoming port commissioner, McAleer was the port’s marketing and property manager and its director of business development.
She started working for the port in 2011.
• Dean Brookshier: He most recently was county administrator of Clay County, Mo., which had a 2017 population of 242,874 compared to Clallam County’s 75,474.
Brookshier also was city administrator for Chilllicothe, Mo., population 9,668 and was the owner of a family cattle company.
Brookshier also was deputy chief of staff for Missouri 6th District U.S. Rep. Sam Graves and a career agent for Missouri Farm Bureau Insurance.
He has a bachelor’s degree in political science from Missouri Western State University.
• Keith Campbell: He has 12 years of local government experience and is the city manager for Stayton, Ore., a town of 7,644 in 2010.
Campbell has served as city clerk for Shawnee, Kan., and was deputy county clerk for Douglas County, Kan.
He has a master’s degree in public administration and a bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of Kansas.
• David Fraser: He has 13 years in local government experience and is currently the senior associate for Municipal Solutions in Goodyear, Ariz.
Municipal Solutions LLC is a public-sector consulting company.
Fraser has been city manager for Boulder City, Nev., population 16,000 in 2017, and Buchanan, Mich., population 4,313; town administrator for Milliken, Colo., population 7,014, and city administrator for Beloit, Kan., population 3,710.
Fraser, former executive director of the Nevada League of Cities and Municipalities, has a master’s degree in public administration and a bachelor’s degree in political science from Brigham Young University.
Focusing in
Ozias and Commissioner Bill Peach narrowed the field of 32 applicants down to 11 in an executive session July 13, and to five at an Aug. 10 executive session, with the aid of Keller, Texas-based Strategic Government Resources.
One of those candidates removed herself from consideration, leaving four, Ozias said.
The search firm, which specializes in recruiting executive-level government employees, is under a $27,000 contract with the county to find a new administrator.
Ozias said that the decision to narrow down the candidates can be made in executive session rather than open session as part of the evaluation process, which can take place behind closed doors.
A hiring decision must be made in open session, according to the state Open Public Meetings Act.
A committee of six people chosen by Ozias, Peach and Commissioner Randy Johnson — they will make two appointments each — will interview the applicants, Ozias said.
Ozias said Monday he does not know if the applicants will be interviewed in public session by commissioners or the community panel before commissioners make an appointment.
“We haven’t talked about that specifically,” Ozias said. “I’d say that’s a possibility.”
A community meet-and-greet with the county administrator applicants will be 5-7 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 6.
The applicants have filled out a questionnaire, undergone online interviews and had psychometric assessments, which measure mental capabilities and behavioral styles, according to the Institute of Psychometric Coaching.
Community panel to help select county administrator
Clallam County has selected a community panel to participate in the interview process for the four finalist candidates for Clallam County Administrator. The panel is comprised of two members from each of the three districts:
• District I
Dr. Monica Dixon serves as president of the Olympic Peninsula Healthy Community Coalition. She is a published author, registered dietician, and psychologist, as well as being an experienced coalition-builder and nationally known health policy expert.
Charles A. Brandt is the director of the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory’s Marine Sciences Laboratory headquartered in Sequim. Prior to coming to the Marine Laboratory in 2009, he worked at the Richland campus of PNNL as an ecologist, line manager and business developer for more than 20 years.
• District II
Marc Abshire is the executive director of the Port Angeles Chamber of Commerce. He grew up in Port Townsend and attended the U.S. Air Force Academy on a nomination from Sen. Henry “Scoop” Jackson. After graduation from the academy, he later received a master’s degree in English Literature from the University of Colorado-Boulder. His U.S. Air Force career included serving four years in ltaly with NATO and, prior to that he was the operations officer at the Air Force Western Launch Range in California. Prior to moving back to the Olympic Peninsula in 2014, he was vice president of communications for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
Mary Budke is the CEO of the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Olympic Peninsula, which she has led since 2011. In her role as chief executive officer, she is responsible for growth, operations, strategic initiatives, budgeting and fundraising. Formerly, she was a bank assistant vice president and has earned two bachelor’s and a master’s degree.
• District III
Katherine (Katie) Krueger is a Washington State attorney residing in Forks. Retired from Quileute Natural Resources in 2017, her experience also includes prior legal employment with major petrochemical companies in Texas and lllinois, City of Houston’s public works, and a previous career as a geologist. She remains active in a number of nonprofit and natural resources committees.
Tim Fletcher is lifelong resident of the WestEnd and currently holds the elected position of mayor of the City of Forks.
Paul Gottlieb is a Senior Staff Writer with the Olympic Peninsula News Group, which is composed of Sound Publishing newspapers Peninsula Daily News, Sequim Gazette and Forks Forum. He can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 55650, or at pgottlieb@peninsuladailynews.com.
