AMHERST — The new director of senior services for Amherst will be able to begin next week following the approval of her selection by the Town Council.
Councilors voted 11-0 Monday, with two members absent, to approve the appointment of Mary Beth Ogulewicz of Easthampton, a mental health attorney for a Springfield law firm who previously worked as a prosecutor for the Hampden County district attorney’s office. Town Manager Paul Bockelman had chosen Ogulewicz to succeed Nancy Pagano, who retired after 47 years at the Senior Center and who had served as its director since 2004.
Bockelman said Ogulewicz brings a range of skills, including being a mindfulness educator for the past several years at the Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health, serving as a licensed clinical social worker working in the field of elder care, and having direct personal experience when she advocated for her aging parents. Ogulewicz earned a bachelor’s degree from Boston College, a law degree from Western New England University and a master’s degree in social work from Westfield State University.
“Mary Beth has a unique combination of legal skills honed through years of practice combined with a social work understanding of the interconnectedness of the medical, mental health and legal systems,” Bockelman said.
And although he understands that Pagano’s long tenure means she will be difficult to replace, he said he believes Ogulewicz can move senior services to the next level.
“I’m confident she will excel,” Bockelman said. “She impressed everyone who interviewed her with her passion and creativity in how she wanted to approach delivering senior services to the town of Amherst.”
Ogulewicz said she was thrilled to be offered the job.
“I consider this opportunity to serve the community of Amherst a privilege and look forward to extending the good work of the Senior Center to those who attend programs and reaching out to new communities who haven’t accessed the center,” Ogulewicz said. There are approximately 5,000 seniors living in Amherst.
Ogulewicz was one of two finalists a screening committee forwarded to Bockelman, though the other finalist withdrew before interviewing with the town manager. The town received a total of 28 applications for the position.
The council vote came following a recommendation from its Outreach, Communications and Appointments subcommittee, the second time the process was used for the hiring of a department head after Human Resources Director Evelyn Rivera-Riffenburg was hired in January.
District 4 Councilor Evan Ross, speaking for the subcommittee, said concerns were discussed, including that Ogulewicz doesn’t have experience at a senior center.
Those concerns were overcome, Ross said, by the rigorous nature of the search process and the fact that Ogulewicz fits with Bockelman’s vision for the future of senior services in Amherst.
In addition to her employment at Morrison Mahoney, LLP in Springfield, she serves on the Hampden County Commission on the Status of Women, the Behavioral Health Network Human Rights Commission and the Women’s Fund of Western Massachusetts. She previously served on the Westfield School Committee for eight years.