Attendees
Preliminary Screening Committee Members: Emma Ellsworth/Fisheries and Wildlife Board/Chair, Ernie Foster/Fisheries and Wildlife Board/Secretary, Kyla Hastie/Fisheries and Wildlife Board, Tom O’Shea/DFG Commissioner, Allison Richards/Strategic HR Business Partner/EEA
Staff: Eve Schlüter/Acting Director, Kris McCarthy/Associate Director/CFO, Nicole McSweeney/ Assistant Director of Outreach and Education, Mike Huguenin/Assistant Director of Wildlife, Todd Richards/Assistant Director of Fisheries, Jesse Leddick/Assistant Director of Natural Heritage and Endangered Species, Pat Huckery/Northeast Wildlife District Manager, Joseph Rogers/Conn. Valley Wildlife District Manager, Jason Zimmer/Southeast Wildlife District Manager, Todd Olanyk/Central Wildlife District Manager, Andrew Madden/Western Wildlife District Manager, Johanna Zabriskie/Secreteriat HR Officer/EEA, Melixza Esenyie Deputy HR Officer Equal Opportunity and Accessibility/EEA
Discussion of the job description for the MassWildlife Director position (All)
Commissioner O’Shea welcomed the group and stated the purpose for the meeting – to discuss the job description that will be used in recruiting for the MassWildlife Director position.
Commissioner O’Shea explained that management-level positions within the Commonwealth all have an associated Management Questionnaire (MQ) that details the scope of the role and the qualifications required to perform the role. The elements included in the MQ will guide the job description. Ms. Hastie suggested including an opening section in the job description to highlight the scope and magnitude of the MassWildlife Division.
Commissioner O’Shea explained that the job description will be used to post the vacancy on various job boards to support national recruitment and a diverse candidate pool. The Commissioner engaged Ms. Esenyie to discuss job boards that would attract a diverse candidate pool. Ms. Esenyie accounted various job boards that could be utilized and recommended social media platforms as great options for getting the word out that we’re recruiting for this position.
Commissioner O’Shea explained to the group that the MassWildlife Director vacancy would not be posted to job boards until after the job description receives the Board’s vote of approval. The job description will be presented at the March 18, 2026 Board meeting for a vote. Commissioner O’Shea engaged Ms. Zabriskie to discuss the timeline for posting the position. Ms. Zabriskie explained that once the Board votes to approve the job description, the position will go through an internal approval path in MassCareers, the Commonwealth’s job board, and will then be posted externally. Additional job boards will be utilized following the posting on MassCareers.
Adjourn
There being no further business, Mr. Foster made a motion to adjourn. The motion was seconded by Ms. Hastie, and the vote in favor was unanimous. The meeting adjourned at 3:10 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Allison Richards
EEA Strategic HR Business Partner