Mayor James J. Fiorentini announced that he has nominated Linda Koutoulas as the new Haverhill City Clerk. The appointment, which must be confirmed by the city council, would take effect January 1, 2014.
In making the announcement, Mayor Fiorentini said: “Linda Koutoulas is an outstanding candidate who will be an outstanding city clerk. She has over 16 years of government experience at the State House and at City Hall. She has done exemplary job over the past six years in serving constituents as my assistant. She has the background, energy level and experience to be an outstanding city clerk.” She worked for over ten (10) years at the State House working in the House of Representatives– first as a legislative aid and then was promoted to administrative aide. In that position she helped to draft legislation, handled constituent complaints, attended legislative hearings, wrote written testimony for committee hearings, and worked as a liaison between the office she worked in and the offices of other legislators.
In her role at the legislature, she worked for three State legislators—State Representative John Binienda of Worcester, State Representative Dennis Murphy of Springfield and State Representative Albert Herren of Fall River. She also worked as an aide to former State Senator Nicholas Costello. In addition to those ten years, she served as an intern for four years to former State Representative Nicholas Buglione.
Prior to working in the State House she worked in retail and managed small stores with experience in budgeting and in management. For the past six years she has been an administrative assistant to Mayor Fiorentini at Haverhill City Hall. In that role, she has handled hundreds of constituent requests, worked with the city council, and has often assisted in the city clerk’s office. In the past, Ms. Koutoulas has filled in as Acting City Clerk and has assisted the clerk’s office in handling several of the past elections.
In the Mayor’s office she has been in charge of recruiting, organizing and supervising volunteers and interns. Linda is highly involved in the Haverhill Community. She serves as the City’s Representative on the Creative Haverhill coalition, she is a member of the Haverhill Cultural Council and is a member of Haverhill’s Brightside and manages the city’s Adopt a Park Program. She is a member of the Haverhill Garden Club. Last year, she was honored by being inducted into the YWCA Academy of Women as one of Haverhill’s outstanding women. This year, she received the Dynamic Duo award from Career Resources for her mentoring of one of their clients. Linda’s education includes attending two years as a pre-med student at Boston University and a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the Massachusetts College of Art. She has taken advanced courses in computer technology.
Ms. Koutoulas resides in Haverhill with her husband Apostolos and their son Nicholas. The city began advertising for the position in August. There were nine applicants for the position. An interview committee consisting of Human Resources Director Mary Carrington, former Wang executive Robert Driscoll and former city clerk Peggy Toomey unanimously recommended Linda Koutoulas for the position.
Mayor Fiorentini stated: “This is a bitter sweet day for me. I am losing a wonderful assistant, who has been the heart and soul of my office for the past six years. She has supervised, organized and managed my volunteers and interns, and handled hundreds, maybe thousands of constituent requests. Over the years, I have received numerous letters from constituents commending her for her efforts in resolving issues. Linda understands completely that the role of government is to serve people and she excels at that. Linda is an incredibly hard worker. City Hall closes at 4, but most nights she is there until 5 or 6 PM. There have been numerous nights when I have told her to go home she is working too hard. The key job of being a city clerk is to serve the public. Ms. Koutoulas has had sixteen years of experience in serving the public. Her work ethic and her experience give her the tools to make an outstanding city clerk.”
