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Oak Bluffs search committee elects Police Chief Searle as vice chair, selects six finalists and moves to executive session
Summary
The Town Administrator Search Committee approved interview questions, elected Police Chief Jonathan Searle as vice chair, selected six finalists for preliminary interviews and voted to move into executive session under MGL c.30A §21(a)(8); interviews are scheduled March 21–23, 2026.
The Town of Oak Bluffs Town Administrator Search Committee on March 18 elected Police Chief Jonathan Searle as vice chair, approved a slate of interview topics and narrowed its applicant pool to six finalists ahead of preliminary interviews scheduled for March 21–23, 2026.
Chair Dion Alley opened the midday meeting and Mr. Rick White reviewed the search process and a proposed set of candidate questions organized by topic: introductory items, board/community relationships, finances, and staff/team building. Mr. Greg Coogan nominated Chief Searle to serve as vice chair; Mr. Bill Honeycutt seconded the nomination, and a roll-call vote approved the appointment (7–Aye).
Why it matters: The committee will recommend finalists to the Select Board as part of the hiring process for Oak Bluffs' next town administrator. The committee’s decisions on questions, scheduling and finalist selection shape how candidates are evaluated before the Select Board review.
Committee members worked through candidate questions in detail. Mr. White said the list would ask candidates to outline priorities for their first six months on the job and to provide examples distinguishing management from leadership. Mr. Greg Coogan said he liked a suggested question from FINCOM Chair Bob Malecki and urged the committee to ask candidates: "Do you have experience in developing regional service delivery approaches with other municipalities? Describe any successes or failures you have encountered." Parks Commission Chair Tony Lima asked that questions about coordinating with multiple boards and committees be incorporated as well. Members discussed narrowing a "financial team" question to address broader staffing and management challenges.
On logistics, Mr. White asked the committee to identify up to eight candidates for interviews and proposed 1 hour and 15 minutes per interview; the committee decided to move six candidates forward and set preliminary interview dates of March 21, 22 and 23, 2026. Maura McGroarty joined the meeting during that scheduling discussion.
The committee then voted to enter executive session to consider applicants, with FINCOM Chair Bob Malecki moving that the committee "in accordance with MGL c.30A s.21 (a)(8)" enter executive session to interview candidates because an open meeting would be detrimental to recruiting qualified applicants. Chief Searle seconded the motion; the roll-call vote on that motion recorded six affirmative votes (Hagerty, Malecki, Honeycutt, Lima, Searle, Alley — 6 Aye). The motion stated the committee would not return to public session at that time.
In executive session the committee discussed applicants and selected candidates numbered 8, 17, 22, 25, 26 and 29 to advance to the preliminary interview stage. Mr. White will draft the final interview questions and circulate them to committee members for comment. Mr. Greg Coogan moved to close the executive session and adjourn; Chief Searle seconded and the closing roll-call vote was unanimous (7–Aye). Minutes were later recorded as approved on April 22, 2026.
Next steps: The committee will hold preliminary interviews March 21–23, each scheduled for one hour and 15 minutes; Mr. White will send the finalized question list to committee members in advance.
