BY JIMMY LAWTON
North Country This Week

CANTON -- St. Lawrence County legislators named Jolene Munger as the new Public Health Director.

Munger was the deputy Public Health Director, but had been serving as interim Public Health Director for more than a year following the resignation of Dr. Dana Olzenak-McGuire.

Several legislators spoke very highly of Munger just prior to the appointment.

Legislator Kevin Acres said she’s a good candidate for the position as she’s been doing the job without a deputy for more than a year as the county weathered the pandemic.

He credited her for organizing mass vaccinations for farms to allow them to get their employees vaccinated.

He also noted that she has a very positive relationship with local school districts.

“I’m looking forward to what she can do for public health here in St. Lawrence County in the future and I whole-heartedly support her appointment,” he said.

St. Lawrence County legislator Margaret Haggard said she couldn’t imagine being in public health during the pandemic.

“This person I got to know very well in the last few years. She rose to the occasion of filling this role in an amazing way,” she said. “This is a great appointment of course I’ll support it.”

St. Lawrence County Legislator RitaCurran said what Munger has taken on is incredible as she had only been the assistant director for a short time before taking over the helm in the middle of a pandemic.

Legislator Joseph Lightfoot said the county is very lucky to have Munger in the position that she is in.

“I know of no one right now that has ever experienced a pandemic and she’s done it with grace and efficiency. She’s shown that she’s got the background. She’s got the skillset and the foresight to run a department and added to that she was running it when there was a number of vacancies in that department and doing one very fine job,” he said.

Lightfoot also noted that the state had no issues with Munger’s qualifications, something that was a sticking point the county faced when they were looking to hire a previous director.

Munger will receive a salary of $106,359, that's up from the $97,933 she received as interim director.