Formal screening process a must in Trumbull County

With more than 50 applicants for the job of Trumbull County administrator, neither the commissioners nor the personnel director has the time to adequately review all the applications and select the best.
A screening committee made up of prominent members of the community should be impaneled by commissioners Paul Heltzel, Daniel Polivka and Frank Fuda to develop a list of, say, 10 finalists.
Then, Heltzel, Polivka and Fuda, along with Personnel Director James Keating, can whittle that list down to three and, in the final stage, conduct public interviews with them.
Such an open process for filling this important position will not only restore the credibility of the office, which has been damaged by former Administrator Anthony Carson's erratic behavior, but will go a long way toward assuring taxpayers that the best and the brightest among the applicants has been hired.
That's important considering the way Carson was given the job in January 2004 by then commissioners Joseph Angelo and James Tsagaris. They claimed that someone in the prosecutor's office offered them advice on making the appointment and granting Carson, who was purchasing director, a 12,741 raise. His salary jumped to 61,943.
However, the third commissioner at the time, Michael O'Brien, said he had "absolutely no idea" such a move was being made. Even more appalling was the fact that no one from the prosecutor's office came forward to acknowledge giving Angelo and Tsagaris the advice they claimed to have received.
The current board of commissioners can wipe that slate clean by proving, with the hiring of Carson's successor, that a new day has dawned in Trumbull County government.
Polivka's mother
Of course, cynics will point out that Polivka did not dissuade his mother from taking a job with a county agency in June 2005. Granted, he abstained from voting to hire her, but he should have shown better sense and talked her out of applying for a position in county government.
Nepotism leaves a bad taste in taxpayers' mouths.
It is encouraging that 54 men and women have applied for the 90,000-a-year administrator's position. The compensation package includes the salary, benefits and other costs. It is also reassuring that there aren't just political hacks, individuals with connections or mediocre private sector employees who are on the list.
A cursory look at the applicants shows that Trumbull County government has the opportunity to land an administrator who meets Commissioner Heltzel's standards. In December, five months after Carson resigned, Heltzel said the new administrator must be skilled in administration, finance and in "knowing how to get along" with the commissioners, other elected officials and department heads.
The reference to getting along had to do with Carson's claim, which was dismissed by a state hearing officer, that he driven to resignation by Heltzel's abusive behavior toward him and other county employees.
Trumbull County government has a chance to get someone on the payroll with real qualifications and experience, which is why a formal screening process is demanded.
The final decision will be made by the commissioners, but they should welcome the opportunity for an objective evaluation of all the applications.