News

June 1, 2017

Nicole Salamone Becomes First Certified Town Official in New York State

Nicole Salamone entered municipal government in 2005 after accepting a position in the Village of Scotia. After six years, she accepted a position in the Building and Planning Department in her hometown of Niskayuna, and she now works in the Supervisor’s office as the Director of Administration.

Ms. Salamone said she has found her niche in public service and truly loves heading into work each day at the Town. Her passion for learning was an asset when she heard about the Association of Towns’ (AOT) Certified Town Official Program.  Ms. Salamone immediately went to work within the curriculum, knowing it would aid her professional development.

“Each and every course that I have taken has broadened my understanding of the differing functions of every department in a municipality,” she stated.

So between 2014 when she first read about the program and her recent completion of the program in 2017, she participated in a variety of AOT courses. She said the variety enabled her to become more knowledgeable about the inner operations of town government, giving her more confidence in her interactions with department heads and leading to more productivity as she completes assignments from the Supervisor and Town Board. She said the CTO program was challenging, rewarding and beneficial to her career advancement.

To achieve the designation, town officials must complete 33 classes across 11 subject areas.  Participants attend classes located around the state.  Ms. Salamone completed the certification program in three years, finishing ahead of over 450 others in the program.

“Subsequent to earning the credits to be a CTO, I was promoted to the Director of Administration in the Supervisor’s office. I am thankful for the opportunity given to me by the Town of Niskayuna to become a CTO, and I intend to use this newly acquired knowledge for the betterment of the town,” she said.

Beyond the new title, Ms. Salamone has the distinction of being the first graduate of AOT’s CTO Program. She says she could not have achieved this goal without the support of the Niskayuna Town Supervisor and Town Board and her coworkers. Ms. Salamone was recognized with a ceremonial resolution from the Town of Niskayuna and a certificate presentation by the Association of Towns at a May 11^th town board meeting.