Strategic Initiatives & Financial Oversight Committee Appointees

FRAMINGHAM, MA- A total of 20 people threw their name in the hat , hoping to be appointed to the city's new Strategic Initiatives and Financial Oversight Committee. The mayor announced on Thursday that nine residents were chosen.

The nine residents were appointed by the three important governmental bodies in the city- the mayor, the City Council and the School Committee, each appointing three residents. The nine residents appointed will serve staggered three-year terms. Each appointing group had to chose a resident with expertise in finance, another with ties to the business community and one member-at-large.

Mayor Spicer's three appointees include Robert Case of District 5, Michael G. Gatlin of District 6 and Mahmood M. Akhtar of District 3.

Case is appointed to serve in the expertise in Finance seat. He has more than a decade of finance experience, working for an international asset management firm. He is a long-time Framingham resident who has been active in town politics- he served on the Framingham Ways & Means Committee and was Precinct 8 Chair for Framingham Town Meeting. Gatlin is appointed to serve in the Member of the Local Business Community seat. Gatlin has been practicing law for nearly four decades and specializes in real estate law. He is the Chair of the Framingham Economic and Industrial Development Corporation, President of Framingham Downtown, Inc. and Vice President of the Framingham State University Foundation, Inc. Akhtar will serve the At-Large seat. He retired from Boston Edison Company / NSTAR Electric and Gas Corporation after more than 40 years of service and has held numerous volunteer positions for the Town of Framingham, including Vice-Chair of the Human Relations Commission, Member and Vice Chair of the Finance Committee and Chair of the Finance Committee.

The City Council's three appointees include James Culhane of District 6, Mary Kate Feeney of District 3 and Gerard E. Desilets of District 5.

Culhane is appointed to serve in the expertise in Finance seat. He has more than three decades of experience, working in municipal, corporate and project finance. He possesses an extensive record in understanding what conditions are necessary to fund ongoing operations and infrastructure improvements for municipalities. Feeney is appointed to serve in the Member of the Local Business Community seat. She is the Founder and Chief Strategist for Dockside Media and the Director of Communications for Mount Alvernia High School. As well, she served as Governor Deval L. Patricks’ Director of online media from 2010-2013. Desilets is appointed to serve in the At-Large seat. Desilets is a long-time resident of Framingham and has served in a number of volunteer positions, including seven one-year terms as Town of Framingham Moderator. For the last twenty years, he has worked for the South Middlesex Opportunity Council in various capacities, such as Senior Director of Planning and Director of Behavioral Health Services.

The School Committee's three appointees include Joel Francis of District 2, Darlene Umina of District 1 and David Kilkis of District 1.

Francis is appointed to serve in the Expertise in Finance seat. He has been employed by a multi-national public accounting firm for over 20 years, providing financial statement audit services for a diverse group of companies. He also serves as PTO Co-treasurer. Umina is appointed to serve in the Member of the Local Business Community seat. She is a realtor and small business owner with The Umina Group of Lamacchia Reality in Framingham. She is a current parent in the Framingham Public Schools and has been active in the community as a Pre-School Board Member, as well as with numerous local charities. Kilkis is appointed to serve in the At-Large seat. As a Senior Director of IT, Security, and Operations at a company in Massachusetts, he has extensive experience in the fields of technology, financial planning, contract negotiations, and capital projects.

ALSO READ:

11 Apply For Strategic and Financial Oversight Committee

Framingham Launches Complete Count Committee For 2020 Census

City Council Challenges Mayor's Jurisdiction Over Nobscot Chapel

(For more news and information like this, subscribe to the Framingham Patch for free. If you have an iPhone, click here to get the free Patch iPhone app; download the free Patch Android app here. Don't forget to like us on Facebook! Got a news tip? Email samantha.mercado@patch.com)