Shirley Saryan Makes Greenfield History with Appointment as Common Council President

Editor's note: Due to a reporter error, 5th District Alderperson Shirley Saryan was misidentified as the first female Common Council president in city history. Former Alderperson Barbara Clark was president for one year back in 1996-97.

We regret the error.

Original story:

Shirley Saryan says her eight-year tenure as alderperson of the City of Greenfield’s 5th District was an accident of sorts.

Back in 2005, when then-alderperson Michael Neitzke was elected mayor, his ascension created an opening on the city’s five-person Common Council panel. Saryan at the time served on the Library Board, and one night when it had a meeting with the Common Council, she just happened to sit in Neitzke’s former seat.

“(Alderperson) Karl Kastner was sitting next to me and said, you know, there’s an opening now,” Saryan said. “Maybe you’d be interested.

“I thought about it. I like to learn new things, and in the back of my mind I thought if I can do it, why not? I thought I could do some good for the city and the community.”

Last week, Saryan etched her name in the city’s history books when she was voted the first woman Common Council president, 39 years after Esther Fisher became the city’s first-ever female alderperson in 1974.

“It makes me feel good,” said Saryan, a longtime teacher in the Oak Creek-Franklin School District. “It’s pretty special, and I think it’s an honor for me to be the first woman Common Council president in the City of Greenfield. But I also think, if a person is right for a position, the abilities and the characteristics are what matters, rather than the sex of a person.”

Saryan, who in 2012 ran unopposed for re-election, could not put her finger on why there hasn’t been a woman president before. She said the small number of women alderpersons in the city’s history could be a reason; in fact, when she joined the Common Council, she was the only woman at the time.

“In a way that was special, too,” she said. “Four male alderpersons and a male mayor, but I was the only woman. Then, after I got on, maybe other women said hey, I can do this, or maybe it was a coincidence.”

The Common Council now has three women: Pam Akers, Saryan and Linda Lubotsky.

So what exactly does the Common Council president do? Not much more than Saryan already has been doing the last eight years, with one major exception. Should the mayor be temporarily disabled, Saryan would serve as acting mayor during his absence.

Otherwise, Saryan will chair the rare Common Council meetings when the mayor cannot attend. She'll also continue to make public appearances throughout the city and make tough decisions as a representative of the 5th District.

“It could be a big responsibility in an emergency, but normally, some of the things I’d have to do, I’ve done already,” she said.

Nevertheless, Saryan is proud to help Greenfield live up to its motto: “Pledged to Progress.”