Salina City Manager Mike Schrage has appointed Monique Hawley as Animal Services Manager.

According to the City of Salina, following a nationwide search that generated 24 candidates, Hawley, former animal control officer and interim manager, was selected for the role.

Hawley, a Salina native, has been an employee of the City of Salina since the city took over operation of the Salina Animal Shelter January 1, 2014. She was employed with the Salina-Saline County Health Department at the shelter for almost a year prior to the shelter transitioning to the city.

City Manager Mike Schrage states, “Monique is our longest tenured employee with the Animal Shelter with six years of prior service, and has served in the role of Interim Animal Services Manager for the past six months. I am certainly appreciative of the leadership and judgment she has shown in the role of Interim, and I look forward to building upon the working relationships Monique has built with her staff, supervisors and citizens. We are excited about the opportunity to build on the progress with Monique’s continued leadership.”

Salina Animal Services has been without a permanent manager since Vanessa Cowie resigned back in September, following a controversial suspension in August.