City looking for public information assistant

The city is advertising the job of assistant public information services director, and City Manager Charlie Cabler said that the duties do not overlap responsibilities in present positions.

These include the jobs held by Bill Young, who is known as both a public information officer and community relations officer and by Jerry Hedgecock who is called public information services director. Hedgecock supervises the library system, media services, and grant and library planning division.

The new position would be under Hedgecock's supervision and under the library's budget, Cabler said.

Young is under Cabler and in the city manager's budget, but he also does work for Channel 12, which is under the library's budget.

The public information services director post was created in 2006. As The Herald reported that fall, Hedgecock used to be known as interim assistant library director, but state requirements precluded him from being a library director because he lacked the required postgraduate education. The assistant post is to assist Hedgecock.

According to the city's Web site, as public information officer, Young works with the library system, which operates Channel 12, prepares and distributes employee and citizen newsletters, handles city advertising and prepares several press releases weekly to inform the public of city projects and programs.

"The job would be a bit different," Cabler said of the new post compared to Young's duties.

The new post was included in this year's fiscal year budget.

Assistant public information services director.

>Salary: $50,888

SOURCE: City of Brownsville

 >Community relations officer, also known as public information officer, Bill Young: $52,580. Job requirements include bachelor's degree or education and training equivalent to four years of college education in communications, journalism or related field and from two to four years of experience.

>Public information services director Jerry Hedgecock: $67,776. Requires bachelor's degree or education and training equivalent to four years of college education in business, liberal arts, or four or more years of experience in an appropriate field.

SOURCE: City of Brownsville