Conversations With Clerks: Laura Schwall

The Municipal Clerk truly is a community’s jack-of-all-trades, often overseeing multiple departments and performing numerous tasks daily to keep local governments and public services running smoothly and efficiently. Conversations With Clerks is a continuing DeCoder series in which we talk with Municipal Clerks from across the country to learn more about their unique experiences and what it takes to be effective and successful in their roles.

Tell us a little about the Town of Rehoboth

Rehoboth is one of the oldest towns in Massachusetts. It was established in 1643, incorporated in 1645 and we celebrated our 375th anniversary back in 2018. Today our population is 13,240. We are the birthplace of public education in America, which is probably the most special thing about the town. Rehoboth is also known as a “Right to Farm Community,” which means that we promote agriculture based economic opportunities and protect farmlands within the community. One other bit of trivia about Rehoboth is that we were once in the Guinness Book of World Records for having the most golf courses per square mile in the country.

What was your journey to becoming a Municipal Clerk — was it
something you aspired to?

I never thought about being a Town Clerk. I was blessed to be at stay-at-home Mom with our daughter and in 1998 we moved to Massachusetts where I started helping in the schools where she was being educated. I started working as a para-educator within my daughter’s school system and then in 2002 I was hired as a computer teacher. I thought that was my dream to be a teacher, which I did for 10 years. Then the Town Clerk here announced she was retiring, and she approached me about the job. I had no idea what a Town Clerk did. She gave me a five-page document describing the position and said that she thought I would be a great fit.  I decided to leave the school and shadowed her for six months so I could see what her job was all about. It was a priceless experience and it served me well when I was appointed to take over the position in 2013.  In 2014 I was elected for my first term and re-elected for four additional terms to date.

The Rehoboth website describes the Town Clerk as “a custodian of the past and a link to the future.” How does that description align with the things that you do in your job?

Like every other village clerk, I pretty much stumbled into it. I started out in law. After I graduated from law school, I worked in personal injury, which I really didn’t like. And then when I had kids, I just stayed home for a few years. When my kids got a little older, just to get out of the house a few hours a week, I took a part time job at the Village of Manorhaven. At that time that mayor was not getting along with his clerk, and he asked me if I’d be interested [in taking the job full-time]. And the rest is history. I’ve been at Flower Hill for 16 years now and I’ve been doing this [kind of work] for 20 years.

What do you think you like most about your job in the 16 years you’ve been there?

Rehoboth has historic documents and records that date back to 1633 and it’s important to preserve them for future generations. When I took over as Town Clerk, I discovered that documents were strewn around the town in 12 different locations. So, one of my first tasks was to start the Town Hall Records & Preservation Program.  With the help of a records management company, we reorganized and cataloged the physical documents into just three locations.  General Code’s sister company, ICC Community Development, and Image Data also helped us by scanning old records, microfilm and microfiche and converted them into PDFs along with other files and put them into a streamlined database.  It was a wonderful process. It used to take forever to look for records and now you can just search the database to find where everything is. So hopefully, in the near future, people can do their own genealogy and look at other historic records in the comfort of their home. I’m working now with ICC Community Development to put those documents into our Laserfiche® software.

Are there other processes you’ve brought into the future?

We’ve automated our dog licenses, our business certificates — they’re all online. Our marriage certificates are now all fillable PDFs along with our posting notices. For elections we are one of the first communities to start using Poll Pads in Massachusetts, which is an iPad for checking in voters at the polls. We’ve also automated and streamlined the voting process for town meetings with electronic voting clickers and we’ve implemented online payment for town services using chip card readers. Currently we are in the process of working with General Code to codify our bylaws and put them online. When that is completed, our residents are going to have a resource that’s available 24/7 at their fingertips, which is awesome. Codifying has been my goal since 2013 — as they say all good things come to those that wait.

How has technology changed your job over the years?

I think it has mostly changed the way I communicate with the public. We can now get information out immediately on our website. I’m also proud of the new 40-inch screen we installed on the front window of the town hall where I can post our meeting schedule and other information from my desk — and it’s visible 24/7 for anyone who drives by. Additionally, we stream our board and town meetings live on our local cable channels and residents can also view replays of the meetings via links on the website.

What do you like most about your job?

There are so many nice things about the Town Clerk’s job, but working with the public is just a joy. I am honored to be the face of town government and work with people when they come in. They don’t always know who to talk to, but as the Town Clerk, I can either address their concerns myself or point them to the right person who can help. I also love elections and the whole voting process. 

What are some of the challenges you’ve encountered in your job?

Vote by mail has been taxing on the Clerk’s office as well as unfunded State mandates. The pandemic was really hard, too. In addition to our office remaining open during the pandemic, we conducted numerous elections and town meetings during that time. I take great pride in our office servicing the needs of our residents during the pandemic and especially since we were able to complete the voting process without any COVID case being traced back to an election or town meeting. 

How do you stay up to speed with changing legislation and procedures?

We do try to attend many of the Massachusetts Town Clerk conferences as well as the New England Clerks Association conferences. I am a certified Town Clerk, both in Massachusetts and internationally, so I have the CMC and CMMC designation. For the CMC designation you need to go to Plymouth State College in New Hampshire and participate in several years of training sessions, which was wonderful. The state is also very good at keeping us up to date and involved. I look forward to our Thursday Zoom class on elections, which keeps us up to date on the most current election laws and what we need to be doing to make sure our elections run smoothly.

What accomplishments are you most proud of?

I’m honored to be one of a few Massachusetts Town Clerks to serve on the state’s Steering Committee for the new computer system they will be implementing at the end of this year. It has been wonderful testing the new modules and providing suggestions for improvement and identifying bugs in the program so all Clerks in the Commonwealth will have a new computer program that is easy and helpful to use. I’ve also received the Rehoboth Public Servant Award and have been recognized by the Massachusetts Commission on the Status of Women (MCSW) for positive public leadership and in 2019 I participated in the 83^rd Citizens’ Legislative Seminar in Boston.

What advice would you give to a new Town Clerk?

Every day is a new adventure, and you need to meet each day with a smile. Always look to find ways to make town government more accessible and transparent. You also need to rely on your fellow Town Clerks. We have a wonderful Clerk’s Google group where you can throw out a question and get your answer within minutes. It’s also important to find a mentor. We have a great mentor program through the Massachusetts Town Clerks Association that I have been a part of. It really is important to get to know someone who’s been in the job a while who knows the ins and outs and can help you. Finally, look for the good in people and be kind. There’s so much negativity in our world these days that we need to turn that around.

What is on your bucket list?

Well, I’ve been to every state except Alaska, so I’d like to get there. I also have a passion for lighthouses, so I’d love to visit every lighthouse on the East Coast. I still have a lot of lighthouses to go but I’ll try to get to them when I retire!