Oak Park Appoints Permanent Public Health Director

As of Monday, Oak Park has a permanent public health director.

Michael T. Charley has been the department's interim public health director since October 2015, the Chicago Tribune reported. He will oversee one of four certified municipal health departments in suburban Cook County.

"I am pleased to recognize all of Mike's hard work as interim director with this permanent appointment to a role that is vital to helping protect the health and welfare of the community," Village Manager Cara Havlicek told the Tribune. "His many years with the village and time served as interim director have made him uniquely qualified to assume this role in an official capacity. He knows the staff, he knows the community and he knows what it takes to manage a public health department."

Before taking on the role of interim director, Charley was the Oak Park Health Department's environmental health supervisor starting in 2003. Prior to that, he worked in DuPage County and Evanston as an environmental consultant for several state-certified health departments, according to the Tribune. He went to school for environmental health and environmental management at Illinois State University and the Illinois Institute of Technology, respectively.

"While the move from interim to permanent director does not change the duties, it does add to the sense of responsibility I feel to help define the future direction the department should go," Charley said in a statement. "With the continued guidance and support of the village manager and the village board, I am confident the Oak Park Health Department will remain an important community asset."

--

Image via Shutterstock