In a unanimous vote Sept. 8, the Magnolia city council named former deputy city secretary Debra Brent as City Secretary.

Afterwards, Brent said she did not expect the appointment, and was surprised when City Administrator Ryan Kelley told her to put the item on the agenda in preparation for the meeting.

“They never tell me anything!” she laughed.

In a letter addressed to the mayor and council, Kelley said it was his “strong recommendation” that the council appoint Brent as city secretary. He added that Brent performed well during the last few months, and “has done much to clear up problems inherited from her predecessor and shown creativity and knowledge in her job performance and a willingness to assist in all aspects of the City’s day to day operations.”

The decision comes two months after the turbulent firing of former city secretary LuAnn Drake, who learned she was being let go after three years with the city while on vacation.

In a handout letter to attendees of the July 7 meeting where she was fired, Drake claimed she was never told her work performance needed improvement.

At the time of her firing, the council cited only a “lack of confidence” as reason for her dismissal.

In Kelley’s letter to the City, he wrote that the city’s advertisement for the position of city secretary drew 10 applicants, many of whom had strong resumes, but only two of whom had municipal experience, one of them being Brent.

Brent said the advertisement for the position was placed with the Texas Municipal League and ran for a month.

According to the city’s Web site, the city secretary is “the custodian of all records.” Duties listed include preparation and distribution of city council meeting agendas and packets, accurate minute-keeping of meetings, and engrossing and enrolling all laws, ordinances and resolutions of the city council.

Brent previously spent 10 years as deputy city secretary for the City of Brenham. She was hired by Magnolia in April 2008.

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