ROSELLE, NJ — Lisette Sanchez made a move recently, from the position of deputy municipal clerk for Orange, one she held for a year and a half, to new municipal clerk for Roselle. After more than 16 years of working in municipal government, 14 of those years in clerk’s offices, this will be her first time as a municipal clerk.
Born and raised in Newark, Sanchez graduated from East Side High School and went to American Business Institute, where she graduated as the valedictorian of her class with a certificate in executive secretarial sciences and an associate’s degree in business administration from Essex County College.
Sanchez said she has always had a desire to work for the public, something that has led her to work in various positions and learn a great deal in the process, preparing her for her new role as municipal clerk.
“I started my career in a highly reputable law firm, St. John & Wayne, working for one of the founding partners. In this position, I learned a lot about contracts and civil actions, but I wanted to work with the public,” Sanchez said on Tuesday, Nov. 9. “Therefore, in 2005, I went to work for the city of Newark’s Law Department, where I worked for one of the first assistant corporation counsels, reviewing and approving legislation, processing tort claims and lawsuits against the municipal corporation. In 2007, when the first assistant corporation counsel retired, I transferred to the city clerk’s office.”
In Newark’s clerk’s office, she started in the staff office, only now she was preparing the Municipal Council agenda, attending meetings, recording actions and meeting minutes, and processing adopted legislation.
“Robert P. Marasco, the longtime city clerk, saw that I was highly motivated, hardworking and enthusiastic and asked me to work as his executive assistant,” said Sanchez. “In this role, I worked closely with the city clerk and the Municipal Council members. As the executive assistant, I became the city clerk’s office contact for financial disclosure statements. In addition, I was very much involved with the election process, which entailed certifying candidates for the municipal election and (being) in charge of staff coverage during the election.”
In 2017, she went to work at the Orange Township clerk’s office for almost four years. While she was there, Sanchez studied for and passed her registered municipal clerk’s exam, which she said has given her a better understanding and appreciation for the municipal clerk’s role.
When the chance to work as Roselle’s municipal clerk opened up, Sanchez jumped at the opportunity.
“Chief financial officer Anders Hassler reached out to me via email, congratulating me for passing the municipal clerk’s exam, and informed me that the borough of Roselle was looking for a municipal clerk, (so) … I left Orange … to become the municipal clerk in Roselle,” Sanchez said.
In addition to serving as the chief administrative officer of all elections in the municipality and as the chief registrar of voters in the municipality, Sanchez said she will have other responsibilities as municipal clerk, including acting as a secretary to the municipal corporation and custodian of the municipal seal and of all minutes, books, bonds, contracts and archival records of the municipal corporation. She said her duties will also include acting as a secretary to the governing body, preparing meeting agendas, being present at all meetings of the governing body, retaining the original ordinances and resolutions, and recording the minutes of every meeting; serving as the administrative officer; serving as the coordinator with the records manager; and performing similar duties.
“I feel very blessed and thank God everyday for blessing me with this opportunity to work in the borough of Roselle as their municipal clerk,” Sanchez said. “The mayor, council, staff and residents have all been very welcoming. As I consider myself a public servant, working in municipal government is very fulfilling.”
Sanchez said she has a goal sometime in the future of digitizing all the resolutions and ordinances, allowing the clerk’s office to store, manage and protect records.
“The importance of digitized records became more prevalent to me while working in Orange during the pandemic, as the city clerk’s office was able to continue working without interruption, since their records were digitized,” she said.
Orange Mayor Dwayne Warren praised Sanchez for her reliability as the city’s deputy municipal clerk.
“I wish Mrs. Sanchez well in her new position,” Warren said on Saturday, Oct. 16. “I am confident that she will achieve her full potential. In Orange, we pursued a heavy legislative agenda during her tenure and she was a reliable member of the team in the clerk’s office. I am always well pleased when members of the Orange employee family grow and branch out into new endeavors.”
Sanchez lives in Newark with her husband of 30 years and her four children.