RSU 21 hired Dawn Therrien as the district’s new human resources director in an emergency School Board meeting Friday afternoon. She will earn a salary of $137,917.

The previous HR director, Scott Harrison, resigned in July.

In his resignation email, Harrison cited “highly unprofessional” conduct in the district, noting that his time there had been “challenging.”

Superintendent Dr. Terri Cooper praised Therrien as the new HR director last week, telling community members that Therrien’s appointment is not just about “filling a seat.”

“This is about me putting forth a candidate that I believe will take the position to the next level,” Cooper said.

Therrien has about 20 years of experience as an HR professional, working with global companies and nonprofit organizations. She has served on the district’s HR Committee and as a member of the school board where she has led previous contract negotiations.

Therrien served on the RSU 21 School Board until a year ago, meeting the requirement for any new staff member to have been off the board for at least a year in order to work in the district.

During public comment, several residents said they were surprised to see an emergency meeting pop up so quickly, with many saying the community was not given enough notice that the meeting was occurring.

“It definitely appears that this was thrown out last second to push people through,” Laura Holder said.

Community members also voiced concerns about the salary of the HR director, saying that it is “extremely high” for the state.

But the average HR director salary in Maine hovers in the $100,000 range. In Portland, the school district’s HR director makes approximately $128,000, according to Glassdoor.

Still, community members say they are upset about the high salary because teachers are still in contract negotiations, even as the school year begins.

“We’ve been in negotiations with teachers and ed techs who are severely underpaid,” Amy Johnson said. “This does not play well.”

RSU 21 has been in contract mediation since Aug. 22; a final contract still has not been completed.

The district has seen the resignation of 30 teachers and 10 staff members in the past four months.

“We’ve lost a lot of good people,” teacher Rob Sullivan said recently.

In the last few months, teachers have spoken up, telling the school board they feel unsupported.

Therrien may be starting a new job amid district upheaval, but Cooper said she is up for the job.

“Our district is committed to fostering a culture of continuous growth and innovation,” said Cooper.