Davis achieves municipal clerk certification

Mount Olive Town Clerk Sherry Davis has earned the designation of Certified Municipal Clerk after completing the International Institute of Municipal Clerks Certified Municipal Clerk Program.

Along with receiving instruction in areas that will help with her duties as town clerk, Davis said the program also provided a chance to network with other clerks.

“I really enjoyed it,” she said during a recent interview. “I learned so much, and I got to meet a lot of my fellow clerks in North Carolina, and that is very helpful. They are all a great group — they all try to help each other.”

That networking was an added benefit to the program, Davis noted.

“It was really educational and helped me a lot in my job. Plus you have the Clerk List Serve. “Everybody is so helpful.

“I feel it was very beneficial. I learned a lot of things. We went over different case laws. We just learned a lot of stuff.”

According to the Institute’s website, the program is designed to “enhance the job performance of the clerk in small and large municipalities. To earn the CMC designation, a municipal clerk must attend extensive education programs. The CMC designation also requires pertinent experience in a municipality.

“The CMC program prepares the applicants to meet the challenges of the complex role of the municipal clerk by providing them with quality education in partnership with institutions of higher learning, as well as state/provincial/national associations. The CMC program has been assisting clerks to excel since 1970.”

Davis has been with the town for almost 23 years, starting out as administrative assistant to the town manager and town board.

In January 2021 she was named interim clerk before being appointed clerk in May of that year.

The town board approved for her to attend the class.

“I joined the International Institute of Municipal Clerks in August of 2020 because you have to be a member for two years before you can get certified,” Davis said. “You had the option of attending the class online or at a location in Chapel Hill.”

Davis decided on the online option.

The four-week program was taught over the course of a year. The first class was in February 2022; the second in May; the third in July; and the final class in October. Most days classes lasted from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. and some days 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. with breaks for lunch.

There were a couple of days that lasted from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

“I took the classes online,” Davis said. “I did it here (town hall conference room). It was Monday through Friday. I used my education points that I had from my bachelor’s degree from Campbell University as well as my experience with the job to get the points that I needed (to be certified).

“I actually have more points than I need. It is required that you have 60 education points and it has to be in the field of a clerk’s duties. Also, there are 50 hours of experience. I used that. So I had 146.5 hours or credits for the online courses. I was only required to get 110.”

Davis said she was still able to step outside to her desk should anyone come into the office during her time online.

Classes included ethics for elected officials, introduction to local government finance, open meetings laws, general statutes.

“There were a lot of courses, and they just covered so much,” Davis said. “It was like information overload. You’re not required have it (certification), but I think it is more beneficial to have it. I am a certified municipal clerk now.”

Davis said she already has put those lessons learned into practice.

“The Open Meetings Law information, I have been able to use,” she said. “Some of the statutes on rules of procedure, I have been able to use those.”

“They also have a Master Municipal Clerk program that you can do,” she said. “I have not decided about that one.”

Davis said she could use her carryover points toward the master certification.