The Greater Gardendale Chamber of Commerce is losing an executive director, but the Gardendale City Schools system is getting its very first executive administrative assistant.

Amee Brown Donald, who’s served as the chamber director since 2012, was hired by the Gardendale Board of Education during a meeting Thursday night.

Supt. Patrick Martin said that Donald was hired from a pool of 60 applicants. “We had an overwhelming response,” he said.

Donald will start her job on Oct. 14.

“I applied for this job because I had a vested interest, being part of the focus group,” she said. “I’ve been with this [effort] since the very beginning, I wanted it to be successful, and I wanted to be a part of that success.”

The job switch for Donald is not without a little bit of sadness.

“I owe so much to the chamber, and my job at the chamber is why I was the top candidate for this position,” she said.

The core of four positions for the newborn system — Martin, Donald, Chief School Financial Officer Randy Dunlap and Director of Secondary Education and Student Support Services Bill Casaday — rounds out the personnel who will carry through to next spring. No other major positions will be filled until then.

That hasn’t stopped board members and Martin from being asked, and asked repeatedly, how to get a job with the new system.

“I’ve been getting questions all the time about interest in future employment,” Dr. Michael Hogue said.

Martin told the board that he is asking those with interest in a job to send him their résumés for now. His email address is pmartin@gardendalecityschools.com.

Meanwhile, the system’s central office is now in place and open for business. It’s located at 919 Sharit Avenue, suite 213. The new phone number is 386-4440.

The board will meet again Friday afternoon at the law offices of Bradley Arant Boult Cummings in Birmingham. While it is an official meeting that’s technically open to the public, Board President Chris Segroves said that the board will immediately go into executive session, as it confers with attorney Donald Sweeney and his staff over legal matters. No business is expected to be conducted in open session.

The board’s next regular session will be Monday, Oct. 6, at 6 p.m. at the Gardendale Civic Center.