Choice of DePaulis to head state department praised

Those who know former Salt Lake Mayor Palmer DePaulis said Thursday that Utahns can expect to see more outreach when DePaulis takes the helm of the Department of Community and Culture.

Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. announced DePaulis as his choice to head the year-old department Wednesday.

"I've never heard a negative thing about him," said Pamela Atkinson, a community advocate who headed up a four-person search committee.

Atkinson said no resumes were reviewed until after five weeks of meetings with people within the Department of Community and Culture's various divisions, and the airing of concerns from members of the community.

"After that I sat down and went through the resumes and thought, 'My goodness, he's terrific.' "

In the end, the committee conducted seven interviews and unanimously agreed on DePaulis.

"It was his warmth and friendliness," Atkinson said. "It was obvious to us that even though he wasn't an ethnic minority, he had experience working with ethnic groups.

"Some people in the community were saying, 'We're not really sure what this department is doing. We need to hear more about it,' " she said. "I heard from people involved with the history division, with fine arts, about the potential for all those divisions to work together."

Atkinson said she plans to meet with DePaulis to go over the concerns she heard from community members and those within the department.

"I think it's fantastic," said Philip F. Notarianni, director of the Division of State History. He said DePaulis' experience will help with his division's community outreach efforts.

"We are out in the communities, that's where a lot of our services are delivered," he said.

Ron Stallworth, chairman of the Black Advisory Council, said he worked with DePaulis when DePaulis was mayor and found him to be very committed to the minority community.

"I found him to be a people person," Stallworth said.

Stallworth said he hopes DePaulis would help remove some of the layers that separate the minority community from people in the Office of Ethnic Affairs.

"When dealing with sensitive issues that affect the minority community, they don't want to talk hierarchy, they want to talk to somebody who is able to make a change," Stallworth said.