NORWICH – After 30 years of dedicated service as director of the Chenango County Probation Department, Laureen Clarke has retired – leaving Donielle Balstra to fill the role of acting probation director.

Clarke cited Balstra’s leadership and organizational skills as the main reason she chose her to take the reins. Balstra has worked in probation for seven years and holds a master’s degree in criminal justice and criminology.

The goal of the department, however, was to hire a permanent director, but Clarke said there were some state requirements that they were unable to fulfill.

“The state requires someone with two years of experience in a supervisory position within the department ... as well as other civil service exam criteria,” she said. Clarke added that in this case the state granted a temporary waiver so Balstra would be able to fill the position until a permanent replacement was found.