KNOX — Joan Adriance feels qualified to be town clerk both because of her professional background and because of her far-ranging community service.
She has a bachelor’s degree in business administration and a master’s degree in secondary education.

“I’ve been in the IT department in health insurance for 35 years,” she said, stressing that her work has been in information technology. For the last 16 of those years, she’s worked at Capital District Physicians’ Health Plan.

If elected, Adriance would keep her full-time job as well as working part-time for Knox, she said. She would like to expand the hours that the clerk’s office is open to the public, particularly on Saturdays.

Of the current schedule of Saturday mornings just once a month, Adriance said, “For those of us that work, those hours are a challenge.”

Adriance, 61, has lived in Knox for 25 years.

Adriance’s community work involves serving eight years on the Berne-Knox-Westerlo School
Board, four of those as president; volunteering at the school through the Parent Teacher Association; serving on the consistory of the Knox Reformed Church; serving on the board of St. Catherine’s Center for Children; and being a member of the Helderberg Family and Community Organization.

One of her goals, if elected, Adriance said, is “to have a better way — similar to the school board — to display documents online,” keeping the meetings’ agendas, minutes, and related documents accessible.

“Now, agendas are taken down after the meeting,” said Adriance. “Minutes get posted but none of the supporting documents. I’d like to make that available to residents.”

If elected, Adriance said, she would “make sure everything is filed in a timely fashion.” She also said she would take the necessary training “as soon as possible,” so that she would be able to issue licenses.

Adriance’s husband, Joe Adriance, works at the town’s transfer station. “The clerk’s post has nothing to do with the transfer station,” Adriance said, adding, “I would consider taking on issuing transfer-station permits. The clerk used to do that.”

Adriance said the transfer-station workers were busy enough with all their other duties, and it’s “a lot” to have them issuing permits, too, as they do now, she said.

Adriance, a Democrat, is running on that line but says she doesn’t see her reason for running or the clerk’s job as political.

“My party doesn’t have anything to do with my run,” she said.

Like her running mates, Adriance is also on the Working Families Party line. “We wanted to have a second line on the ballot,” she said.

Adriance concluded, “I just really want to give back to the town of Knox … We want transparency in government and to work as a team to provide service to people.”