‘Forever proud of what we accomplished.’ Ferguson Township manager to step down
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Manager Centrice Martin will not renew her contract; departure set for early 2025.
- She cited modernization, staff pay increases and transparency among key accomplishments.
- Board began interim search and will launch nationwide recruitment for a permanent manager.
Ferguson Township’s manager will soon step down from the position she’s held for nearly four years, a decision she called “necessary and personal.”
Manager Centrice Martin informed the township recently that she would not seek to renew her employment contract, which ends in January.
Board chair Jeremie Thompson made the announcement at Tuesday’s board of supervisors meeting, following a vote to reject a significant tax increase in the 2026 budget. Martin did not comment on her decision during the meeting but wrote in a post on her LinkedIn page Thursday that it was not made lightly.
“Serving as township manager has been an extraordinary chapter defined by modernization, accountability and strengthening the internal systems recommended through organizational assessments that support a growing and dynamic community,” Martin wrote. “I am forever proud of what we accomplished together.”
She added that for the final month of her tenure, she’ll remain committed to leaving “strong foundations, clear documentation and forward momentum for those who will lead next.”
Martin, who declined to offer more specifics about the reasons for her departure to the CDT, wrote in an email Thursday that more context for her decision to step down would be shared during Monday’s supervisors meeting. She expects the board to finalize interim manager plans by then.
Martin was hired as the township’s manager in 2022 to replace Dave Pribulka, who’s now Bellefonte Borough’s interim manager. Before that, Martin served as the assistant township manager and assistant to the township manager, starting in 2018.
She was also the first woman manager of Ferguson Township, and is thought to be the first Black manager of a borough or township in the Centre Region.
In her LinkedIn post, Martin outlined some of the accomplishments in her nearly four-year stint with the township, including making competitive wage adjustments for township staff, expanding staff recruitment beyond the Centre Region, modernizing township operations, enhancing transparency and more.
“Strengthening people, competitive compensation and organizational integrity was a priority and reflected in the work achieved,” Martin wrote. “Investing in and valuing the professionals who serve this community was priority.”
Along with her inter-governmental achievements, Martin also became one of nine local government employees across Pennsylvania to be awarded the Governor’s Award for Local Government Excellence last April.
Moving forward, Thompson shared at Tuesday’s meeting that the township had already “commenced the process” of finding an interim manager, and that a nationwide search for a new permanent manager would take place.
“On behalf of the board, we extend our heartfelt appreciation to Manager Martin for her steadfast leadership, her dedication to public service and her many contributions to the well-being of her community,” Thompson said. “Her commitment has left a lasting mark, and we wish her continued success in all future endeavors.”