OTTAWA COUNTY, Mich. — Ottawa County is preparing to appoint a new interim health officer if current health officer Adeline Hambley is removed during a hearing later this month.
The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) received a “request for immediate credentials review" for Nathaniel Kelly on Sept. 29, according to a department spokesperson. The request was submitted by County Administrator John Gibbs, and included a copy of Kelly's resume.
MDHHS noted that copies of Kelly's transcripts were needed for a review to begin. Those were submitted Oct. 4.
A spokesperson says MDHHS is reviewing the request at this time.
Kelly has been Ottawa Impact-backed commissioners’ top choice for health officer since they took office. The conservative group holds majority control of the board.
At the Commission’s first meeting on Jan. 3, commissioners voted 7-1 to appoint Hambley as “Interim Administrative Health Officer until a new Administrative Health Officer is hired and to approve and authorize the Board Chairperson and Clerk/Register to sign a Resolution to appoint Nathaniel Kelly as Administrative Health Officer of Ottawa County.”
Months after this vote, Hambley sued, claiming she was wrongfully demoted and commissioners were creating problems with the goal of firing her. The case is still working its way through the court system.
As FOX 17 has reported, Michigan law says the position of health officer cannot be terminated without just cause.
Currently, a removal hearing for Hambley is set for Oct. 19. Commissioners will consider four charges, accusing Hambley of incompetence, misconduct and neglect of duty related to her alleged conduct during budget talks.
Meanwhile, even if Hambley is removed, Kelly faces a vetting process by the MDHHS. There are specific requirements that prospective health officers have to meet.
According to Michigan Administrative Code R. 325.13003, candidates under consideration for a county’s administrative health officer must hold the following qualifications:
- Have an M.P.H. or M.S.P.H. degree and 3 years of full-time public health administrative experience.
- Have a related graduate degree and 5 years of full-time public health administrative experience.
- Have a bachelor's degree and 8 years of full-time public health experience, 5 years of which shall have been in the administration of a broad range of public health programs.
Previously, FOX 17 obtained a copy of Kelly’s resume from January. It showed Kelly obtained a Master of Science in Public Health degree from online school Columbia Southern University located in Orange Beach, Alabama. His resume also states he has a Master of Science in Occupational Health and certificates in Environmental Management and Industrial Hygiene Management – all from Columbia Southern.
Nathaniel Kelley Resume by WXMI
Kelly listed employment as a health and safety manager with Grand Rapids-based Pleune Services Company, an occupational safety and health engineer with Plascore, Inc., and as an environmental health safety specialist with Dicastal North America.
While Kelly does list public service work on his resume, all of his professional experience is with private companies.
Kelly has also publicly made false claims about the spread of COVID-19, and once mocked the governor’s sign language interpreter.
