Anthony Colabella

STEUBENVILLE — It has been five years since Toronto resident Anthony Colabella left his position at the Jefferson County Board of Developmental Disabilities. But on Aug. 19, he made his return to the organization, stepping into a new position with a new title.

Colabella is now overseeing a staff of more than 150 employees, serving as the human resources director. He previously served as a service support administrator from 2015-19, making him familiar with the inner workings of the JCBDD. His newfound responsibilities include ensuring compliance with federal, state and local laws, upholding union policies and making sure employment practices coincide with them. He also advocates and supports the county board.

“I take a supportive and advocating approach, and focus on what we can do to support people and help other teams achieve their goals,” Colabella said.

The Mingo Junction native is a 2005 graduate of Steubenville Catholic Central High School. He earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology and multi-disciplinary studies from West Virginia University a master’s in business administration from Franciscan University of Steubenville. He has worked as a mental health technician at Fox Run in St. Clairsville and as a residential aide at Trinity Behavioral Medicine. Following his time as SSA, he went on to Eastern Gateway Community College and was promoted to assistant director of human resources.

He explained the difficulty he had in leaving JCBDD, but noted his happiness in being back.

“It was a hard decision because I loved being part of the SSA team,” he commented. “It was always a professional goal of mine to work in human resources. But it bothered me that I no longer worked with my friends on the SSA team. I was able to earn experience and work in H.R. It brought me back here.”

His time at EGCC was spent overseeing more than 2,100 employees. While it gave him the experience, he is grateful to have had the opportunity to return to his roots.

“It’s nice to be back,” Colabella said. “You know the field and it feels like home,” he added. “I used to serve these individuals, and seeing them again is great. It literally gives a face to the work you do.”

JCBDD Superintendent Michael Zinno said with the large number of employees under the organization’s umbrella, there was a need to expand the human resources department and add the director’s post. He said current human resources coordinator, Dianne Paice will remain in her role and report to Colabella.

“Anthony will be a great addition to the team,” Zinno stated. “He has experience assisting at EGCC. We recognize, especially at Shaffer Plaza, the number of employees with turnover. There are items in the bigger picture like onboarding, policies and procedures and employee engagement activities. We needed to expand the H.R. department to tackle these issues. We went through an operational assessment a few months ago and it was recommended that an H.R. director be added. Our board took action and it should be the first step in the process.”

Zinno said officials plan to address other aspects of the operational assessment in the coming months, such as expanding children services and adding a principal’s role at the School of Bright Promise.