Douglas County Senior Services has hired a new executive director, who will take over the position Tuesday.

After sifting through 35 applications submitted for the job, the organization’s search committee “overwhelmingly” decided to hire Gary Nelson, who recently retired as a school district superintendent, said Senior Services Board Member Judy Wright.

“He has all the things we need to take us to the next step,” Wright said. “He’s someone who is great with communication, wonderful working with people, respectful, trustworthy and collaborative.”

The organization’s former executive director, Kristin Scheurer, who held the position for less than two years, resigned in late July.

Nelson, 64, a native Kansan, said he recently retired from his superintendent position in Lincoln, Kan., but he wasn’t exactly ready to stop working altogether.

“I told people for a long time that when I retire I still want to do some sort of public service, in particular work for a nonprofit,” he said. “I saw this job opening and realized that the responsibilities are a lot of the same things that I’ve been doing for the past 25 years.”

Nelson said he is excited to take over the position and see where to take the organization. For now, though, he sees several goals that will carry over from his time in education including focusing on individuals, constantly looking for improvement and building relationships.

In addition to anticipating his new position, Nelson said he has several family ties to Lawrence and he’s happy to live in the community.

“I’m just really honored for the opportunity to serve Douglas County and the board,” he said. “I think it’s going to be a really good mix and I think things are going to work out really well.”