Maria Capriola

MPA, 2003

Town Manager, Simsbury, Connecticut

Maria Capriola currently serves as Simsbury’s Town Manager.  She was appointed by the six-member Board of Selectmen on December 4, 2017 and began work as Simsbury’s first Town Manager on January 29, 2018.  As Town Manager, Maria oversees the day-to-day operations of the municipal organization and by Charter serves as the Personnel Director. She is responsible for implementing policies and initiatives of the Board of Selectmen.

Maria began her local government career working in her hometown of Bennington, Vermont during summer breaks from college.  While in graduate school, she worked as the graduate intern for the Town Manager’s Office in Mansfield, Connecticut. She was selected as the City of Savannah, Georgia’s Management (Intern) Fellow in 2003.  She then went on to serve as a Management Analyst for the City’s Research and Budget Department for two years. As an analyst, Maria was assigned to the Bureaus of Public Development and Sanitation. In addition to budget and program evaluation work she coordinated the City’s ICMA Center for Performance Measurement efforts.

Maria moved back to New England and served the City of Newburyport, Massachusetts in the capacity of Assistant Chief Administrative Officer. In January 2007 she rejoined the Town of Mansfield’s staff as their Assistant to the Town Manager.  She was promoted to Assistant Town Manager in 2012. Her primary areas of focus in Mansfield included Municipal Management, Human Resources, Risk Management, and Community Development. Maria served the Town of Mansfield in the role of Interim Town Manager from July 2017 until January 2018 when she began work as the first ever Town Manager for the Town of Simsbury.

Maria is a 2001 graduate cum laude of the University of Connecticut with a BA in political science. She began her studies with the UConn Master of Public Administration (M.P.A.) program through the fast track program, completing her degree in 2003.

Maria was a member of the UConn MPA Alumni Council from 2007 -2015 and served as their secretary for six years. In April 2011 she became the first recipient of the UConn Department of Public Policy Outstanding Service Award for providing significant service to MPA students and the Department. Maria was honored in May 2014 with the MPA Program’s Recent Distinguished Alumni Award for demonstrating leadership, high ethical standards, and achievements in the field of public administration.

Maria resides in Simsbury with her husband Terry and their daughter Charlotte.