Says she was upfront about plans to assist with transition back in Wilton, Conn

Greybull's mayor on Saturday defended the hiring and brief tenure of the town's administrator/finance director, who has come under scrutiny for earning full-time compensation while simultaneously serving municipalities more than 2,000 miles apart.

Myles Foley said Dawn Norton gave the Town of Wilton, Conn., notice of her intent to retire as chief finance officer and informed him and the other members the hiring committee that she would be assisting the Town of Wilton during a transition period.  

Foley likened it to the process to the one the town went through with Carrie Hunt, Norton's predecessor. Hunt continued to work for the Town of Greybull after she rejoined Big Horn Rural Electric.

Media reports out of Wilton, Conn., which Foley described as "clickbait," paint a different picture. GOOD Morning Wilton (GMW), a 12-year-old online publication that describes itself as the "only locally owned, independent news" source in Wilton, broke the story on Aug. 4 that town officials there were unaware that Norton held a full-time job in Greybull.

Wilton Board of Finance Chair Matt Raimondi told GMW, "The Board of Finance was not previously aware that Ms. Norton holds a position in another municipality. If accurate, this raises serious concerns. We look forward to working with the Board of Selectmen to ascertain the facts and address the matter appropriately."

GMW also reported that Norton had not appeared in person at board or commission meetings in Wilton for several months, instead attending via Zoom.

In a follow-up story on Aug. 6, GMW reported that Norton had tendered her official resignation, "effective immediately," and that Town Hall had begun advertising for the CFO position.

GMW reported that First Selectwoman Toni Boucher and Town Administrator Matt Knickerbocker were unaware of Norton's new job in Greybull and that had they known, they wouldn't have allowed it.

Timeline

According to GMW, Norton was appointed as Wilton's CFO in February 2022. In that role, she oversaw Wilton's finances for both the town and the school district.  Prior to that, again according to GMW, Norton was the business manager for the Ridgefield Public Schools and director of finance/CFO for New Canaan, Conn.

Norton's husband, Erick, was the first to arrive in the Greybull area. His hiring as the newest member of the GPD was announced at the May 14, 2024, council meeting. At the time, Norton told the Standard he and Dawn had purchased property in the Shell area where they were in the process of building their retirement home. Erick Norton said he'd arrived about a year earlier following his retirement from a 25-year law enforcement career, was working as a wrangler at The Hideout before joining the GPD, and that Dawn eventually planned to join him when the home was finished. 

Hunt's resignation, which was officially accepted by the town council on Feb. 24, 2025, appears to have accelerated that plan.  At the time, Foley said the town would start interviewing candidates in mid-March.

Dawn Norton was hired soon after, but did not attend her first town council meeting until May 12, when she was introduced as the town's new administrator/finance director, historically a full-time position.

Two views

There are differing accounts of what's transpired since.  

GMW reported that Norton's contract, which she signed January 2022, includes a clause that states she "may have employment outside of the Town of Wilton," but "must notify the First Selectwoman of such employment."

Norton told GMW that she provided written notice on April 7, 2025, to Boucher, Knickerbocker, and Human Resources Director Sarah Taffel, stating she was "actively seeking employment elsewhere." The letter stated, "As stated in my hiring contract with the Town of Wilton, I am informing you that I may take additional employment outside of the Town of Wilton."

Boucher and Knickerbocker told GMW that the contract language allowing outside employment is standard in municipal management, usually to allow employees to make ends meet or help other jurisdictions, but only as long as it's not a direct conflict of interest and it doesn't interfere with their responsibility to the Town of Wilton.

"Having a salaried department head take on a second full-time job in another town is an entirely different matter. This is not allowed, aside from the occasional 'special assignment' type work" (previously described), Boucher and Knickerbocker said.

Norton told GMW that she gave her retirement notice to Knickerbocker after the May 12, 2025, meeting of the Greybull Town Council, when she was introduced for the first time.

"I gave him my retirement notice — I gave it to him when I went full time," Norton told GMW.  "My notice said I'd give them full support, whatever that is, up to Nov. 3 ... when all department contract heads are ... renewed.  I said, 'I'll do whatever it is that you need me to do in my full capacity."

Norton told GMW that she did not directly inform Boucher that she'd accepted a second job, but did tell the one person she was required to tell: Knickerbocker.

Foley, Norton react

In response to the press and social media attention, Norton offered a statement Saturday morning, saying she informed her employers in Wilton on April 7, 2025.

She provided a copy of the letter she claims she sent, dated April 7, 2025 and addressed to Boucher. It states, "As per my contract, I am notifying you that I will be accepting employment outside of the Town of Wilton." The letter, which Norton submitted as "Attachment B," was not on Town of Wilton letterhead, nor did it indicate any form of acceptance or receipt from anyone associated with the Town of Wilton.

"I had been working with my direct (supervisor) even before these events occurred on a transition plan, as I intended to move to Wyoming permanently to be with my husband, who had already relocated to Wyoming," Norton told the Standard.

"A situation occurred that escalated my plans to be in Wyoming earlier than I had discussed, although our discussions continued while out here on the best way to transition out of my current position with Wilton while still completing the work that needed to be done.

Norton said, "In working with my direct, [a notice of retirement] was created for a future date to allow for the transition plans to work."  She provided a copy of that retirement letter — again on a plain sheet, no town letterhead and no indication of receipt or acceptance from Wilton's side.  Calling it Attachment C, it was addressed to Knickerbocker and the only date on it was Nov. 3, 2025. The letter reads, "Kindly accept this letter as my notice of retirement as the CFO for Wilton and Wilton Public Schools, effective upon a date to be established by mutual agreement.

"I am happy to support Wilton in full capacity, for as long as it takes, to effectuate a smooth transition as the Town and Board of Education seek a replacement. This will include completing the audit, training staff, continuing the migration of New World to Munis, attendance at board meetings, financial overview, state reporting, etc., and any other special projects that are needed."

Norton reiterated that Wilton does not have a policy that prevents any employee from working two full-time jobs.

"I feel that I did what was required of me in informing Wilton of my acceptance of another position. I do not feel that I violated any policies in either Wilton or Greybull," she said.

Mayor's defense

In two interviews on Saturday, Foley pushed back on the reporting out of Connecticut, saying that Norton has been upfront all along that she would be helping Wilton through the transition period.

"Nobody really knew what that would entail," Foley said.

When asked if he thought it meant full-time, Foley initially said, "But there's no policy in Wilton or Greybull that says you can't be working a second job.

"I don't know what her hours are back there, but she's not doing it during her time in the office here.  When she's in Town Hall, she's working for us. She does (her transition work in Wilton) in the morning and the evenings. And if it does bleed into our work hours, she makes up for it.

"She is not cheating us, and she wasn't cheating them."

Foley said Norton was upfront during the interview, which also involved Hunt, Public Works Director Mason Irvine and a member of the town council, and its aftermath.

"We assumed (her continuing employment with Wilton during the transition) would be close to full time," Foley said.  

The town received "about 10" applications for the vacancy and interviewed three. Norton was "by far" the best fit, he said, saying one finalist didn't show up and another lacked Norton's qualifications.

Regardless of how many hours Norton put in for Wilton, Foley said he believes she's done a good job for Greybull and brushed aside questions about her being stretched too thin working two full-time jobs.

"She's shown to me that she can do two tasks," Foley said.  "It hasn't affected her job here in Greybull. She's been blindsided by a lot of stuff since she started — we've had water leaks, we've had issues with a couple of employees turning us into EPA and OSHA that she had to deal with, and then all this stuff hit in the last week."

Foley said he has seen emails between Norton and her bosses in Wilton that suggest they knew of her resignation in April, but that Norton was reluctant to publicly disclose those emails.  

"I still believe (what was reported in Wilton) was more of a hit piece than anything," he said. "Her boss knew.  HR knew.  The article suggested they didn't.  It's an outright lie."

In response, the author of the story in the GMW, editor Heather Borden Herve, said, "GOOD Morning Wilton offered Dawn Norton multiple opportunities to provide proof of her story and we reported her comments extensively. We also reached out to Mayor Foley, leaving a message at the hotel, but did not receive a response. We stand by our reporting."