Fire Commissioner Laura Kavanagh has named a pastor with no clinical experience to run the FDNY’s counseling services for firefighters and medics struggling with mental-health problems — an appointment that will require the department to hire another licensed supervisor at taxpayer expense to plug the gap.
Kavanagh tapped Ann Kansfield, the FDNY’s first female and openly gay chaplain, as chief of the department’s Counseling Services Unit, which runs a staff of psychologists and therapists who conduct screening, assessment and treatment of job candidates and ailing first-responders.
Kansfield, 48, whom Kavanagh has called her “spiritual muse” — served as one of nine FDNY chaplains, last year collecting $39,809 in salary and overtime.
As CSU director, her salary will jump to $159,650, officials said.
An FDNY officer blasted Kansfield’s appointment as “another example of a friend of Kavanagh receiving a high-paying job at the expense of the citizens of New York,” saying it will further erode morale in the rank-and-file.
Kavanagh defended her decision.
“As our first responders face an unprecedented mental health crisis, they deserve strong managers with a proven track record of dedication to the FDNY and the mental health of all our members,” Kavanagh said in a statement to The Post.
“Reverend Kansfield has spent nearly a decade doing just that for the FDNY, and was clearly the best candidate for the role. Her experience, skill and compassion will pay huge dividends for the FDNY.”
Unlike her predecessors, Kansfield is not licensed as a psychologist or therapist — a legally required qualification to supervise clinicians.
Kansfield will perform administrative duties and manage the unit, while several licensed underlings — including an additional clinical director to be hired — will oversee the treatment.
She will also do outreach to encourage troubled first-responders to seek help, said FDNY spokesman Jim Long.
Fire Lt. Andrew Kane, a licensed social worker, will be Kansield’s deputy, Long said.
As interim director, Kane’s last salary was $118,056, but he collected $217,676 with overtime and other compensation.
In addition, the FDNY plans to hire a new co-clinical director to serve with Shveta Mittal, an administrative psychologist making $145,000 a year.
That position has yet to be posted, Long said.
Critics suggest that Kansfield’s friendship with Kavanagh, more than her qualifications, helped her land the job.
“Having someone with technical expertise and experience far outweighs what the typical ‘political appointee’ can bring to the table,” said Glenn Corbett, an associate professor of fire science and public management at John Jay College of Criminal Justice.
“We want qualified leadership in those roles,” agreed George Contreras, a veteran NYC paramedic and John Jay adjunct professor of public health and emergency management.
But he added, “I’m sure it’s not the first time that things like that happen in City Hall.”
Kansfield quit her job as a stockbroker who worked for several companies, including one in the World Trade Center, a day before 9/11, she said in an FDNY podcast.
Afterwards, she decided to change course.
She obtained a master’s degree in divinity at New Brunswick Theological Seminary in 2004, and has since served as the pastor of the Greenpoint Reformed Church in Brooklyn.
Under ex-fire commissioner Daniel Nigro, she joined the FDNY as a chaplain in 2015, calling it “my dream job.”
“During this time, I have had the opportunity to build trust and goodwill and I hope the members already know how much I love and care for them,” Kansfield said in a city press release. “I’m excited to build on that trust and play a more direct role in ensuring our members have access to mental health care.”
Kavanagh said the chaplain is “uniquely qualified” to serve as CSU director, after nine years of “helping members and families in their time of need.”
The commissioner also said the chaplain “started, owned and operated a family therapy practice.”
However, the release doesn’t explain that Kansfield’s wife, Jennifer Aull, is the founder and director of North Brooklyn Marriage & Family Therapy, which doesn’t mention Kansfield on its website.
Kansfield did administrative work for her wife’s practice, Long said.
She starts the new job on June 6.
