On June 29 the city of McKinney announced Empress Drane will begin as the new city secretary on July 2. Drane will replace Sandy Hart, who is retiring at the end of July after serving the city for 13 years, according to a news release.

With a bachelor’s degree in entrepreneurship and strategic management from the University of North Texas, Drane began working for the McKinney Parks and Recreation Department in 2005 as a recreation specialist. After two years she was promoted to recreation supervisor and currently oversees the daily operations of the Old Settlers Recreation Center, according to the release.

“Empress has played a vital role in our Parks and Recreation Department for more than 12 years,” City Manager Paul Grimes said in the release. “She embodies our core values of respect, integrity, service and excellence, and I am grateful she remains dedicated to the city by taking on this challenging role. We have an excellent pool of talented employees at the city of McKinney. We always prefer to hire from within when the opportunity arises.”