A permanent director for the Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Resource Center has been named.

Ruth Hackford-Peer will head the center beginning Jan. 26.

Charles Milne, the interim director, will leave at that time.

“I committed to making this an interim position, and I’m glad a replacement has been found,” Milne said.

The search began in late July and first started with 50 applicants.

Hackford-Peer is currently the director of the LGBT Resource Center at Adams State College in Colorado, and served as an intern at the center at the University of Massachusetts, according to Kay Harward, associate vice president for student affairs, who headed the search committee.

“She has a lot of experience behind her, and she got along with the students very well,” Harward said.

Harward says he appreciates the work Milne has done to “move the center forward.”

He also says he feels confident that Hackford-Peer will continue that push.

“She is very connected to the gay community, and I think she will keep moving the center in the right direction,” Harward said.

Sheena McFarland