The item didn’t appear on the agenda during Monday’s Select Board meeting, but the surprise announcement drew a big response nonetheless.

Kevin Lee, Dartmouth’s Youth Advocate, formally announced that he plans to retire this fall. When he steps down in September, he will have held the position for 31 years.

Lee said he felt “gifted and honored” to be an employee of the town for three decades, adding that he enjoyed “almost every day of the work" he did with Dartmouth's youth.

During the brief announcement, members of the Select Board expressed their gratitude for his contribution.

“Knowing the work that you’ve done — the hours you’ve put in, the after-hours you’ve put in, the phone calls late at night and early morning to help kids — I am deeply saddened to see you retire,” said Chairman Shawn McDonald.

Lee said that, despite leaving his current role, he intends to carry on his work in other venues.

“I’m a Town Meeting member, and I will continue to be an advocate for young people in this community,” said Lee.

The interview process for the position begins next week. By the end of June, the Youth Commission will begin vetting six candidates. In July, one Select Board member, Town Administrator David Cressman and two members of the Youth Commission will then choose the next Youth Advocate.

Though Lee will not be part of the selection process, he thinks the ideal candidate for the job will need to have a combination of excellent listening skills, clinical skills and someone who can think creatively.

“That individual has to be able to interact amongst the schools, juvenile court, probate court, social service agencies and have a good rapport with parents,” said Lee.

“I think there are a lot of people out there who would fit that criteria, but you have to really enjoy working with young people and want to be able to help young people,” he added.

He said that his decision to retire came after a year of deliberation. After finalizing his plan with his superiors in January, his next step was to inform those who would be most impacted by his retirement: Dartmouth’s youth.

“On April 27, we sent letters out to all the parents letting them know that I was going to be retiring. I wanted the parents to help me get the word out to their kids,” said Lee.

He said the last few weeks had been marked by emotional responses to those letters.

McDonald said Lee would be difficult to replace “because he has the passion, the drive and the human element needed to help kids.”

What McDonald couldn’t account for was a way to quantify the impact of someone like Lee.

“You wonder how many kids he’s saved,” said McDonald. “We don’t know the long-term ramifications that he’s had on these kids.”