Elected officials joined more than 100 residents last night at Somerville High School to celebrate the appointment of Dorie Clark, an Adams House non-resident tutor, to the position of bisexual, gay, lesbian and transgender (BGLT) liaison to the Somerville mayor's office.

Mayor Dorothy Kelly Gay said Clark's appointment to the unpaid position, created in 1991, was part of an effort to increase communication with the BGLT community in Somerville and support gay rights.

Clark, a tutor in religion and BGLT issues, said that her job will be "to make sure that gay residents feel that we are behind them and to increase access to the mayor."

While gay rights activists said they see Clark's appointment as a positive step, supporters conceded that the role of the BGLT liaison remains undefined.

Sean Daughtry, a member of the selection committee that chose Clark, said Clark's first task should be to "fine tune her position."

"She needs to streamline her responsibilities," he added.

Interim BGLT liaison, Julie Katz, who held the position while Clark was being selected, said this will be one of Clark's main tasks.

"We hope that Dorie will help us define what the role of liaison is going to be," Katz said during her speech.

Clark said she plans to push for legislation that would allow domestic partners to have the same benifits as married couples, to increase education about homosexuality and to turn the BGLT liaison into a paid position.