PITTSFIELD — Mayor Peter Marchetti has appointed Capt. Marc Strout to serve as “captain in charge” of the Pittsfield Police Department while the city awaits the results of a civil service assessment used to select the next permanent chief.

Strout began in the role at 4 p.m. Friday, according to Catherine VanBramer, the city’s director of administrative services and public information officer. He will lead the department until the civil service test results are returned and a permanent police chief is appointed.

The appointment follows the retirement Friday of former Police Chief Thomas Dawley, who stepped down after two decades with the department, including about 2½ years as its leader.

Marchetti previously said two internal candidates took a civil service assessment center exam on Dec. 5 as part of the city’s process to select Dawley’s successor, but the results have not yet been released to the city, VanBramer said.

“We have yet to receive the results of this testing from Civil Service,” VanBramer said in an email. “Once we have the results, we can move forward in the process of hiring the next police chief.”

She said the city hopes to have a permanent chief in place by the end of the month.

The city is not identifying the candidates who took the exam until the state releases the official eligibility list, VanBramer said.

“Not until the list is released by civil service,” she said when asked Friday whether the candidates would be identified.

Marchetti announced in December that he would conduct an internal search for the department’s next leader, rather than opening the position to outside candidates. The mayor has said he intends to offer the job to the candidate who scores highest on the assessment, barring any disqualifying issues.

Marchetti had said he would appoint a member of the department to serve in an interim leadership role if the results did not arrive before Dawley’s departure.

Strout, a member of the Dalton Select Board who is married to Dalton Police Chief Deanna Strout, will serve in that capacity until the civil service process is completed and the city makes a permanent appointment, VanBramer said.

The Pittsfield Police Department marked Dawley’s departure with a public statement thanking him for his 24 years of service. In a message posted by the department, colleagues said Dawley led the force through “challenges and change” and credited him with setting a standard they said would continue to guide the department moving forward.