Newly Elected City Officials Learn the Ropes
Georgia’s newly elected city leaders are off to a strong start after attending a special training event carried out in partnership by the Vinson Institute and the Georgia Municipal Association (GMA).
More than 100 new mayors and councilmembers from throughout the state gathered on February 18-19 at UGA’s Tifton Campus Conference Center for the Newly Elected Officials Institute, a program that serves as both basic training in governing and as the first step in ongoing leadership development.
Sessions at the institute were taught by a mix of experienced city officials and practitioners and GMA and Vinson Institute faculty and staff. Topics included ethics, legal issues, council meetings procedures, city-county relations, financial policies, taxation, land use issues, and human resources.
The newly elected participants also had multiple opportunities to ask questions and to network with each other. The program concluded with a presentation on leadership.
“The demands of governing require today’s city officials to hit the ground running, regardless of the size of their community. Our faculty work closely with GMA to make certain that this newly elected orientation equips the participants with the tools they need to govern as effectively as possible from Day 1,” said Laura Meadows, director of the Vinson Institute’s governmental training, education, and development services.
