MORGANTOWN – What is sludge, and how is it repurposed by the Morgantown Utility Board?
What percentage of flights at the Morgantown Municipal Airport are commercial versus general aviation?
How are flowers selected for placement in the planters downtown?
Exactly what does a city manager do?
For the past 10 weeks or so, a handful of individuals have traded a portion of their Thursday evenings for the answers to these questions, among many others, as the latest graduates of the Morgantown Citizens Academy.
On Tuesday, each member of the 22-person class was recognized by Morgantown City Council.
One by one, representatives of the class said they walked away with a new perspective on what, and who, it takes to make a city function.
“We often associated local government primarily with city council, or a handful of highly visible services such as public safety, code enforcement, or parking,” Drew Harding said. “Through this program, we gained a much greater appreciation for the many departments working collaboratively behind the scenes to keep Morgantown operating. We also developed a deeper respect for the professionalism, organization, and dedication of the city’s employees who accomplish an incredible amount despite operating with a relatively small staff.”
Week by week, the municipal academics engaged in hands-on activities grouped around the following themes: How it all works; Where does my money go?; Our public safety; Morgantown: A city built on history; Transportation & environment; How do we manage growth?; and It takes a village.
The experience also included a downtown walking tour with the Morgantown City Ambassadors, and a mock city council meeting convened and presided over by the participants.
“Hearing from the departments directly definitely gave us a greater appreciation for the city workers themselves,” Laurie Abildso said, explaining the class was struck by the extra effort and care that was evident across the city’s workforce.
Abildso went on to say the academy helped dispel a number of misconceptions, including the belief that funds are wasted or mismanaged.
“That’s not here, but just across the board with government. In reality, we realize that staff are doing what they can with the limited resources available,” she said. “And while we may not all agree on how those funds should be allocated, we understand there are certainly competing priorities, and we did gain a better understanding of the challenges faced by having limited resources.”
Amaya Williams said the experience is effective in highlighting the various ways citizens can get involved and make an impact in the community.
That was evident later in the meeting, when the city council appointed a member of class, Michael Oliverio, to serve on the city’s Board of Parks and Recreation Commissioners.
“So, I always say every time this comes up that the Citizens Academy is, I think, my favorite thing that the city does,” Mayor Danielle Trumble said. “I love seeing those people move through, and then we start getting the applications for boards and commissions, and it creates a lot of engagement that way. I think it’s great that staff invests time into making that happen.”
Morgantown Citizens Academy is a free program offered annually by the city to 20 or so residents of Monongalia County, ages 18 and up.
The application portal for participation typically opens in early February.
