Ethics Begins at the Top

ethics-quote-300x167As I write my latest blog post, I am preparing for the upcoming April meeting of the MLGMA Board of Directors. The board has a very busy agenda and we will be meeting next Friday, April 24, at 10:00 a.m., at the League office in Lansing. The Board will be considering adopting the ICMA Senior Advisor Program, which is an offshoot of our old Range Riders Program that has been so successful. The Board will also continue our discussion on possible changes to our existing ethics policy. The Board has asked the association’s Ethics Committee to assemble policies from other state associations and compare them to our current policy. Of specific interest is our policy’s provision that has the ICMA handle any ethics review of an MLGMA member if they are also a member of ICMA. Some have asked whether or not it is appropriate to kick ethical issues over to ICMA simply because one of our members may be an ICMA member.

Perhaps the agenda item that will receive the most attention is our discussion on the “State of the Profession.” As I have posted previously, the Board of Directors is taking a hard look at the recent turnover within our profession and the small pool of candidates applying for open positions. The Michigan Municipal League has agreed to partner with our association to review the matters surrounding the ”State of the Profession” and to see if there is potential for enhancing the League’s Elected Officials Academy to include better education on the Council-Manager form of government. Of course, we have long struggled with the fact that many college students are not looking at local government as a career path as they secure their undergraduate and graduate degrees.  As part of this discussion, the Board will be considering engaging a consulting firm to initiate a branding strategy for MLGMA. The League has gone through a similar effort and we have received a proposal from the League’s consultant to look at opportunities for developing educational and promotional material about our profession. I will make sure I provide an update on the decisions made at our meeting as part of my next blog post. In the meantime, please keep in touch with me and any other MLGMA Board members as the year progresses.


Michael-Young-Rockford-City-Mgr-200x200Michael F. Young, City Manager
Rockford

Michael’s public service work began in 1990 as an intern in Spring Lake and progressed to the role of assistant city manager in Greenville before he assumed the position of Rockford city manager in 1995. Throughout his career, he has been actively involved with MLGMA, serving on a variety of committees as well as on the Board. In January 2015, Michael was selected by his peers as president of MLGMA.