August 2020 President’s Message

This year has thrown us many curveballs, but it has been amazing to watch how resilient our staff, partners and membership have been.  Now more than ever the value of FCCMA and the sense of community it brings is powerful, but we need to keep it going.  Its easy for the President to have a…

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Alliance for Innovation – August 2020

AFI’s TLG 2020 Experience – Thank you and Congratulations! At AFI, we are so appreciative of our innovation and transformation community!  With the pandemic situation, we found ourselves needing to quickly pivot our signature annual event, the Transforming Local Government Conference, to a virtual event. We are so thrilled that our community joined with us…

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Silver-Linings

By Claire Jubb, Assistant County Administrator, Charlotte County I took a vacation recently – a very safe, COVID friendly vacation in beautiful north Florida. I intentionally unplugged, knowing that I needed the time to reflect on the past few months. Taking the time away gave me the opportunity to recognize what this organization, and I…

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August 2020 New Members

The following membership applications have been received. If no current member comes forth with a reason why these applicants should not be approved as members, he/she will be invoiced for dues. Brendan Betancourt, District VI, Bachelor Degree in Public Policy and Administration, St. Petersburg College, Student Member; Jared Cobb, District I, City Manager, City of…

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Meet Emily Colon, Assistant City Manager, Lakeland

How long have you been a FCCMA member and why did you join? I joined FCCMA in 2014. I had attended the “So You Want to Be” session while in graduate school through the recommendation of my graduate school advisor (Dr. Daly). I was instantly surprised and tremendously grateful for how welcoming and open the…

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July 2020 President’s Message

In June, the ICMA Executive Board approved a statement and provided six initial action steps to address systemic racism. That topic, along with other systematic challenges related to diversity and inclusion, will be discussed at the upcoming FCCMA board meeting. The goal of these discussions is for the board to provide a set of action…

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Digital Inclusion and ADA Compliance

What is digital accessibility and ADA compliance?  How do you identify the digital barriers your organization may have? What must governments do to comply under Section 508 and WCAG?  How do you provide equal access to all the digital information your constituents need through your website or social media outlets? In an effort to provide guidance on these important questions,…

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Navigating the Changing Workplace

Leading in the pandemic is challenging government employees to manage their work in a “new normal”, leverage discoveries and processes that arose from rapidly shifting priorities, and chart a new path forward. Focusing on a return to what was is not a viable option because doing so would keep organizations stuck in the past, overlooking…

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EMPLOYEE MORALE DURING COVID-19

By Bob Francis, ICMA-CM, City Manager, City of Belle Isle, Florida I manage the City of Belle Isle, Florida. It’s a small city with a small staff.  Belle Isle is mostly surrounded by Orlando, so we see big city issues spilling over in our community.   This pandemic has certainly taken its toll on our lives.  For my…

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2020 FLC CityStats Survey: Your Data Matters!

The annual FLC CityStats survey launched on Monday, June 29. The 2020 survey is being conducted online via survey links that were emailed to each city’s designated key contact. Your survey link is unique to your city. If the link was not received, please contact FLC Research Analyst Liane Giroux. CityStats is a vital source…

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FCCMA Student Council Spotlight

By Gina Peebles, Assistant County Manager, Alachua County and Brandon Henry, Community Planner/GIS Analyst, Safety Harbor As Andy Stanley once said, “try to do for the next generation of leaders what the previous generation of leaders has not done for you.”  FCCMA is doing just that through our Student Council, which exposes the next generation…

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Meet Howard Brown, Village Manager, Indiantown

How long have you been a FCCMA member and why did you join? It was January 2019 as a full member. Are you an ICMA member, why did you join, and how long have you been a member? Yes, I joined ICMA because I wanted to be part of the changing face of local government.…

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