DANE COUNTY BOARD RECOGNIZED FOR OUTREACH EFFORTS

November 23, 2021
County Board Chair Analiese Eicher, (608) 571-6823
County Board

In October, the Dane County Board of Supervisors was recognized by the National Research Center (NRC) at Polco and the International City and County Management Association (ICMA) as the winner of the Voice of the People Award for Excellence in Online Outreach.

 

According to a release sent by NRC and ICMA, the Voice of the People Awards are the only national awards that honor local governments based on improving communities through excellent online resident engagement.

 

When speaking about the awards, Nick Mastronardi, CEO of Polco said, "we recognize these amazing communities that are national models for gathering resident feedback and moving their communities forward."

 

The County Board has highlighted community engagement and transparency as a priority over the past five years, and is continuing to try new strategies to increase participation and engagement with the residents of the County. The County Board developed an initiative called "Engage Dane", which led to the creation of a position in the Board Office dedicated to community engagement. Lauren Kuhl was promoted to fill this role in 2019 and has been instrumental in leading enhanced online efforts, as well as work to involve community stakeholders.

 

"I’m honored that the County Board has received this award. We have been intentional in working to improve outreach and approaches to include members of the public. The recognition from NRC and ICMA is a result of Lauren’ s focus to increase public participation, especially with those most impacted by decisions, but often the least heard from," said County Board Chair Analiese Eicher. "The pandemic has brought many challenges, with much of our work taking place remotely. We have been fortunate to have online outreach available to us, and Lauren’s expertise to guide its use, particularly with the recently completed redistricting process," she added.