A Break, a Tease, and a Bobblehead

A quick note to let you know there’s no Deep Dive this Friday as we’re taking a little late summer vacay here at GGF HQ. Beloved Wife and I are off to the mountains to visit family and take in the Tetons. Might have to dodge the smoke from a wildfire or two, but it still promises to be a welcome respite from the Central Texas heat.

Upon my return, I’ll be serving up three stories on cities successfully managing the negativity so prevalent on local government social media platforms. All the efforts are something others can replicate, though each approach is unique. I’m looking forward to sharing their stories.

On another personal note, I taught a class at the Certified Public Communicator program at TCU last week. As someone who played a small part in getting the program up and running over a decade ago, it’s rewarding to see how it has grown to better serve the professionals in the field. The curriculum has evolved to better enable students to not just create better strategic plans, but to be more effective leaders in their organizations.

The greatest benefit of the program, as I told the folks in Cohort 14, was the relationships they would develop over the course of the next year. Some will grow into friendships that will enrich their lives in ways they probably can’t imagine today. I know the folks I met at professional conferences decades ago are some of my dearest friends, who I still call today for advice on things professional and personal.

A highlight of the CPC week for me came at the networking luncheon on Tuesday. First, I got to catch up with a couple of those dear friends. Second, Cohort 13 (or Lucky 13, as they preferred to be called) presented a bobblehead to program founder Jacque Lambiase, who has been one of the best friends local government communicators have ever had.

Jacque was instrumental in launching the program, and now growing it into the critical educational opportunity it is today. Her knowledge, curiosity and desire to serve the profession have made a real difference for the hundreds of students who have passed through the program.

If you want to take your comms game to the next level, fill out an application. The energy at the luncheon and in the classroom was fantastic. Here’s a video that shares a bit more of what the program is all about.

Thanks also to Ashley English and Sarah Maben, two TCU professors who help Jacque manage the program. They make sure the curriculum meets the demands of the profession and understand how much communication excellence matters to good governance.

And, lord knows, we could use more of that. It’s the thread running through the three stories I'll bring back later this month, cities practicing good governance in one of the hardest places to do it, the comment section. See you then.

Onward and Upward.