january 2020 news digest - iimc

The Premier Organization for Municipal Clerks Since 1947

News DigestJanuary 2020

2020 News Digest

IIMC Foundation Awards 117 Online Scholarships for 2020See page 25

Calgary, Alberta, Canada 202478th Annual Conference

Sunday, May 19 – Wednesday, May 22, 2024

President’s Message ............................................................. 3

Honor Your Mentor During National Mentoring Month ........ 4

Excellence Is Not An Exception ............................................. 6

The Dysfunctional Council .................................................... 7

Marketing the Clerk’s Office: Branding the Future ................ 8

Securing And Protecting Your Electronic Records................ 12

2020 IIMC Board Vacancies: Make A Difference In IIMC’s And Your Future! ........................................................... 14

International Networking: Dutch City Council Visits Waltham Abbey (UL) Town Council ...................... 16

It’s a Miracle: Helsinki’s Radical Solution to Homelessness ............................................................... 18

St. Louis Conference Spread ............................................... 20

2020 Quill Award ................................................................ 22

Pega – An Award You Can Win – And Should ..................... 24

IIMC Foundation Awards 117 Jim Tinnin Online Scholarships....................................................... 25

2020 Quill Awards .............................................................. 26

Nominations Invited for The Annual Institute Director Award of Excellence ...................................................... 28

Calendar ............................................................................. 33

TABLE of CONTENTS

2 IIMC News Digest January 2020

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

www.iimc.comCopyright by the International Institute of Municipal Clerks. All rights reserved.

DIRECTORS – 2022 EXPIRATIONAnn Quirk, MMC – I, Barnstable, [email protected]

Teresa Hudson, MMC, II, Milford, [email protected]

Camilla Pitman, MMC, III, Greenville, [email protected]

Janice Bates, MMC, V, Tipp City, [email protected]

Lisa Garcia, MMC – VIII, Florence, [email protected]

Scott Passey, MMC – IX, Edmonds, [email protected]

Angila Bains, CMC – X, Saanich, BC, [email protected]

DIRECTORS – 2020 EXPIRATION

Diane Pflugfelder, MMC, II, Liberty, New [email protected]

Janice L. Almy, MMC, IV, Sand Springs, [email protected]

Audra J. Etzel, MMC, VI, Rockford, [email protected]

Kerry Rozman, MMC, VII, Clay Center, [email protected]

RaNae Edwards, MMC – VIII, Grand Island, [email protected]

Bonnie Hilford, CMC – X, Lethbridge, AB, [email protected]

Kathryn Richmond, CMC – XI, Waltham Abbey, United [email protected]

DIRECTORS – 2021 EXPIRATIONSandra Pinsonault, MMC – I, East Dorset, [email protected]

Sonja Tolbert, CMC – III, Albany, [email protected]

Leticia M. Vacek, MMC – IV, San Antonio, [email protected]

Leon Wright, MMC – V, Van Buren, [email protected]

Marie A. Moe, MMC – VI, Portage, [email protected]

Helen Ingold, CMC – VII, Crestwood, [email protected]

Dawn G. Abrahamson, MMC , Vallejo, [email protected]

Djimmer Petrusma, MMC , Dronten, The [email protected]

PRESIDENTLana R. McPherson, MMC

De Soto, [email protected]

PRESIDENT ELECTMary Johnston, MMC

Westerville, [email protected]

VICE PRESIDENTSheri Pierce, MMC

Valdez, [email protected]

IMMEDIATE PAST PRESIDENTStephanie Carouthers Kelly, MMC

Charlotte, North [email protected]

IIMC STAFF DIRECTORY

ADMINISTRATION• Executive Director .........................................Chris Shalby [email protected]

• Office Manager ............................................... Denice Cox [email protected]

• Finance Specialist ....................................Janet Pantaleon [email protected]

• Administrative Coordinator .................... Maria E. Miranda [email protected]

EDUCATION• Professional Development Director ..........................................Jane Anne Long, Ed.D. [email protected]• Assistant Director of Professional Development .......................... Ashley DiBlasi [email protected]

• Education Associate ................................... Kellie Siggson [email protected]

MEMBERSHIP• Director of Member Services ...........................Janis Daudt [email protected]

• Member Services Representative ............... Tammy Storrie [email protected]

• Education/Membership Assistant .......................... Iris Hill [email protected]

COMPUTERIZED BUSINESS SOLUTIONS• Doug [email protected]

News Digest™

Professionalism In Local Government Through Education

Published 11 times each year the News Digest is a publication of

The International Institute of Municipal Clerks 8331 Utica Avenue, Suite 200

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Chris Shalby, Publisher [email protected]

Telephone: 909/944-4162 • (800/251-1639) FAX: (909/944-8545) E-mail: [email protected]

Founded in 1947, IIMC has 70 years of experience improving the professionalism of Municipal Clerks. IIMC has more than 15,000 members representing towns, small municipalities and large urban jurisdictions of more than several million people.

• ATAM (Portugal)• IAM (Israel)• UDITE (Europe)• IMASA (South Africa)• NAMCB (Bulgaria)

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IIMC is affiliated with 49 U.S., & Nine Canadian Associations. National affiliations:

Volume LXVX No. 1 ISSN: 0145-2290January 2020

3January 2020 IIMC News Digest

2020 has arrived and with it comes the eagerness of new travels, exciting adventures, engaging conversa-tions and excellent opportunities for education to learn and grow in our municipal careers. Your IIMC Board of Directors anticipates moving forward with new ideas proposed at the mid-year meeting. There were lengthy discussions and much collaboration for strate-gies in advancing our professional Organization into the next decade to be more inclusive by reviewing some of the perceived barriers that might hinder Clerks from becoming more involved and participatory in our Orga-nization. You will see these recommendations coming back from the Policy Review Committee prior to the 2020 conference in St. Louis. With the assistance of Ellen Freeman-Wakefield, Institute Director, University of Nebraska, your Board has put the final touches on its third Strategic Plan. It will be unveiled at our 2020 conference in St. Louis.

A few weeks ago, I had the greatest experience of seeing up close the Big Boy #4014 steam locomotive. After participating in the Athenian Dialogue with the Colorado Clerks in discussing Steven Ambrose’s book, Nothing Like It in the World: The Men Who Built the Transcontinental Railroad 1863-1869, being able to

witness this magnificent piece of history come chug-ging through my hometown of De Soto, Kansas on the Union Pacific tracks was a double-shot of adrenalin to last for several days! Credit for this awesome photo goes to my council member, Rob Daniels. People were standing along the tracks (me, included) as well as in the fields and roadways to witness and photograph this historic steam engine. I wish my Colorado Clerk family had been with me. I know there are many terrific photos on Facebook from across Kansas.

Once again, I was asked to participate in a fellow Kansas clerk’s retirement reception. My friend, Gary Fees, MMC, City Clerk in Manhattan, Kansas, decided to leave clerkdom after 20 years. Gary was surprised to see us, and we were glad to meet his previous mayors and council members who came to speak at his reception. Being invited to acknowledge our IIMC family is one of the greatest privileges of being a member of your IIMC Executive Committee. Thank you for the opportunity to represent you and our IIMC family at these special events. I am honored to serve!

Continued on page 4

Lana McPherson, MMCIIMC President, 2019-2020

President’s Message

Happy New Year, Clerk Family!

Left to Right: Brenda Wolf, CMC, Manhattan; Patty Gerwick, MMC (retired) Mulvane; Gary Fees, MMC, Manhattan; IIMC Region VII Director, Kerry Rozman, MMC, Clay Center;

IIMC President, Lana McPherson, MMC, De Soto; and David Bryant, MMC, Olathe.


As we begin this new year and a new decade, remem-ber to be the one to help make a difference by reaching out to a fellow Clerk who may be new to clerkdom. Let that Clerk know about the numerous benefits of belonging to IIMC. Please consider joining one of the IIMC committees. And, don’t forget IIMC is always looking for talent amongst our Clerk family. Let our Executive Director know what your talent is, and you may be called upon to put it to use at one of our IIMC conferences. Each of us has much we can give and pay forward to our fellow Clerks and to our Organization. If each one of us gives a small part, think of the impact the total effect of that small part of giving will transform into. AMAZING things can happen because of YOUR willingness to give and pay it forward.

Speaking of giving, please remember to support our IIMC Foundation. January is National Mentoring Month. You can “Honor Your Mentor” by making a donation in honor of or in memory of a Clerk who has helped you along the way. You will be paying it forward by helping provide a scholarship for another Clerk to achieve certification.

Just as a stone tossed into the lake creates ripples to the shore, so does each contribution of your time and dollars creates a ripple of paying it forward for those

President’s Message…Continued from page 3

who come behind us. While the challenges of every city our members represent may differ, we all share a desire for our IIMC professional Organization to continue to grow and prosper.

Accomplishing some changes in the way we, as an Orga-nization, continue to evolve, we have the opportunity to flourish in the years ahead. It is evident the challenges we face today are much different than those in 1947, when a dedicated group of City Clerks came together and established our Organization. Yet, just look at where we are today and how those ripples of paying it forward have transformed our profession!

Be the One to pay it forward this year and create some ripples for our Clerk family now and in future. Here’s to 2020 being TERRIFIC!

Honor Your Mentor During National Mentoring Month

Every Municipal Clerk has at least one experienced Municipal Clerk who is their mentor. Many of us have more than one Clerk who has guided us, coun-

seled us, encouraged us, taught us, consoled us and inspired us. So, how do we thank them?

January is National Mentoring Month: And, an excellent way to thank your mentor(s) is to make a donation to the IIMC Foundation in their honor. It’s easy! Just visit iimc-foundation.com to make an online donation, or if you’d prefer to send a check, just mail your donation and the name and address of your mentor to IIMC Foundation Treasurer Roxanne Schneider, MMC, City Clerk, Dysart, PO Box 686, Dysart, IA 52224. Your mentor(s) will receive a letter from the Foundation informing them of your generous gift in their honor.

Pay it forward. Your contribution to the Foundation will help fund Clerk education programs, scholarships and grants. Plus, there’s no better way to honor your mentor(s) than passing along the gifts they gave to you.

Remember – when we all give a little, we all learn a lot!


www.nps.gov/jeff/planyourvisit/och.htm

Welcome to the Old Courthouse! Meet Me In St. Louis

The Old Courthouse was the site of the first two trials of the pivotal Dred Scott case in 1847 and 1850. It was also where Virginia Minor’s case for a woman’s right to vote came to trial in the 1870s. You may tour this historic structure, and visit the restored court-rooms to learn more about our 19th century judicial system.

St. Louis’ Old Courthouse is listed in the National Park Service’s National Underground Railroad Network To Freedom.

The Network to Freedom recognizes sites, programs and facilities with verifiable associations to the Underground Railroad. The phenomenon popularly known as the Underground Railroad has been broadly defined by the National Park Service as the “historic resistance to enslavement through escape and flight.” The Old Courthouse is linked with the story of the Underground Railroad, and with that of slavery, as a property associated with legal challenges to slavery. It was a public forum as well as a courthouse. Slaves were auctioned from its steps in estate settle-ments, while one man’s suit for freedom helped plunge the country into Civil War. The Old Courthouse was the site of hundreds of suits for freedom, but one gained notoriety. In 1847, Dred Scott, with his wife Harriet, sued for, and were granted, their freedom. After many appeals, the case was decided upon by the Supreme Court. The decision stated that slaves were property, and as such, had no right to sue. The Dred Scott Decision hastened the start of the Civil War.


Excellence Is Not An Exception

As you go about preparing to realize your vision, it’s important to plan for excellence. Often—too often, actually—planning efforts are focused on

“what” and not “how.” Certainly, knowing what to do is vitally important if you have any chance of realizing the future state of a vision. But knowing how you will do it is even more important, because success is grounded in discipline. Planning the details of what will be done needs to be coupled with the way you and the team plan to get it done. Ideally, how you will do it is with an unparalleled level of excellence. Think about it: If not excellence, then what?

Excellence is preferred to any alternative, for sure. Excellence is the desired state for every individual and team, and it’s realized through the discipline of execut-ing details of a plan.

Perhaps the most consistent display of excellence is among the team of ladies and gentlemen at the Ritz-Carlton. They’re known for their service excellence. Whether you’ve stayed at one of their hotels and expe-rienced the level of their service firsthand or know of their service from others who have, you know they’re the standard-bearer of excellence.

The most common understanding of excellence is being the best—the best quality; the best service; the best product; the best, period. Among teams today, leaders must drive excellence at the point of preparation so that it’s an ingrained expectation throughout every action the team members take. You must drive excellence in the small things to realize excellence in all things. That’s what makes the Ritz-Carlton team so renowned. They just get it because it’s ingrained into them to do so. They prepare properly, measure expectations against outcomes appropriately, and have uncompromising follow-through.

It’s important to note here that your sense of excellence mirrors how excellence is perceived by your custom-ers, team members, and all other stakeholders. You see, excellence is similar to personal brand; it’s important that you define it clearly so you understand it, but it’s determined only from the perceptions of others.

Legendary football coach Vince Lombardi saw

excellence as more than simply doing your best. He said, “The quality of a person’s life is in direct propor-tion to their commitment to excellence, regardless of their chosen field of endeavor.” How’s your level of personal excellence? What level of excellence are you driving and realizing every day, with every action and every person? Are you delivering Ritz-Carlton levels of excellence in your work? If not excellence, then what?

Think about the immediate and downstream residual impact from delivering excellence in everything you do and everything your team does—not just for custom-ers, but also for one another on the team and within the organization. Do you know the value of your excellence in service? Research from the American Society for Quality found that while 9 percent of customers will leave because they are lured away by the competition and 14 percent will leave because of dissatisfaction with a product, the vast majority—68 percent—will leave because of the experience they’ve had with one person. This is true with your customers and highlights the level of excellence you should be focused on delivering. How’s your level of excellence? Is it where you want to be, or are there improvements you need to make?

Don’t sacrifice. Remember, your excellence is not an exception. It needs to be infused in the preparation of your work and in how you and your team go about work in everything and with everyone—every day.

Editor’s Note: Dr. Rahschulte is the CEO of the Profes-sional Development Academy and chief architect of the NACo High Performance Leadership program (www.naco.org/skills). He is the co-author of My Best Advice: Proven Rules For Effective Leadership. This is one in a series of articles from Dr. Rahschulte on Leadership.

By Dr. Tim Rahschulte


The Dysfunctional Council

One of the most frequent causes of councils calling for external assistance is their inability to take their eyes off each other. Such councils

allow pettiness to become the hallmark of their tenure and, as a result, destroy any legitimate effort at making a real difference in their communities.

I have witnessed councils who, having acted in a reason-able fashion for years, now become focused on the absurd as a result of one new member being elected. The new person is, well, different. They have an opin-ion, and they have no reluctance to express it. Not only do such people not adhere to Robert’s Rules of Order, they do not respect the Marquess of Queensbury (i.e., boxing) rules either. While having one rogue council-lor can be a problem, engaging in a dispute wherein the one with the most experience in the gutter establishes the rules is not pretty to watch. Normally effective and responsible councils can implode if they allow anyone or anything to take their eyes off their main priority: serving the real needs of their constituents.

Often, the presence of one dysfunctional council-lor reflects (albeit far too late) the lack of attention by council to the establishment of solid protocols that would guide all of council in handling each other, the administrative hierarchy, the public, the processes of council meetings, the media, etc. When everyone “played nice,” not having such processes and policies in place likely didn’t seem to matter. When someone is elected who seems determined to make life miserable

for the “team,” then the absence of effective rules of governance is glaringly evident.

Good governance relies on a solid bank of protocols that reflect the “rules of engagement” deemed reasonable to people who are clear-headed and normally polite. Without these rules, developed at the outset, it is likely that immature behaviour will be allowed to dominate the day. The focus of council will be placed inordinately on “policing” idiocy, rather than on developing creative programs and policies that best serve the public.

Focusing on the one councillor who seems to be “out of step” with the rest of council is not helpful. At the same time, trying to force everyone into the same mindset reflects a poor understanding of good public debate. The fact that one or more members of council do not agree with the majority is a basic tenet of democracy. Such disagreement should improve decision making, not encourage disrespect. So, what if someone is in disagreement? I would imagine that a survey of the public on such issues would also reflect varying opinions on virtually every topic under consideration. Sameness is not a virtue. Dissent for its own sake is not a virtue. However, discussion and debate are the healthy forerun-ners of best decisions. A council that thinks group-think is a positive attribute is dysfunctional.

Editor’s Note: This article was first published in Munici-pal World. George B. Cuff, FCMC, has been involved in local government in one way or another since 1970. He has been a recreation and youth specialist, a depart-ment head, a mayor for 12 years, and a consultant/advisor to municipalities since 1976. He is the author of eight books on local government policy governance. His latest book is Leading: The Real Value of a Mayor and Council and he has also written hundreds of articles and columns in Municipal World since 1984.

By George Cuff

When one councillor seems determined to make life miserable for the “team,” the absence of effective rules becomes glaringly evident. But that doesn’t mean dissent is a bad thing,

says George Cuff.


Marketing the Clerk’s Office: Branding for the Future

When it comes to marketing and branding, what does the City Clerk’s office have in common with Amazon? A lot more than you

might think.

Amazon is one of the most recognizable brands in the world. When you think of online shopping, you think of Amazon. When you think about why you shop at Amazon, it may be that you can buy anything from toilet paper to t-shirts. It may be that finding what you need is so easy, whether you’re using your laptop or an app. Or it may be the convenience factor of not having to leave your house or office.

While Amazon started out with a vision of being “Earth’s biggest bookstore,” that vision has evolved over time. Now you can buy anything you want (and even some things you didn’t know you wanted) on Amazon.

Above all else, Amazon’s brand promise—to consistently deliver an exceptional customer experience—has driven the company’s growth, whether the company is selling books, cloud storage or groceries.

Amazon knew customers wanted an easy way to purchase items online, at low prices. As a public servant, do you know what your customers want from you? More importantly, do you know how you deliver it?

Rethinking the Role of the Clerk’s Office

Many Clerks express that they face challenges with how their colleagues and municipal business units perceive their role and responsibilities. Given that clerks often have to adhere to strict deadlines, are responsible for records management, compliance and risk management, clerks often end up being slightly unpopular with their colleagues.

Considering their demanding and often high-pressure positions, it’s not difficult to see why many clerk’s offices often do things a certain way—“the way it has always been done.” However, when clerks do not take the time to define who they are, what they stand for and how they accomplish their mission, the internal reputation of the clerk’s office suffers.

By Melissa Henley

This is where branding can help. Great brands provide a source of identification and an assurance of quality. Think back to Amazon: It simplifies decision-making and clearly communicates the value created for custom-ers. And great brands make and keep their promises. These characteristics differentiate great brands and cement their leadership credentials. Your leadership, reputation and those of your department can have the same impact. If neglected, they can also undermine even your best efforts.

Time for an Honest Self-Assessment

If you were to ask your municipality’s employees right now, “What does the clerk’s office do?” would they stammer something about records then run for the door? If that is the case, you need to rethink your department’s role and do some in-house marketing, research and public relations.

First, ask yourself some important questions:

• Do you know what your office’s reputation is? When the clerk’s office is mentioned, do you know if your colleagues smile—or do they silently shudder? Do they picture people who go the extra mile, or do they picture uncompromising bureaucrats who are stick-lers for every rule?

• Do employees understand and appreciate the impor-tance of the clerk’s office in furthering your munici-pality’s mission and objectives? You may be respon-sible for records management, but do your colleagues understand how this supports your municipality’s overall vision for transparency and citizen service?

• Does your office make an effort to market its services to the organization? More simply, if you asked several of your colleagues what the clerk’s office does, would they be able to answer? Or would they say something like, “I think they put together the agenda”?

Finding these answers requires dialogue, which means you—and your team—must communicate. That communication must consist of equal parts listening and promotion.

Continued on page 10


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Marketing the Clerks Office’s…Continued from page 8

Branding for the Future

If you want to be perceived as more strategic, more valuable, more credible, more whatever, you need to start thinking like a business with a product and market your overall brand image.

The first step in creating or enhancing a brand identity is to determine who your customers are and what they need from the clerk’s office. Are your primary customers executives, managers, associates or the entire municipal-ity? What products and services do they use from the clerk’s office? What would they like to receive from you? How do they currently perceive the clerk’s office?

This type of analysis helps you understand the differ-ence between what you are providing, what you think people want from you, and what your customers say they need.

After you determine the needs and current perceptions of your existing customers, you can decide how you would like your customers to perceive the clerk’s office. It is important to note that the function of the clerk’s office will differ from organization to organization.

To achieve a solid brand identity, you cannot be all things to all people. You can try, but you will fail in the eyes of significant numbers of your customers.

Marketing the Clerk’s Office

To position the Clerk’s office for the future, you need to take on a public relations role, starting with your colleagues.

Think of your office as a product and do some smart marketing. Everything from phone conversations and email messages to the way you conduct business in a meeting is part of the larger message you’re sending about your brand.

Partly, it’s a matter of substance: what you have to say and how well it’s said. But it’s also a matter of style. Do your communications demonstrate a command of tech-nology? In meetings, do you keep your contributions short and to the point? Are you easy to work with?

Marketing the Clerk’s office requires you to demonstrate your problem-solving skills, so others will know you do much more than simply process papers. The best form of advertising is your actions. Through your actions, processes and programs, you can promote your team as a flexible, adaptable, solutions-oriented partner, a

resource to whom the organization can turn when it needs problems solved.

You need to be consistent in your branding. As an example, if you are striving to present yourself as tech-savvy, promote that through all your interactions. As an example, don’t just get rid of paper in your file cabinets — take meetings paperless, bring new solutions to the table, such as agenda management automation or online permit requests, and promote mobile solutions for law enforcement officers or inspectors.

The Power of Branding

Leadership is all about seeing and creating a brighter and better future. It’s about innovating, creating, build-ing, improving, and transforming every aspect of our lives and the world we live in.

The biggest mistake leaders make when it comes to branding is thinking that their brand doesn’t have to be proactively managed. Everyone and every office has a brand — it just may not be what you want it to be. By being intentional and proactive, leaders can help shape their own reputation, as well as the impact and influ-ence of their team.

Editor’s Note: Melissa Henley is Director of Customer Experience for IIMC Premier Diamond Sponsor Laserfiche, an enterprise software company that has developed solutions for the public sector for more than 30 years. She also is on the Board of Directors for the IIMC Foundation. To learn more about the Foundation or to donate, please visit iimcfoundation.com.

Fisheye view of Downtown St. Louis from the Top of the Arch


What was the West really like during the 19th century?

St. Louis began as a center of trade on waterways, but in the late 1840s it became a manufacturing city. By the 1870s St. Louis ranked with the top cities in the nation as a center of industrial might. Rails sent manufactured goods west, creating an American metropolis.

What was the American West really like during the 19th century? The mythic West has become better known around the world than the actual history and events of the period. Explore how people settled and lived in the West, the myths that became the West’s cultural legacy, and how industrial inno-vation changed St. Louis and the nation.

Gateway Arch Attractions

The Mississippi was an International Border

St. Louis began as a center of trade on waterways, but in the late 1840s it became a manufacturing city. By the 1870s St. Louis ranked with the top cities in the nation as a center of industrial might. Rails sent manufactured goods west, creating an American metropolis.

What was the American West really like during the 19th century? The mythic West has become better known around the world than the actual history and events of the period. Explore how people settled and lived in the West, the myths that became the West’s cultural legacy, and how industrial innovation changed St. Louis and the nation. https://www.nps.gov/jeff/planyourvisit/colonial-st-louis.htm



Securing And ProtectingYour Electronic Records

Over the past few years, many organizations have been attacked by data breaches and ransom-ware. The volume of these attacks, especially

those that are successful, has increased to a level that has raised significant concern especially for organizations such as government agencies, health facilities and banks. An issue that almost every group encounters is that the internal security teams take the approach that firewalls and network security are sufficient to protect data, but that is not the case for electronic records. Electronic records need a higher level of protection that can only be provided through the implementation of trustworthy electronic content solutions that incorporate records management integration and secure and trustworthy storage technologies.

The industry standards program (ANSI/ISO) have developed a family of standards and best practices related to this issue and include ISO 18829 trustworthy assessments, ISO 22957 design and integration best practices, and ISO 18759 Trustworthy storage. The key to using these standards is to consider that almost every organization has some type of electronic storage in use today, but most utilize network attached storage and server/windows-based security models. We have found that this doesn’t provide the necessary security and protections as can be seen by the various data breaches and ransomware attacks, we have all heard about over the past year or two.

The good news is that these issues can be prevented by assessing existing solutions and identifying gaps in the security models for the records (not the data security models) along with reviewing the integration between the electronic records, the retention schedules and the storage of the records in a secure trustworthy storage environment that cannot be ‘hacked’ because it cannot be accessed directly, but accessed only through the electronic records management environment modules. Additionally, the content stored on the trustworthy storage technologies create a secondary copy internally for safekeeping and validation through hash validation, and each environment should have a disaster recovery site that would be a full replica of the primary site. These tools and methods have proven to be effective

By Robert Blatt

and prevent unauthorized access and more importantly prevents unauthorized deletions and modifications.

The first step in preventing these types of data breaches is to perform an assessment of the existing environment(s) along with the reviewing established policies and procedures in place throughout the organi-zation and developing those that have not been created. The assessment should focus on how information is ingested and protected, along with how the records are protected and controlled through the use of a records management solution along with the policies and procedures in use throughout the organization. As many organizations simply use an electronic storage solution with network storage, planning and working to imple-ment the records management application is critical, as that component provides the necessary controls related to record disposition following the retention sched-ule and enabling litigation controls, PII security and creating consistency throughout the organization with appropriate policies and procedures.

The next step to be considered is to bridge the existing record taxonomy into a consistent fashion and ensure all system and application logging is stored and reviewed on a frequent basis. While many of these steps seem simple and straight forward it is important to remember that change management and the policy and procedure development is critical as many of the required updates and changes will require updates to business processes along with using trustworthy storage technologies in many cases. These topics will be discussed in detail at the upcoming IIMC annual conference and users are highly encouraged to attend these sessions to gain more detailed information to secure and protect their content.

Blatt’s two sessions at the Conference in St. Louis are titled: Protecting and Securing your Mission Critical Records on Tuesday, May 19. And, Trustworthy Content/Records Management Environments on Wednesday, May 20.

Editor’s Note: Robert M. Blatt has more than 35+ years extensive technical experience working with numerous content/records management technologies.


Securing and Protecting Your Electronic Records…Continued from page 12

Accredited as an AIIM-Master of Information Technol-ogy in 1997, and AIIM-Document Imaging Laureate in 1998. Appointed to US TAG to ISO TC/171 in 1998. This committee represents US interests in the Content/Document Management and Workflow industries estab-lishing international standards.

Blatt is the chairperson of several content/document management industry-standard-setting committees and a current member of the industry standards board. He has developed and participated in the development of numerous ECM industry ISO standards and best prac-tices plus he is an acknowledged international industry expert and analyst.

Blatt has been President and Principal Consultant with Electronic Image Designers (EID), Inc. since 1994. EID is one of the industry’s first vendor-neutral consulting organizations focusing on record/document manage-ment assessments, planning, design, and implementa-tion oversight efforts. For more information, contact Blatt at: [email protected]

The St. Louis Walk of Fame is a nonprofit organization founded in 1988 to provide a showcase for the cultural heri-tage of St. Louis and to advance the knowledge, awareness and appreciation of great St. Louisans and their accom-plishments. Its mission is also to encourage pride in the community and career inspiration in individuals.

The Walk of Fame consists of brass stars and bronze plaques embedded in the sidewalks of the Delmar Loop to honor people from the St. Louis area who have made major national contributions to our cultural heritage. Each star features the name of an honoree and the accompany-ing plaque contains a biography summarizing his or her achievements and connection to the city. These informative plaques distinguish the St. Louis Walk of Fame from similar projects throughout the country and make ours education-al as well as entertaining.

http://stlouiswalkoffame.org/


2020 IIMC Board Vacancies: Make A Difference In IIMC’s And Your Future!

In the past few years, IIMC members who have served on the Board of Directors have been involved in many aspects in providing a vision for

the Organization. Some of the salient points include but are not limited to:

• Producing a third three-year strategic plan;• Creating a Diversity/Inclusivity Task Force; • Overseeing the Organization’s financial health and

producing historic restricted reserves; • Creating progressive Organizational policies; • Initiating an advanced conference selection process;• Producing successful revenue generating conferences; • Increasing membership to an all-time high in

Region XI; • Maintaining transparent and open communications

with all members.

These are just a handful of the tangible accomplish-ments in which each Board was involved.

As an IIMC member, you, too, have the opportunity to make an impact on your Organization. Have you ever wanted to shape policies, programs and develop stra-tegic plans to help your colleagues? Can IIMC benefit from your ideas and perspective? Do you want to convey to 15,000 colleagues that you value the efforts of your Organization and that you want to have a voice in its growth and future? Do you want your decisions, direction and vision about IIMC’s future to directly impact the membership?

If you’ve answered yes to any of these questions, then it’s time to take that initial step forward and put your leadership and knowledge to task by serving as an IIMC Board of Director.

2020 Board vacancies are available in the follow-ing Regions and as Vice President on the Executive Committee:

Region Director Vacancies

II DC, DE, MD, NJ, PA, VA, WV IV AR, LA, MS, OK, TX VI IA, MN, WI

VII IL, KS, MO VIII AZ, CO, ID, MT, NE, NV, NM, ND, SD, UT, WY X CANADA XI OUTSIDE NORTH AMERICA

Qualifications of Candidates: A Director’s term of office is three years. To qualify for office as a Region Director, a candidate must:

A. Be an IIMC member for at least three (3) years.

B. Have served at least three (3) years as a Municipal Clerk or other office as defined in IIMC’s Consti-tution, Article II, Membership, Section 2 A.

C. Have attended at least two Annual Conferences. Attendance may include the conference at which the candidate’s term would begin.

D. Be a Full Member or Additional Full Member and, if elected, remain a Full or Additional Full Member during the term of office.

E. Provide written support of candidacy from the legislative governmental body they represent.

F. Provide written support of candidacy from their state, provincial, or national association within the Region in which they are running.

Vice President: To qualify for the office of Vice President, a candi-date must:

A. Be an IIMC member for at least three (3) years.

B. Have served on the IIMC Board for three (3) years prior to time of election.

C. Have served at least three years as a Municipal Clerk or other office as defined in IIMC’s Constitution, Article II, Membership, Section 2 A.

D. Have attended at least two Annual Conferences. Attendance may include the conference at which the candidate’s term would begin.



E. Be a Full Member or Additional Full Member and, if elected, remain a Full or Additional Full Member during the term of office, which shall include terms as President-Elect, President and Past President.

F. Provide written support of candidacy from the legislative governmental body they represent.

The Vice President automatically advances to President Elect and then to President. All Candidates (Region Directors and Vice Presidents) running for office must submit to Headquarters the following:

• Complete and return Nominating Forms announc-ing his or her candidacy 120 days prior to the Annual Meeting (Form must be returned to IIMC HQ no later than Wednesday, January 22, 2020);

• A current, high quality photograph (Digital, JPG) picture is required to be published in the online News Digest; A 200-word essay (not to exceed 200 words in Word File, not in PDF) on their qualifications, emphasizing activities in the Municipal Clerk’s pro-fession (essay will be published in the on-line News Digest).

You can obtain Nominating Forms online at www.iimc.com under Board of Directors, or by contacting Executive Director Chris Shalby at: chriss@iimc. com. Nominating Form, photograph, essay and the endorsement of candidacy can be sent electronically to Executive Director Chris Shalby.Candidates agree and understand that the above information will be published as received in the News Digest.

Elections – Region Director

If there is one Region Director candidate, no election is held and the candidate is declared elected. If there are two or more candidates, IIMC will conduct a Region election 30 or more days prior to the beginning of the Annual Conference. Full, Additional Full, Associate, Retired and Honorary Members can vote for Region Director. Election results are provided to the candidates prior to the Annual Conference and are announced to the membership at the Annual Business meeting.

2020 IIMC Board Vacancies…Continued from page 14


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The City Council of Bodegraven-Reeuwijk - a municipality in the Dutch province of South Holland – was created on January 1, 2011,

following the merger of two former municipalities.

The visit came about through the Clerks of the two councils, Kathryn Richmond and Hans Rijs, who are IIMC members where Richmond is a Board Director.

The visit’s intent came about when Mayor Christiaan van der Kamp said, “the purpose of the fact-finding visit was to see how a local authority operates in another country.”

He said:”By visiting another country’s local government, in this case the municipal council of Waltham Abbey, we learn much more than visiting a local municipal-ity in the Netherlands because we are all alike.” “The reason why we are visiting Waltham Abbey is because

we want to learn something, we want to see how it is done here and what can we do for ourselves to do things better.”

The Dutch visitors were welcomed by Waltham Abbey Town Mayor councillor Antony Watts and other town councillors after being given a tour of Waltham, includ-ing the Abbey Church and Epping Forest District Museum. Visits were also made to the Royal Gunpow-der Mills and the Lee Valley White Water Centre, close to the town.

Town Clerk Kathryn Richmond was delighted to see the Dutch Council take such an interest in the method of local councils in England. It was also a great oppor-tunity to showcase the historic town of Waltham Abbey. Discussions took place at the Town Hall that identi-fied the different ways the two councils operate. They were also taken into the Waltham Abbey Town Council chamber in Waltham Abbey Town Hall.

Both Clerks are thinking about trading places for a short period so they can experience how it is to be a Clerk in another county. If that plan comes to fruition, there will definitely be important and interesting infor-mation to share with IIMC members. They will further work on an exchange visit from the council of Waltham Abbey to the Netherlands.

Bodegraven-Reeuwijk is in the so-called ‘Groene Hart’ (Green Heart), a rural area between the cities of Amster-dam, Utrecht, Rotterdam and Den Haag (The Hague).

International Networking: Dutch City Council Visits Waltham Abbey (UK) Town CouncilBy Hans Rijs

Editor’s Note: As part of IIMC’s Region XI outreach programs, a group of Council members from The Netherlands, led by IIMC member Hans Rijs visited the Town Council of Waltham Abbey in the United Kingdom, where IIMC Region XI Director Kathryn Richmond, CMC, is the Town Council’s Town Clerk.



2020 IIMC Board Vacancies …Continued from page 15

Elections – Vice President

If there is one Vice President candidate, no election is held and the candidate is declared elected. If there are two or more candidates, IIMC will conduct an election 30 or more days prior to the beginning of the Annual Conference. Election of a vice-president shall be conveyed to all Full, Additional Full, Associate, Retired and Honorary Members. Election results are provided to the candidates prior to the Annual Confer-ence and are announced to the membership at the Annual Business meeting.

Here’s your chance to help lead the Organization dedi-cated to furthering the Municipal Clerk’s profession. By joining the IIMC Board of Directors, you can expect to work hard, and have a rewarding experience in return. As an IIMC Board member, you will devote time, energy, and ideas to lead the Organization forward. IIMC is looking for individuals committed to the Organization’s mission and vision.

Take your leadership to the next level, become an IIMC Board of Director.

Its neighbouring city is Gouda, best known for its cheese, with Bodegraven, which has some 34,470 resi-dents, the place where most cheese is stored with more than 20 million kilograms of cheese kept in warehouses.

The city also boasts two breweries, of which Brouwerij De Molen is the best known internationally.

Christiaan van der Kamp was appointed mayor by the King, for a six-year term with the council elected every four years.

The City Council consists of eight parties and 23 members.

The coalition has 18 members from five Parties and the opposition has five members from three parties.

Waltham Abbey has 11 elected members, 10 Conserva-tive and 1 Green Party, with a population of 21,000 approximately, and a budget of £1.2m, located in Epping Forest District, Essex County.

International Networking…Continued from page 16


‘It’s a Miracle’: Helsinki’s Radical Solution to Homelessness

Tatu Ainesmaa just turned 32, and for the first time in more than a decade he has a home he can truly say is his: an airy two-room apartment

in a small, recently renovated block in a leafy suburb of Helsinki, with a view over birch trees.

“It’s a big miracle,” he says. “I’ve been in communes, but everyone was doing drugs and I’ve had to get out. I’ve been in bad relationships; same thing. I’ve been on my brother’s sofa. I’ve slept rough. I’ve never had my own place. This is huge for me.”

Downstairs in the two-story block is a bright communal living and dining area, a spotless kitchen, a gym room and a sauna (in Finland, saunas are basically obligatory). Upstairs is where the 21 tenants, men and women, most under 30, live.

It is important that they are tenants: each has a contract, pays rent and (if they need to) applies for housing benefit. That, after all, is all part of having a home – and part of a housing policy that has now made Finland the only EU country where homelessness is falling.

When the policy was being devised just over a decade ago, the four people who came up with what is now widely known as the Housing First principle – a social scientist, a doctor, a politician and a bishop – called

By Jon Henley

Finland is the only EU country where homelessness is falling. Its secret? Giving people homes as soon as they need them – unconditionally.

their report NimiOvessa (Your Name on the Door).

“It was clear to everyone the old system wasn’t work-ing; we needed radical change,” says Juha Kaakinen, the working group’s secretary and first programme leader, who now runs the Y-Foundation developing supported and affordable housing.

“We had to get rid of the night shelters and short-term hostels we still had back then. They had a very long history in Finland, and everyone could see they were not getting people out of homelessness. We decided to reverse the assumptions.”

As in many countries, homelessness in Finland had long been tackled using a staircase model: you were supposed to move through different stages of temporary accom-modation as you got your life back on track, with an apartment as the ultimate reward.

“We decided to make the housing unconditional,” says Kaakinen. “To say, look, you don’t need to solve your problems before you get a home. Instead, a home should be the secure foundation that makes it easier to solve your problems.”

With state, municipal and NGO backing, flats were bought, new blocks built, and old shelters converted into permanent, comfortable homes – among them the Rukkila homeless hostel in the Helsinki suburb of Malminkartano where Ainesmaa now lives.

As a series of crises puts Europe under strain, some cities are fighting back with innovative solutions. From hyper-specialist shops beating the online threat in Berlin to the Bulgarian city reversing the country’s brain drain, from the Italian city finding new ways to tackle addic-tion to gambling to the Swedish town that has found innovative ways to combat extremism, we look at what European cities are doing to live better in our increas-ingly urban world.

Housing First’s early goal was to create 2,500 new homes. It has created 3,500. Since its launch in 2008, the number of long-term homeless people in Finland has fallen by more than 35 percent. Rough sleeping


Photo by Miemo Penttinen - miemo.net / Getty Images


has been all but eradicated in Helsinki, where only one 50-bed night shelter remains, and where winter temper-atures can plunge to -20C.

The city’s deputy mayor Sanna Vesikansa says that in her childhood, “hundreds in the whole country slept in the parks and forests. We hardly have that anymore. Street sleeping is very rare now.”

In England, meanwhile, government figures show the number of rough sleepers – a small fraction of the total homeless population – climbed from 1,768 in 2010 to 4,677 last year (and since the official count is based on a single evening, charities say the real figure is far higher).

But Housing First is not just about housing. “Services have been crucial,” says Helsinki’s mayor, Jan Vapaavu-ori, who was housing minister when the original scheme was launched. “Many long-term homeless people have addictions, mental health issues, medical conditions that need ongoing care. The support has to be there.”

At Rukkila, seven staff support 21 tenants. Assistant manager Saara Haapa says the work ranges from practi-cal help navigating bureaucracy and getting education, training and work placements to activities including games, visits and learning – or re-learning – basic life skills such as cleaning and cooking.

“A lot of it is really about talking,” says Henna Ahonen, a trainee social worker. And that is “easier when you are actually doing something together, rather than in a formal interview,” Haapa says. “The connection is just … easier. You can spot problems more readily.”

Hardly any of the tenants come straight from the street, Haapa says, and those who do can take time to adjust to living indoors. But after a three-month trial, tenants’ contracts are permanent – they can’t be moved unless they break the rules (Rukkila does not allow drug or alcohol use; some other Housing First units do) or fail to pay the rent.

Some stay seven years or more; others leave after one or two. In 2018, six tenants moved out to lead fully inde-pendent lives, Haapa says. One is now a cleaner, living in her own flat; another studied for a cookery qualifica-tion during his five years at Rukkila and now works as a chef.

Ainesmaa is on a two-year work experience programme designed to lead to a job. He says the opportunity to sort himself out was priceless: “Look, I own noth-ing. I’m on the autism spectrum. I think people are

my friends, and then they rip me off. I’ve been ripped off … a lot. But now I have my place. It’s mine. I can build.”

Housing First costs money, of course: Finland has spent €250m creating new homes and hiring 300 extra support workers. But a recent study showed the savings in emergency healthcare, social services and the justice system totalled as much as €15,000 a year for every homeless person in properly supported housing.

Interest in the policy beyond the country’s borders has been exceptional, from France to Australia, says Vesikansa. The British government is funding pilot schemes in Merseyside, the West Midlands and Greater Manchester, whose Labour mayor, Andy Burnham, is due in Helsinki in July to see the policy in action.

But if Housing First is working in Helsinki, where half the country’s homeless people live, it is also because it is part of a much broader housing policy. More pilot schemes serve little real purpose, says Kaakinen: “We know what works. You can have all sorts of projects, but if you don’t have the actual homes … A sufficient supply of social housing is just crucial.”

And there, the Finnish capital is fortunate. Helsinki owns 60,000 social housing units; one in seven residents live in city-owned housing. It also owns 70 percent of the land within the city limits, runs its own construc-tion company, and has a current target of building 7,000 more new homes – of all categories – a year.

In each new district, the city maintains a strict housing mix to limit social segregation: 25 percent social hous-ing, 30 percent subsidised purchase, and 45 percent private sector. Helsinki also insists on no visible external differences between private and public housing stock and sets no maximum income ceiling on its social hous-ing tenants.

It has invested heavily, too, in homelessness prevention, setting up special teams to advise and help tenants in danger of losing their homes and halving the number of evictions from city-owned and social housing from 2008 to 2016.

“We own much of the land, we have a zoning monop-oly, we run our own construction company,” says Riikka Karjalainen, senior planning officer. “That helped a lot with Housing First because simply, there is no way you will eradicate homelessness without a serious, big-picture housing policy.”


It’s A Miracle…Continued from page 18

Meet Me in St. Louis…your gateway to education

2019 Annual Conference Sponsors

Proud Sponsor of Education Programs and Speakers

P R E M I E R SPONSORP R E M I E R SPONSOR

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The preliminary program was mailed in November to any member who has attended an IIMC Conference within the last three years, and to all Region VII members. The Program is available online via IIMC’s website at www.iimc.com.

More information regarding the Conference, education sessions, general speakers, Athenian Dialogues, Academies, and events will be in each issue of the News Digest and weekly E-Briefings.

IIMC News Digest January 2020

Master Municipal Clerk (MMC) Academy Sessions

In 2020, IIMC will offer six (6) four-hour pre-conference Master Municipal Clerk Academy (MMC) Sessions. The topics offered will include Meeting Management, Conflict Management, Employee Appreciation, Resilience, Influence & Impact and Information Security.Attendees must pre-register for Academy sessions that are open to members pursuing both the CMC and MMC designations. Each Academy Session is worth two (2) CMC Education points or two (2) MMC Advanced Education points. To receive points, each participant is required to complete a learning assessment.

Sunday, May 17, 2020 7:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. Fee: $179.00

Shift Happens: It Ain’t Over!

Joyce E. BrooksBrooks Consulting, LLC., Hoover, Alabama

What happened to phone booths? When did pets start wearing sweaters? Why did airlines start serving peanuts and pretzels? The answer to these questions boils down to one word, change.

Change is not always welcomed, especially when an unexpected shift occurs. Change can propel or paralyze, can challenge the norms and spur action. Change is inevitable. It does not discriminate. No person is immune to the good, bad and ugly of what change offers and depending on your perspective, change can be positive or negative.

Learning how to cope and adapt to change can be beneficial personally and professionally. Join Joyce E. Brooks, a woman all too familiar with change and making shifts as she teaches you how to effectively manage change and not resist it. As a breast cancer survivor, widow, successful professional and mother of two, Joyce brings her personal experiences into the classroom with her and will show you first hand, how one’s perception can affect how well one adapts to change and how individual responses to change can impact an organization’s success.

When planning the 2019 Annual Conference in Birmingham, Alabama, the Education Department hired a speaker to talk about change, perspective and moving forward. Unfortunately, before the session went to print, the Department received a phone call from Joyce E. Brooks, sharing that she was diagnosed with breast cancer

2019 Annual Conference Sponsors


for the second time and would not be able to join us in Birmingham. This year Joyce will be joing us in St. Louis, Missouri.

Don’t miss your chance to register for this Academy session!

Pre-registration and payment of a $179.00 fee is required to attend this Academy session. To receive certification points, each participant is required to complete a learning assessment. This session is limited to 30 registered delegates.

Sunday, May 17, 2020 12:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m. Fee: $179.00

Future-Proof Brand YOU!

Haydee AntezanaProfessional Impressions ExpertHaydee Antezana InternationalTemecula, California

The world is full of brilliantly smart people that sadly we will never know simply because, despite how smart they may be, they don’t know how to future-proof their brand. Yes, you have a personal brand whether you are aware of it or not.

To be a successful leader in this highly competitive, fast-paced, look-at-me cultural shift of a world we live in, you need to be 3 steps ahead. Have you heard the saying, “You never get a second chance to make a good first impression?” You and your municipality may be losing valuable opportunities daily without even knowing it. Think about the various audiences you have in your life: supervisors, co-workers, your governing body, vendors, the media and the citizens that you serve. If they had to list 3-5 words to describe you, what would they say? And, would their answers align with the words you would use to describe yourself? Perception is everything, especially in public service.

Join Personal Impressions Expert, Haydee Antezana as she walks you through how to fight against weapons of mass distraction and package yourself for success. If you are looking to create new opportunities and reach new levels of success as a powerful leader in your community,

don’t miss this interactive and insightful academy session.

Pre-registration and payment of a $179.00 fee is required to attend this Academy session. To receive certification points, each participant is required to complete a learning assessment. This session is limited to 30 registered delegates

Sunday, May 17, 2020 12:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m. Fee: $179.00

Improving Staff Morale with the 5 Languages of Appreciation

Dr. Paul WhitePsychologist | Speaker | Leadership TrainingAppreciation at Work Wichita, Kansas

Although 90% of organizations (including government agencies) have some type of employee recognition activities, employees still report high levels of not feeling valued. Discover the difference between “going through the motions” employee recognition and authentic appreciation. Learn the core components needed for employees to feel truly valued and how to use the 5 Languages of Appreciation practically in everyday work life. This session will go deep, covering issues such as how remote employees need to be shown appreciation, the generational differences regarding appreciation, and how to communicate genuine appreciation to difficult colleagues. Obtain practical tools and resources to teach your staff how to encourage their colleagues in the ways that are meaningful to each individual, and create a more positive workplace culture in the process!

Pre-registration and payment of a $179.00 fee is required to attend this Academy session. To receive certification points, each participant is required to complete a learning assessment. This session is limited to 30 registered delegates.


Created in 1987, the prestigious Quill Award recognizes IIMC members who have made a significant and exemplary contribution to their

community, state or province and IIMC. More impor-tantly, the individual must support the goals and philos-ophies outlined in IIMC’s Code of Ethics.

The criteria include length of service, strength and ex-tent of participation in IIMC, service in teaching fellow Municipal Clerks, involvement with the initiation or administration of an IIMC-approved training Institute or program or any other activity that enhances the pro-fessionalism of IIMC members.

ELIGIBILITY

The Quill Award is open to all members of IIMC, deceased members, retired clerks or a clerk who has changed positions. Serving members of the Board

2020 Quill AwardNominations are now being accepted

for the 34th Annual Quill Award.

of Directors or present officers of IIMC shall not be eligible for this award. Past Presidents will be eligible for the Quill Award four (4) years after completing service on the Executive Committee.

DOCUMENTATION

Nominations shall be solicited annually from the membership. The following documentation shall be submitted to Headquarters no later than April 1st of the year of the Award:

• Resume of Nominee and reason for nomination,

• Nomination Form, • A written endorsement from the State/Provincial or

National Association, and • A written endorsement from the IIMC Region

Directors.

CRITERIA

Those receiving the Award shall represent all of the following Criteria:

• At least ten years of service as a Municipal Clerk;

• At least ten years of IIMC membership;• Strong and extensive participation in IIMC; • Service in teaching fellow Municipal Clerks Involve-

ment with the initiation or administration of an IIMC-approved training Institute or program or any other activity that enhances the professionalism of IIMC members;

• Leadership in State/Provincial/National Municipal Clerk professional organizations;

• Significant and exemplary contribution to their com-munity;

• Significant and exemplary contribution to their State/ Province/Country;

• Significant and exemplary contribution to IIMC; • Significant and exemplary contribution to peers; and • Attainment of the CMC Designation.

For more information, go to: www.iimc.com/Membership/Awards/Quill Award. For questions, contact IIMC Executive Director, Chris Shalby at [email protected]


www.thestlouiswheel.com/#about

Catch some of the best views of the Gateway Arch and downtown St. Louis on a fascinating one-hour riverboat tour.

St. Louis Riverfront CruiseFinland has not entirely solved homelessness. Nation-wide, about 5,500 people are still officially classified as homeless. The overwhelming majority – more than 70 percent – are living temporarily with friends or relatives.

But public-sector planning and collective effort have helped ensure that as a way to reduce long-term home-lessness, Housing First is a proven success. “We’re not there yet, of course,” says Vesikansa. “No model is perfect; we still have failures. But I’m proud we had the courage to try it.”

The mayor agrees. “We have reduced long-term home-lessness by a remarkable amount,” he says. “We must do more – better support, better prevention, better dialogue with residents: people really support this policy, but not everyone wants a unit in their neigh-bourhood … But yes, we can be very proud.”

Editor’s Note: This article was originally published by The Guardian and is republished with permission.

It’s A Miracle…Continued from page 19


An Award You Can Win – And Should!

Past winners have included: Seattle, WA; Austin, TX; Rancho Cordova, CA; San Antonio, TX; Costa Mesa, CA; Countryside, IL; Frisco, TX.

Winning an award can mean a great deal to your profes-sional reputation and your city’s positive public percep-tion. It matters, to your peers at city hall and residents in the community, when a respected third party recog-nizes your office for excellence.

The IIMC Program Excellence in Governance Award (PEGA) is the top award for programmatic or techni-cal achievement in our profession. Let me share three reasons why you should take the time to apply for the PEGA in 2020:

1) You Can Win It: Most awards require a career to achieve and are given primarily to those with a history of long-term involvement in the IIMC. In contrast, any City Clerk that demonstrates excel-lence has a shot at winning the PEGA. You don’t

have to be the best City Clerk, just really good at something that matters to your community or your peers. The categories in the award are so broad that pretty much any program will fit. It’s a very inclusive and egalitarian concept that exceptional programs can be recognized, regardless of tenure as a Clerk or the ability, funding, time and institutional support to be involved in the IIMC leadership structure. Don’t let that opportunity pass you by!

2) Your Office: Most people at City Hall still don’t understand what City Clerks Offices really do. Just the collaborative process of writing the PEGA application gives you an excuse to highlight some-thing you’ve done well to your City’s management team. If you win, you’ll go into your next salary negotiation as an international award-winning City Clerk. If you don’t, you’ll still have been successful at reminding folks that the City Clerk’s Office is much more than just centralized clerical staff. Also, sharing an exceptional program will allow us, your peers, to emulate what you’ve done. As they say, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.

3) Community Pride: Winning the PEGA validates for the public that you’ve done something excep-tional with their hard-earned tax dollars. So, when you win the award, IIMC will work with your office to contact your local paper and a presentation of the award can be arranged at a Council meeting.

So, the challenge is to think about something you’re doing that’s great. Throw off the City Clerk’s natural coat of shyness and write the application and apply. You, your City and your profession will be better for it.

For more information, please contact IIMC Executive Director Chris Shalby at [email protected].


IIMC Foundation Awards 117 Jim Tinnin Online Scholarships

The IIMC Foundation, at its 2019 midyear Board meeting in November, awarded 117 online scholarships, making every IIMC member who

applied for the Jim Tinnin Online funds a scholarship winner.

“When members ask why give to the IIMC Founda-tion, the simple answer is that your donations, small or large, are used to provide scholarship opportunities for you and your colleagues’ professional development,” says IIMC Foundation President Mary Lynne Stratta, MMC, Bryan, TX.

IIMC member donations go a long way toward funding education programs which, in turn, also help Institutes to continue to run certification programs as well as IIMC’s own and other online courses.

Each recipient will receive a $100 scholarship to be used toward online programs. Congratulations to the follow-ing individuals for their commitment toward profes-sional development.

Region I

Patricia Bessette, Town Clerk, Avon, MA Karen Mowad, Town Clerk, Wolcott, CTKenney, Marlene, Town Clerk, Harvard MA Darlene Van Alstyne, Town Clerk, Provincetown, MA Colette Williams, CMC, Town Clerk, Brewster, MA Lucia Longhurst, CMC, Town Clerk, Norton, MALori West, CMC, Town Clerk, Hull, Hull, MAJeanne Survell, MMC, Town Clerk, Pepperell, MA

Region II

Valerie Walls, Clerk/Treasurer, Chesapeake City, MD Jenifer Freeman, Deputy City Clerk, Chesapeake, VA Crystal Whay, Clerk to the Board of Supervisors, Lancaster County, VA Eleni Pettas, Municipal Clerk, Nutley, NJ

Emma White, Clerk, Office Manager, Sophia, WVDiana Hays, Town Clerk, Purcellville, VA Shaniya Lashley-Mullen, Administrative Assistant, Greenbelt, MD Dale Forde, Deputy City Clerk, East Orange, NJMadeline Sefcik, Clerk to the Board of Supervisors, County of Franklin, VAKevin Harris, CMC, Municipal Clerk, South Orange Village, NJKatherine Glass, CMC, Clerk of Council, Hampton, VA Barbara Ilaria, CMC, Municipal Clerk, Manasquan, NJKelly Blanchies, CMC, Clerk of Council, Harrington, DERayna Harris, CMC, City Clerk, Rahway, NJ

Region III

Skyler Bass, City Clerk, Anniston, AL Deroma Pepper, City Clerk, Moulton, ALAnna Hicks, Deputy City Clerk, Sanibel, FL Wendy Lavoie, Assistant Town Clerk, St Leo, FL Kathy Heard, Deputy City Clerk, Ocoee, FL


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PRESERVE IMAGE & INDEX MICROFILM MANAGE


Scakajawea Wright, City Clerk, Fort Valley, GA Debra Thompson, City Clerk, Kinston, NCMarion Evans, Town Clerk, Sandy Creek, NCAlexis Silcox, City Clerk, Belleair Bluffs, FL Ann Marie Mancuso, City Clerk, Seminole, FL Deborah Hargis, Municipal Clerk, Edisto Beach, SCCeline Kidwell, Deputy Clerk / Executive Assistant, Treasure Island, FL Tamara Seguin, Senior Project Assistant, Riviera Beach Community Redevelopment Agency, FLTracy Rabon, CMC, City Clerk, Lancaster, SC Elizabeth Garcia-Beckford, CMC, Deputy City Clerk, North Lauderdale, FL Sharon Lauther, CMC, City Clerk and HR Director, Mulberry, FLAnnette de Ruyter, CMC, City Clerk, Trinity, NC Heather Taylor, CMC, Interim City Clerk, North Port, FL Jennifer Carfagno, CMC, Senior Office Specialist, Pinellas Park, FL Krista King, CMC, Deputy Clerk, Callahan, FL Sue Novack, MMC, City Clerk, Tavares, FL

Region IVLisa Martin, City Clerk, Mustang, OKJessie Hanks, City Secretary, Kaufman, TX Julie Davidson, Assistant City Secretary, Frisco, TX Kerri Craig, CMC, City Secretary, Horseshoe Bay, TXZanea Carpenter, CMC, City Secretary, Muleshoe, TX Tammy Dixon, CMC, Town Secretary, Bartonville, TX

Region VKelly Beattie, Boards and Commissions Coordinator, Ann Arbor, MIJennifer Sandberg, Clerk-Treasurer, Cedar Lake, IN Joan Kemper, Clerk of Council, Secretary to Civil Service Commission, Bay Village, OH Sara Biviano, Deputy Clerk of Council, Akron, OH Angela Comperry, City Clerk, Oak Grove, KY Breanna Dull, Deputy Clerk of Council, Lorain, OH Tracy Simons, Clerk of Council, Bedford, OH Angela Johnson, Deputy Assistant City Recorder, Franklin, TN Joan Kemper, Clerk of Council, Bay Village, OHRose Baxter, Fiscal Officer, Baltic, OH

Sheila Reitz, CMC, Clerk, Buchanan Township, MI Bethany Cooper, CMC, City Clerk/Treasurer, Benton, KYFijabi Julien-Gallam, CMC, Clerk of Council, Brunswick, OH Diane Werbrich, MMC, Clerk of Council, Moraine, OH Valerie Rosmarin, CMC, Clerk of Council, Avon Lake, OH

Region VITabatha Kaiser, Deputy City Clerk, Dysart, IABecky Tellier, CMC, Clerk-Treasurer, Campbellsport, WI Jilline Dobratz, CMC, Clerk, Jackson, WIBeth Carlson, CMC, Deputy City Clerk, City of Chatfield, MN Diana Dykstra, CMC, Village Clerk-Treasurer, Mukwonago, WITrish Gleason, MMC, Assistant City Clerk, Dubuque, IA

Region VIIDonna Lobaito, Chief Administrative Officer/Village Clerk, Hawthorn Woods, ILJulie Murphy, City Clerk, Wakefield, KS Barbara Harrison, Village Clerk, Chicago Ridge, ILRuth Bocchino, CMC, City Clerk, Gladstone, MOSandra Maahs, CMC, Village Clerk, Village of Davis Junction, IL

Region VIIIAshley Foster, Deputy City Clerk, Las Vegas, NV Krysti Dycus, Clerk/Treasurer, Clearmont, WY Jill Akins, Town Clerk, Pinetop-Lakeside, AZHannah Hill, Acting Deputy Clerk, Loveland, COChristopher Johnson, City Clerk, Meridian, ID Mary Joy Barajas, Deputy City Clerk, Westminster, CO Charity Callahan, City Clerk Specialist, Avondale, AZ Christina Lambert, Deputy Town Clerk, Mountain Village, CO Maria Ceaglske, Special Deputy Clerk/Management Analyst, Maricopa County, AZ

IIMC Foundation Awards…Continued from page 25



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Nominations Invited for The Annual Institute Director Award of Excellence

IIMC is pleased to invite nominations for the Annual Institute Director Award of Excellence.

The Award acknowledges unique and exceptional contributions of current or retired Institute Directors over time in promoting quality education for Municipal Clerks.

Nominations for the Award must be postmarked no later than March 15, 2020.

The Award will be announced and presented at the IIMC Annual Conference.

NOMINATION Nominations will be invited from state, provincial and country Municipal Clerk Associations, colleagues with whom the nominee works or did work on the Clerks’ behalf, IIMC Committee or task force members with whom the nominee served, Institute Director peers and others with direct knowledge of the nominee’s unique contributions to the profession.

Family members may not submit nominations.

Please contact IIMC’s Assistant Director of Professional Development, Ashley DiBlasi at [email protected] if you have any questions about the Award or application procedures.

AWARD POLICY

1) ) The Institute Director Award of Excellence shall be presented to one Institute Director who has contrib-uted to the educational needs of Municipal Clerks, the advancement of the profession, and whose per-formances have supported IIMC’s educational goals

2) Individuals may be nominated if they are in the process of terminating or have concluded their Insti-tute Director position (i.e.-current, past, or retired Institute Directors), if their nomination is otherwise consistent with stated Award Policy and Criteria.

3) Please include support detailing the unique or extraordinary individual efforts undertaken by the nominee on behalf of Municipal Clerks, their profes-sional development, and IIMC.

4) IIMC will notify all nominees that they have been nominated for the Award, when the selection will be made, and when and where the Award will be pre-sented.

5) The President or those designated by the President shall determine the form of the Award.

6) The current IIMC President shall present the Award at IIMC’s Annual Conference. In the President’s absence, Immediate Past President, the current Presi-dent’s designee or a designee of the recipient shall present the Award.

7) In the recipient’s absence, the President shall an-nounce the Award recipient during the Conference and make arrangements for later presentation to the recipient.

8) It is not required that the Award be given each year.

AWARD CRITERIA

1) A nominee must be, or have been, an Institute Direc-tor for a minimum of five (5) years. The Institute Director may be a past Director, a present Director, or retired.

2) Three nominators are required for each nominee. Two nominators must be IIMC members in good standing. Nominators must have direct knowledge of the nominee’s work as an Institute Director, as well as of the nominee’s unique accomplishments as described in the materials submitted. A letter of endorsement from each nominator must accompany the Nomination Form.

3) Nominators can be: Municipal Clerks,

i. Institute Director colleagues, ii. Sponsoring college or university personnel, iii. IIMC Committee with whom the nominee

has served, iv. And other personnel affiliated with Municipal

Clerks or IIMC who have direct knowledge of the nominee’s performance as an Institute Director.



4) Two letters of endorsement are required: a) a letter from the president of the State or provincial Munici-pal Clerks Association served by the Institute Direc-tor, and from an official of the sponsoring university or college. These must accompany the Nomination Form.

5) A copy of the nominee’s resume or bio and other information requested by the nominators.

6) The complete nomination package, including the Nomination Form and all support materials, must be mailed in one package and must be postmarked no later than MARCH 15 of the Award year. Applications postmarked after that date will not be considered. All materials must be contained in one complete package

Any and all materials mailed separately to or piece-meal from the mailing of this complete and final nomination package will not be considered during the review and selection process. Do not fax the Application package.

7) Preference will be given to Institute Directors who have kept their programs in compliance with IIMC’s Education Guidelines.

8) An Award recipient may receive the Award once in any five (5) year period, and is eligible to be nomi-nated for the Award again after the five-year period has passed.

9) Directors not selected for the Award may be nomi-nated in any subsequent year.

Fo more information, visit www.iimc.com, under Membership.

Nominations Invited for the Annual Institute Director Award of Excellenace…Continued from page 28


Public records requests are a challenge. Receiving requests and tracking them is often a manual process. Searching for documents to fulfill requests may involve desks, file cabinets or even warehouses. And that’s just what you know about. How do the many people that work for your community preserve and classify documents? How can you fulfill requests if records are lost or destroyed?

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Clerks deserve the complete picture

Cindy Foster Owens, City Clerk, Cañon City, COCrystal Hornberger, City Clerk, Bloomfield, NM Kristina Duran, Town Clerk, Pierce, COSandra Birdyshaw, Town Clerk, Jackson. WY Susan Johnston, CMC, Deputy Town Clerk, Mountain Village, CO Angela Johnson, MMC, Clerk Treasurer, Meeteetse, WY

Region IXKari Linder, Deputy City Recorder, Lake Oswego, ORKatie Scott, City Recorder, Sublimity, OR Clay James, Deputy City Clerk, Hemet, CAThai Nam Pham, Deputy City Clerk, Emeryville, CA Tania Flores, Management Assistant, La Quinta, CA Jessica Rauch, Clerk of the Board/Administrative Assistant, Ventura Port District, CA Taylor Lee, Deputy City Clerk, Ketchikan, AK Andrea Pizano, Board Clerk/Executive Assistant, Silicon Valley Clean Energy, CA Carole Wayman, Senior Deputy Clerk, South Coast Air Quality Mgmt. District, CA Jessica Marshall, Executive Assistant to the General Manager, Benton Public Utility District, WA

Allison Taylor, Deputy City Clerk, Shoreline, WALori Matley, Deputy City Clerk, San Jacinto, CAHector Gomez, Deputy City Clerk, Carlsbad, CA Christiana Kalawa, Deputy City Clerk, Riverside, CA Natalie Gonzaga, Document Management Specialist, Ontario International Airport Authority, CA Angel Migao, Executive Assistant II, Moreno Valley, CARegina Flores, Senior Deputy City Clerk, Moreno Valley, CA Sarah Martinez, City Clerk, Hanford, CALucinda Wellman, Administrative Aide to the City Clerk, Wasilla, AK Kara Kerpan, City Recorder/Management Analyst, Happy Valley, ORDonna Morales, District Clerk, Port of San Diego, CA Clementine Bonner Klein, CMC, Acting City Clerk, Monterey, CA Jessica Contreras, CMC, Deputy City Clerk II, Chino Hills, CA Ricca Charlon, CMC, City Clerk, Ridgecrest, CA Marcia Brown, CMC, City Clerk, Yorba Linda, CA Monika Radeva, CMC, City Clerk, La Quinta, CA Susana Barrios, CMC, Deputy City Clerk, Fullerton, CA

IIMC Foundation Awards…Continued from page 26


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St. Louis Free AttractionsThis one’s a no-brainer. There are literally so many free things you can do in the city that we can’t fit them into our word count, but here’s a few to begin wtih: The St. Louis Science Center; the award-winning St. Louis Zoo; the Contempo-rary Art Museum; and the Cathedral Basilica of Saint Louis. Trust us, you won’t get bored here.

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2020 Calendar of Events January 22-24 IIMC Region III Conference in Orlando, FL

January 23-24 Municipal Clerks of Illinois (MCI) 2020 Winter Semina

January 24-25 IIMC Region VI Meeting in Stillwater, MN

January 28 Central Illinois ARMA Association (Professional Records Managers) Training Seminar

January 28-30 IIMC Region II Conference in Atlantic City, NJ

January 30-31 Texas Municipal Clerks Election Law Seminar

February 2-4 Georgia Clerks Education Institute/Conference

February 5-7 California Master Municipal Clerk Academy

February 13-14 City Clerk Association of California (CCAC) Nuts & Bolts Workshop

February 18-20 Alabama Association of Municipal Clerks & Administrators Conference

February 26-27 Society of Local Council Clerks (SLCC) 2020 Practitioners Conference

February 26-28 South Carolina Municipal Clerks & Treasurers Institute - Year 2

March 8-12 Missouri City Clerk & Finance Officer Association (MoCCFOA) Spring Institute

March 11-13 Kansas City Clerk & Finance Officers Assn (CCMFOA) 70th Spring Conference

March 13 IIMC Region VII Meeting in Manhattan, KS

March 15-20 Michigan Association of Municipal Clerks (MAMC) Clerk’s Institute

March 15-20 Nebraska Municipal Clerk Association (NMCA) Institute and Academy

March 16-19 The Municipal Clerks & Finance Officers Assn of Minnesota Annual Conference

March 17-20 Washington Municipal Clerks Association (WMCA) 50th Annual Conference

75th Annual Conference Grand Rapids, MI

Sunday, May 9 thru Thursday May 13, 2021

74th Annual Conference St. Louis, MO

Sunday, May 17 thru Wednesday, 20, 2020

76th Annual Conference Little Rock, AR

Sunday, May 22 thru Wednesday, May 25, 2022

77th Annual Conference Minneapolis, MN

Sunday, May 14 thru Wednesday, May 17, 2023

March 22-27 Michigan Association of Municipal Clerks (MAMC) Clerk’s Institute

April 29-May 1 2020 Alberta Municipal Clerks Association (AMCA) Annual Conference

April 1-3 Connecticut Town Clerks Association (CTCA) Spring Conference

April 3 Oregon Association of Municipal Recorders (OAMR) Mid-Year Academy

April 14-17 City Clerks Association of California (CCAC) Annual Conference

April 16-17 Texas Municipal Clerks Public Funds Investment Seminar

April 23 South Carolina Finance Officers & Treasurers Association (MFOCTA) Spring Academy

May 4-8 Municipal Clerks & Finance Officers Association of Minnesota (MCFOA) Institute

May 17-20 74th IIMC Annual Conference in St. Louis, Missouri

June 7-10 Assn. of Municipal Managers, Clerks & Treasurers of Ontario (AMCTO) Conference

June 8-11 The Local Government Management Association of British Columbia (LGMA) Annual General Meeting and Conference

June 8-12 Arizona Municipal Clerks Institute

June 23-25 Arizona Municipal Clerks Academy

June 18-19 Texas Municipal Clerks Records Management Seminar

August 20-21 Texas Municipal Clerks OMA, PIA, Agenda Seminar

September 23-25 IIMC Region VIII Conference in Park City, Utah

September 23-25 California Master Municipal Clerk Academy

October 29-30 Texas Municipal Clerks Graduate Institute & Annual Business Meeting

December 1-3 Michigan Association of Municipal Clerks (MAMC) 2020 Master’s Academy

St. Louis Union Station