GovLove - A Podcast About Local Government

We sat down with Chad Doran the communications coordinator for Appleton, WI. Recently he started a citizens academy to help residents learn more about the operations of the city and engage with their local government. Our conversation also covered the challenges of local government communications and the best pizza in Appleton.

Across the nation communities are dealing with the issue of minimum wage, especially in cities with rising rents. Cities and counties are taking the initiative to raise their own local wage in response. For this episode we have four California local government professionals talking about what their community has done. Guests are Kimbra McCarthy from Mountain View, CA; Matt Bronson from San Mateo,...

Kent is joined this week by Brian Ligon from Round Rock, TX and Scott McDonell from Dane County, WI. These two are the brains behind Ron Pitchman and Chad Vader, the stars of two of the most creative local government videos we've seen. They discuss local government communication and finding creative ways to get your message out.

The Finance Directors of Milwaukie, OR and Canby, OR join Kirsten to discuss the pros and cons of annual budgeting and biennial budgeting. Casey Camors and Haley Fish share their experiences and trade jabs in this week's episode.

Clackamas County, OR Finance Director and incoming GFOA President, Marc Gonzales, joins us this week. Marc discussed everything from how he got into local government accounting to joining GFOA and seeing Bruce Springsteen in concert.

What's it like to manage a parks system for over 8.5 million people? For this week's episode we sat down with New York City Parks and Recreation Commissioner Mitchell Silver. He's a planner with over 30 years of experience and took the helm of the big apple's parks system in 2014 after serving as the top planning official in the city of Raleigh, NC. We discuss everything from borderless parks to g...

This week on GovLove Kent Wyatt sits down with Josh Dukelow and Jon Stehle on what it's like to run for local elected office. Everything from dealing with the pressure of debates to endorsements and fundraising. This episode was also streamed live on Periscope back on April 26th.

This week we sit down with Professor Philip Joyce from the University of Maryland School of Public Policy. He recently wrote an article for Governing Magazine on what governments at every level need to do to attract millennials to the sector. We go through his five recommendations and explore how to make those changes.

Intern takeover! The Oregon local government fellows, Roger Gonzalez and Mark Yager take the reigns on this week's episode. They chatted with Hillsboro, OR City Manager Michael Brown on everything from his hatred of email and why he plays with fruit to attracting businesses and engaging youth.

This week's guest went viral recently with his honest and straightforward tweets about the state of public transportation in San Francisco, CA. Taylor Huckaby chatted with Kirsten Wyatt about the importance of transit, why local government needs to communicate more openly and more.

Kent Wyatt sits down with Gabe Klein and Leah Treat to talk about their time in the City of Chicago Mayor's Office, Leah's work as Portland's director of transportation, and Gabe's book, "The Start-Up City." Their conversation covers everything from innovation in city government to balancing parenthood and a career.

Kirsten Wyatt sat down with West Linn City Councilor Jenni Tan to talk about the work she's done as a member of several National League of Cities committees with emphasis on developing leaders both at home and abroad.

Gaming and urban planning meet in this week's episode. Lisa Nisenson and Sarah Lewis from GreaterPlaces join GovLove to talk about how they are using a card game to help people talk about their communities. They are the minds behind 'Cards Against Urbanity' and their next project will work to help communities engage with citizens in their planning efforts through games and more.

By now you have probably heard John Oliver's "Last Week Tonight" segment on special districts where he proclaimed them, among other things, ghost governments. On this week's episode we have two administrators that work for special districts to explain the benefits of this unique form of government. Cassandra Ulven from Tualatin Valley Fire & Rescue in the Portland, OR metro region and Bobbi Nance...

Bridget Doyle and Kirsten Wyatt get together to recap their #Frank2016 experience. The Frank conference is all about public focused communication. Between quoting Damn Daniel and avoiding bats Kirsten and Bridget learned some communications tips and ideas for future ELGL conferences.

This week we have a throwback episode! Two glass ceiling shattering women joined GovLove back in 2016 to talk about policing. Chief Jeri Williams, who now leads the Phoenix police department, was the Chief in Oxnard, California during this interview. Chief Denise Turner, who is now retired after 31 years in law enforcement, lead the Gilroy, California department back when this episode first aired....

It's polling season! With primaries across the nation underway and the national election coming this fall the news and internet have been flooded with poll results. Kent Wyatt talked with Dr. Kenneth Fernandez from Elon University to talk about the Elon Poll, which acts at the poll of record in North Carolina. They discussed everything from the presidential race to the nitty gritty of polling.

What if there was a way to get local governments, school systems and non-profits all working toward the same goal of improving student achievement? That's precisely the mission of Say Yes to Education. This organization works to support kids so more of them graduate high school and go to college. Ben sits down with Mary Vigue, the executive director of the newest Say Yes community Guilford County,...

The Oregon local government interns are back! Roger Gonzalez and Mark Yager sat down with ICMA president Pat Martel for an edition of Between 2 Interns. They chatted about everything from getting started in local government and standing out in a pile of resumes to Pat's goals for her ICMA presidency.

A few months ago, ELGL Co-Founder and GovLove host, Kent Wyatt sat down with two people active in the local government tech scene. His guests were, Tamara Manik-Perlman, CEO of Next Request and Chris Maddox, CEO of Seneca Systems. Their conversation covered everything from transparency in government and user experience to the Warriors win streak and celebrity look-a-likes.

This week GovLove sits down with Lee Worsley the Executive Director of the Triangle J Council of Governments in North Carolina. He explains what a COG does and the role they play in everything from elderly care to high speed internet. Lee also tells us about leading small and big counties and where he stands on the east vs. west Carolina BBQ debate.

After one of the worst tornados on record, many thought the city of Joplin, Missouri would never be the same. But local residents, nearby agencies and volunteers from across the country banded together to help the battered town. City Manager Sam Anselm describes what the recovery was like and how far the city of 51,000 has come in the last 5 years.

What's it like to balance a two career household when both people are in local government? Meet Bo and Michelle Ferguson, they've been doing just that for most of their careers and have found a way to make it work. Listen as they discuss their career paths, work-life balance and eggnog recipes.

Two local government administrators who also happen to be veterans. Will Doerfer (Hyde County, NC, Special Assistant County Manager and NCACC/ICMA Management Fellow) and Darrin Tangeman (District Manager, ‎Pueblo West Metropolitan District) discuss transitioning from a military career to a local government career. Learn how local government can be more proactive in reaching veterans.

Join Tim Wolff (Lake Isabella, MI), Matt Yager (Plano,TX), Mike Ekey (Raymore, MO) and Ben DeClue (Lebanon, MO) as they discuss the benefits and drawbacks of ICMA's Tenet 4, which includes a guideline directing ICMA members to serve a minimum of two years in a job. Tim, Matt, Mike and Ben bring their unique perspectives to this GovLove episode.