In The Loop – May 27, 2022

KUDOS to Governor Rell

As a member of the Board of Advisors for The Governor M. Jodi Rell Center for Public Service at the University of Hartford, it was an exciting week. As the world around us turns more cynical by the day, distrust of our leaders and somewhat internally focused, “The Rell Center” has been planning a program for professional development opportunities for local, state, and federal officials in Connecticut.

Thursday the initial session of “Civility in Public Life 101” took place. The event was co-sponsored by the Senate President Pro Tempore Marty Looney, the Republican Senate Leader Kevin Kelly, the House Republican Leader Vinnie Candelora, and House Speaker Matt Ritter. Also in attendance were CT Public, the CT Association of School Boards of Education, the CT Conference of Municipalities and the Counsel of Small Towns. The event was a success. Over 180 people attended the 90-minute session led by the Institute of Civility in Government, and there was such a buzz throughout this interactive program!

The chat room was bursting with both war stories of recent public meetings and the sharing of both unexpected and inappropriate reactions from those who attended those meetings with pleas of “how would you ….” comments filling the chat room. There were dozens of attendees who had similar stories, and even more looked for information on how to handle this next time as the two certified facilitators walked the crowded webinar screen through the basics of civility, public service, and the changing mood of the country—not just Connecticut. KEEP READING…