Davenport residents wanting to learn more about the ins and outs of municipal operations can apply to the city’s citizens' academy.
Chief Communications Officer Denise Hnytka says the free ten-session program will enable 15 residents to learn about the city's different departments. She says one of the most popular sessions is ‘Show Me the Money,’ which informs residents on setting the city’s budget.
“And there's an interactive experience where you get to take a pot of money the way that the city does and figure out, ‘Okay, this is where we're going to invest’,” Hnytka said. “If you give money to [the] streets, there might be less money for parks. If you give more money to parks, you might have less money for sewers. So we get into the nitty-gritty of city finances using a fun experience of having people make those tough decisions in this simulated environment to show that it's maybe more complex than people realize.”
Applicants will be asked a series of questions about their interests to better shape the sessions. Hnytka said the application questions are meant to tweak the program, which is seeking its tenth cohort. The program took a hiatus due to COVID-19.
“[T]here's an evening where you spend time in the firehouse, and everyone gets to put on all the firefighters' gear. It turns out there's no age limit on people who want to experience what it's like to be a firefighter,” Hnytka said. “There's a library night where you get to learn how the library chooses its materials and all of the items that you maybe don't realize are in the special collections at the library. And there is a full day with public works, because public works covers so many different things. So that's a full day where you tour the water pollution control plant. You'll get to meet people who work on the snow team. There are so many aspects to making the city go.”
Applicants are encouraged not to miss more than two sessions. A graduation ceremony is set for May 27th, during the Davenport City Council’s meeting. Those who complete the ten-week program will receive a certificate.
The deadline to apply is Friday, February 13th. The program begins on Monday, March 23rd. A link to the application can be found here.
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