President Elect Attends Yuma, Arizona CPM Graduation

By Julie Felice, CPM
jfelice@utah.gov

In March 2006 I had the opportunity to travel to Yuma, Arizona on behalf of the Academy and attend the Yuma, AZ CPM Graduation. I attended the graduation ceremonies with Larry Gordon, AACPM Treasurer, and Greg Hyland, AACPM Member-at-Large (Conference & Communications). The ceremonies were held in the beautiful Yuma City Council Chambers. The Mayor and a couple of City Council Members were in attendance at the graduation, as well as, the Department Heads (from the City of Yuma and the Arizona Department of Transportation) of the graduating students.

It was very pleasant to leave the morning snow storm in Utah and have lunch in an open/outside Yuma courtyard with sunshine, plants, birds and fabulous food. Yuma is nestled in the Yuma and Gila valleys of southern Arizona, offering a climate that blends pleasant desert sunshine with the cool waters of the Colorado River.

Yuma is the 10th largest city in the state of AZ and as of July 1, 2005, the City of Yuma population estimate was 88,775. The incorporated area of Yuma is approximately 110 square miles and houses nearly 100,000 full-time residents.
Here are some other items of interest:

• In mid-2003, the City of Yuma launched a new Customer Convenience Schedule for City Hall. The goal behind this effort is two-fold: extended business hours for the convenience of its customers, and a substantial savings in operational costs by closing the doors of City Hall one day every two weeks.
  
  
• The City has its own Government Access Television Channel called “City 73” and has the following goals:  To make public proceeding and events more accessible to City of Yuma residents by providing live and video taped coverage of City Council meetings and meetings of other boards and commissions via cable television; To increase community awareness of City services; To aid in the City’s economic development efforts by providing information on projects, development goals and services; To promote special events in the community sponsored by the City and affiliated civic organizations; To provide more extensive information on selected City topics and activities not fully covered by existing communications media; To supplement public safety and disaster preparedness activities/information pertaining to the City of Yuma and surrounding communities; To offer presentation alternatives to the departments and divisions of the City of Yuma; To improve City services by enhancing and/or standardizing training of City employees through the production of video training tapes; and To document and archive City events and activities.

It is exciting to see what the City of Yuma and the AZ Department of Transportation are doing to elevate the recognition and stature of the CPM Program and the CPM designation. The holding of the CPM graduation ceremonies in the City Council Chambers is an immediately visible and impressive symbol of recognition and offers lasting memories for each graduate.

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