EngageNOLA to release “job description” for city’s top post 

Education, City Life, Politics, Recovery

November 10th, 2009

"If I were Mayor"

by HumidBeings Staff

NEW ORLEANS GROUP INJECTS JOB QUALIFICATION STANDARDS FOR THE CITY’S NEW MAYOR

EngageNOLA to release “job description” for city’s top post
Thursday, November 12, 2009, 10:30 am at Lephare
(523 Gravier St. @ Loft 523 b/w Camp St. & Magazine St.)
click here for more on the event

EngageNOLA, a diverse group of activists focused on engaging young people in New Orleans’ 2010 election cycle, is releasing a job description for Mayor. The document is designed to help citizens consider what qualifications they are looking for in a leader, and act as a tool they can use to evaluate candidates.

The New Orleans city elections are three months away. The city is at a crossroads and needs to move into the next phase of recovery with a steady, engaged and qualified leadership. No one in business would hire a key new employee without a job description against which to judge an applicant’s qualifications, and neither should voters.

EngageNOLA is working to elevate both the quality of candidates and the level of debate about the city’s future, and plans to provide voters with the tools they need to make informed decisions on Election Day 2010.

The job description includes qualifications that were shaped by information gathered at a two-day design session that brought together young leaders throughout the city and through a survey of some 800 people aged 23-40, who live or work in New Orleans.

Press Conference Release

EngageNOLA is a coalition of young professional organizations and individuals working to connect their peers to the local civic landscape through education and action initiatives.

EngageNOLA represents a diverse group of young adults that have come together to create a new era of civic engagement and government accountability in New Orleans by mobilizing young adults. The group is driven by a motivation to upend the status quo toward creating positive lasting change in the city.

EngageNOLA initiatives are designed to create opportunities for local young professionals to collaborate directly with other civic leaders to implement forward thinking visions for the region. Through education and action initiatives, we are working to connect our peers to the local policy landscape, and establish a politically educated, networked, and involved generation of young professionals. Initial efforts of EngageNOLA are focused on affecting the 2010 city elections – not by endorsing a candidate – but by involving residents in the political process and demanding a higher level of dialogue from the candidates, so everyone can make more educated voting decisions.

In particular, EngageNOLA is working to provide opportunities for local young professionals to help shape dialogue in advance of and during the upcoming 2010 Mayoral and City Council elections. Beyond the election, EngageNOLA seeks to work on accountability of elected officials and transparency in government.

If you are a young professional, please complete the brief policy survey, and forward it to your peers. Serve on a task force to help implement one of our programs. Attend and participate in the events we help convene this summer and fall 2009. AND…..Join us at our Weekly Meetings!
Meetings are listed on the EngageGOVERNANCE tab on the EngageNOLA site.

Next up:
“If I were Mayor” is a joint collaboration between EngageNOLA, Humid Beings and PolicyPitch aimed at sparking community engagement in the upcoming 2010 Mayoral race through the use of online video technology. This project invites citizens to communicate to Mayoral candidates and the community as a whole what they would do if they were Mayor thus highlighting what are the most pressing issues facing the city of New Orleans from their perspective through online video uploads. This project will be launched with an introductory video highlighting local community/civic leaders and New Orleans citizens from every walk of life.

When we launch our next feature, The Barometer, on HumidBeings, the “If I were Mayor” videos will be the first released.

related links
Group to unveil job description for New Orleans mayor