Austin CityWorks academy begins

AUSTIN (KXAN) - Thirty-five Austin residents head back to the classroom Tuesday night.  Their assignment:  learn how city government works and spread the word. 

The class members will spend ten weeks in Austin CityWorks Academy, meeting once a week, learning about Austin's 31 city departments, how they function and how they interact. 

In the first session at City Hall, participants will be greeted by Mayor Lee Leffingwell, City Manager Marc Ott and several city council members.  Members will also learn basic city functions with presentations from the city manager, legal department and human resources department.  The following nine sessions will be held at various locations and cover government procedures, and the people who work in it.

Austin's inaugural CityWorks Academy is part of an effort by city officials to make the government more transparent.  Officials hope Academy members will educate other citizens about what they learn.  City Manager Marc Ott has also started writing a weekly blog letting residents know what is going on in his office.  The city is also more involved than ever in social media.

A committee made up of city staff members selected the 35 Academy members from 300 applicants.  City Marketing Manager Patricia Fraga says an effort was made to choose a diverse group of people.  Another CityWork Academy may be planned for early next year because of the good response.

See a list of the thirty-five CityWorks Academy members.