Maxwell ICMA Chapter Elects 2015 Officers

New Maxwell ICMA Leadership Elected

This week, students in Maxwell’s PAIA department officially elected the new student leadership of the Maxwell Chapter of ICMA (International City/County Management Association).  ICMA’s mission is to “advance professional local government worldwide, … and to create excellence in local governance by developing and fostering professional management to build better communities”.

We are pleased to announce the 2015 Maxwell ICMA Chapter Leadership (left to right) Grace Baranowski (Treasurer), James Kelley (Vice President), Kurt Fire (Secretary) and Philip Paige (President).  All are new MPA students who began their studies in June 2015.

Given Maxwell’s historic connection to state and local governance education, it is no surprise that the local chapter of ICMA has its roots within the school. Each year students in our MPA program, who are passionate about careers in local government, lead the activities of the Maxwell ICMA Chapter.  They plan and execute events focusing on issues and careers specific to local government. Many Maxwell alumni return to campus to offer sage advice and engage in insightful discussions of the challenges to facing local government leaders today.

Additionally, Maxwell alumni have created a fund to help students attend the annual ICMA conference each fall.   Administered through the Maxwell School’s Center for Career Development, each year as many as a dozen students will be able to attend the conference, where Maxwell alumni also generously host an alumni/student dinner, fostering our students’ professional development. This is an exceptional example of our Maxwell alumni network in action!

Just this week, one of the active leaders from Maxwell’s 2014 ICMA chapter, Josh Ramirez (’14) told us of his new position as the Financial Policy and Planning Officer with the County of San Diego where he will assume responsibility for coordinating the strategy and production of the $5.4 billion budget.  Congratulations Josh!

And congratulations to the new Leadership of Maxwell’s ICMA Chapter.