LVC Partners with Community & Economic Development for Municipal and Corporate Sustainability Institute

Related Media

Dr. Greg Buckley, LVC associate dean of graduate & professional studies

ANNVILLE, PA (09/26/2014)(readMedia)-- The Pennsylvania Department of Community & Economic Development (DCED) and Lebanon Valley College have announced a pair of academic partnerships. The collaboration will lead to the establishment of a Regional Institute of Municipal and Corporate Sustainability and a five-course training program in areas of immediate need, the latter beginning in October.

Peter J. Zug, acting deputy secretary for community affairs and development, who previously served as the executive director for the Governor's Center for Local Government Services and is a former member of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives for the 102nd District (Lebanon), wanted to improve the already high quality and depth of training occurring at the DCED.

"Governor Tom Corbett '71 challenged the DCED to be more proactive and forward-thinking when looking at local government training and continuing education of our local officials," said Zug. "When I completed the training program, I felt that we did a good job, but at the same time, I realized that we needed more detailed training statewide and that partnering with an institution of higher education would enable a more intensive degree of study. I saw that we offered a bachelor's level of training and wanted to bring it to the master's level."

Thus, the partnership with Lebanon Valley College was born. Together, they will soon offer the two aforementioned opportunities to train municipal officials in the workings of the local government.

The Regional Institute of Municipal and Corporate Sustainability will provide a resource for municipalities and businesses as they develop sustainable practices and regulatory compliance-as well as provide academic and internship opportunities for LVC students. It will offer training programs directed toward the needs of municipal planning departments and corporate facility managers in areas such as carbon footprint reduction, erosion and silt management, waste reduction, and more.

"Sustainability is an important and reoccurring theme that is discussed at the Pennsylvania Municipal League, individual municipality meetings, and among township officials," said Zug. "Our public officials clearly want-and need-a system to sustain quality of life for residents. They need assistance at the smaller regional level and at the larger state-wide level on how to best accomplish this." He added that, "That Lebanon Valley College once again offers academic programming at the Dixon University Center in Harrisburg opens up the possibilities for even greater collaboration."

LVC is equally excited about the potential benefits of the partnership. "We look forward to using our expert faculty and building on previously successful LVC programs as we work with the DCED to develop a resource for local municipalities and businesses with a focus on sustainable business practices," said Dr. Greg Buckley, LVC's associate dean of graduate & professional studies. He noted that while businesses and local governments are interested in sustainability, their focuses are often quite different. The institute's programming will address both sets of needs-as well as the needs of LVC's students interested in sustainability issues.

"This institute is a regional resource that provides links between our curriculum and the needs of government and business," added Buckley. "It also establishes opportunities for internships and other high-impact opportunities for LVC students, and eventually, a much richer sustainability-focused curriculum at LVC. The curriculum could tie directly into the identified needs of business and government," he says, explaining that this link with real-world applications will create stronger academic and career opportunities for LVC students.

In addition to the Sustainability Institute, the two organizations will partner on a five-course training program that begins in October and runs until May. The program, which will help municipal employees take the reins of local government, came from an idea sown by Chad Saylor, who worked in Pennsylvania Lieutenant Governor Jim Cawley's office when discussions and research first began.

"There are thousands of municipalities in this state-67 counties, hundreds of boroughs, thousands of townships-and many people in these positions are not trained in government," said Saylor, now chief of staff for the Dauphin County Commissioners. "For many years, the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development has provided training for local municipal officials. Over the years, this training has become more sophisticated, to the point where it is akin to earning a certificate. So the thought was, why don't we formalize this training and provide some sort of credential, and if there's an academic institution that could help us coordinate this and add some credibility, it would be more meaningful."

Zug already looks ahead to when the inaugural training program ends in May 2015. "We hope to continue the program, adapting the course content and offerings as needed," he said. "We want to build on the great work that Champ Holman (former deputy secretary for community affairs and development at the DCED) and Michael Cortez (senior advisor to the secretary at the DCED) have been doing.

"We need to continue taking a proactive approach toward educating officials about finances, training, responding to state and federal mandates, and educating constituents about which services we offer," said Zug. "Partnerships with institutions such as Lebanon Valley College enable us to provide excellent and affordable training for our municipal leaders."

# # #

For More Information:

Emily Summey (LVC, 717-867-6034)

Steven Kratz (DCED, 717-783-1132)