Safe and Civil City Program Announces Recipients of

Mayor's Award for Civic Engagement

The Mayor's Safe and Civil City Program announced today the recipients of the 2004 Mayor's Award for Civic Engagement. Bloomington Mayor Mark Kruzan and the selection committee will present the awards and recognition certificates at a ceremony on Monday, December 13 at 7 pm in Council Chambers at City Hall.

Recipients chosen in the Award's four categories are:  youth--Meagan

Williams; college student--Richard Parkinson; individual--Sue Wanzer; and organization--Ivy Tech State College-Bloomington. 

"I know the selection committee was truly impressed and inspired by the

many deserving individuals and organizations who were nominated for this award," said Kruzan.

Recipients selected for honorable mention and recognition are: Advocates for Community Engagement; Rick Dietz; Adrienne Garcia; Dr. Kirsten Gronbjerg; INPIRG; Jessica Jenkins; League of Women Voters Bloomington and Monroe County; Denise Lessow; Monroe County Citizen Corps; Caitlin Burns Owens; Joseph Aaron Persinger; and Lynell Shonita Westbrook.

The purpose of the Mayor's Award for Civic Engagement is to acknowledge

outstanding persons who, through their commitment to participating in

political and community activities, have significantly contributed to

improving life in Bloomington and Monroe County.

"The selection process was a difficult one," said Safe and Civil City

Director Marsha Bradford.  "The Safe and Civil City Program  is very

pleased to honor the four recipients in the category awards, as well as to recognize for honorable mention those recipients whose civic activities have contributed significantly to the vitality of community life in Bloomington and Monroe County."

The selection committee was comprised of the following Safe and Civil City Program advisory board members:   Patrick Efiom, Ed Greenebaum,  Paula Gordon, Shirley St. John, and Judge Ken Todd.

Criteria that were considered in selecting recipients included:  level and duration of participation by nominees in political and community

activities that facilitate collective decision making; impact or change in the community attributable to nominees' activities; and the degree to which nominees have modeled civil and respectful conduct in participatory activities.

Jeffrey C. Isaac, James H. Rudy Professor of Political Science and

Director of the Center for the Study of Democracy and Public Life at

Indiana University, will be the keynote speaker.  A reception will follow the awards ceremony.  The public is welcome.