MTAS Mustard for weeks ended 01/24 and 1/31/20

 

Good Monday Afternoon MTAS,
 
So, how many of you stayed up to watch the end of the Super Bowl last night? If you watched any/all of it, I hope you enjoyed the game, the halftime show, and of course, all the new commercials ( Fox sold 77 ads for an estimated $400 million +).
 
This Mustard will cover a couple of weeks of review. I’d like to start off with celebrations. Over the last two weeks, we had a birthday (Pat on the 24th) and a work anniversary (Michelle T. on the 30^th). I am so glad that you both are part of the team, and I hope that the year ahead for you is full of happiness and accomplishments both personally and professionally.
 
Continuing the celebratory note, congratulations go to Chris and Gary for their Certified Public Manager (CPM) graduation in Nashville on the 23^rd. They were among a very stellar group of individuals. The CPM program requires 300 + hours, so this was a huge accomplishment. Way to go guys!
 
Last week I attended both IPS and MTAS leadership team meetings. Topics that were discussed included: annual performance reviews, the biennial customer satisfaction survey, the organizational chart (your MTAS leadership team is updating ours and the final product will be placed on the M drive); strategic planning team updates; personnel changes; the UT family campaign (begins this Friday); program logos; and interns. I also electronically attended the joint law enforcement IPS meeting. This group is made up of staff from each agency that in some way works with law enforcement. The goal is to enhance collaboration where it makes sense and to take advantage of each other’s strengths and expertise. Also last week I met the new group of IPS interns at their orientation meeting. We have students placed in Crossville (Warren mentoring), Maryville (Angie mentoring), and East Ridge (Honna mentoring). They are all eager to learn and do great work. Finally, last week I had the privilege of watching the demonstration of the new and improved Elected Officials Academy. I am very excited about this enhanced product offering.
 
While on the subject of training, in case you’ve missed it – the Municipal Administration Program (MAP) has been renamed, without initials. The new title is: (drum roll please…) Continuing Municipal Education. As you talk with customers, please make the shift to the new name.
 
Yesterday was Groundhog Day, so to honor old Punxsutawney Phil, here’s a scene from the 1993 movie starring Bill Murray as Phil, a weatherman who relives Groundhog Day over and over and over and…
 
Phil: "This is one time where television really fails to capture the true excitement of a large squirrel predicting the weather."
 
May you have true excitement this week,
Margaret