Members of five public bodies from around the Clarkston area came together once again on May 26 to forge a common goal for the community.
In fact, those present forged three.
Leadership Clarkston ? a joint meeting hosted by the Clarkston Area Chamber of Commerce for board members from the City of the Village of Clarkston, Clarkston Community Schools, Independence Township and Springfield Township ? established three ‘S.M.A.R.T.? goals:
? form a steering committee by July 1,
? begin a Leadership Clarkston webpage and
? find a way to offer a ‘daddy-daughter? dance for all municipalities without duplicating services.
S.M.A.R.T. goals are specific, measurable, accountable, result-oriented and time-framed objectives. In this case, Leadership Clarkston was forming ways for those entities present to partner for the betterment of the community.
The idea of combining and opening the ‘daddy-daughter? dance, currently offered by both Independence Township Parks and Recreation and Clarkston Community Schools, came from a ‘team? of representatives looking for a specific, short-term achievable goal.
‘We were looking for a way to share resources and thought ‘Where do we start??? said Springfield Township Clerk Nancy Strole. ‘We didn’t want to grab something unachievable now. We wanted something that would share resources, ideas and allow for us to work together on the bigger picture later.?
Setting the goal for a steering committee began with suggestions from two ‘teams? of representatives. One team wanted to find a way for those entities present to easily share information. Another team wanted a smaller committee formed to keep Leadership Clarkston going year round. The resulting goal was a steering committee.
The steering committee would be responsible for spearheading the Leadership Clarkston goals, making the public aware of partnerships that already exist between the entities and continuing the open communication of the organization. The committee would be a liaison for sharing information, such as when services can be combined or supplies can be combined to avoid duplication and increase cost effectiveness.
Another team of representatives focused upon wanting the public to be aware of existing partnerships. The idea was put forward for a website, and Clarkston Schools Superintendent Dr. Al Roberts said he would speak with school board member Steve Hyer, who owns a webpage design company, about donating his expertise for the project.
Chamber of Commerce Director Penny Shanks suggested connecting the page to the chamber website and offered her services as well.
In addition to these three goals, Leadership Clarkston approved the following vision statement:
‘The Clarkston area will be a community of choice to live, do business and to work in; where an active and involved citizenry enjoy progressive living in a timeless setting.?
Finally, representatives talked briefly about the idea of an annual two-day retreat for those participating in Leadership Clarkston. Nothing definitive was decided on this matter at the close of the May 26 session.