ASU program prepares Tucson government employees to serve communities more effectively
Graduates of ASU's Tucson Certified Public Manager program were honored at an Oct. 25 ceremony presented by the city of Tucson at its police headquarters. Twenty-two city employees and two from Pima County earned certificates as members of the program's fourth cohort since it was first taught in Tucson in 2021. Photo by Sam Salzwedel/ASU
Up-and-coming local government leaders in Tucson say an Arizona State University development program for municipal and county employees helps them seek career advancement with enhanced knowledge and confidence.
ASU has been teaching the Certified Public Manager, or CPM, program in Tucson since 2021. Graduates say participation has boosted their readiness for middle- to senior-level positions through learning problem-solving, how to improve public services and seeing how different areas of government interact.
The program’s fourth cohort began in January, with 22 city employees and two Pima County employees. They graduated Oct. 25 at a ceremony conducted by the city of Tucson.
Hector Zelaya, executive director of Bob Ramsey Executive Education, based at ASU’s Watts College of Public Service and Community Solutions, directs the CPM program in Tucson. He said its students graduate with a more holistic view of government service.
“They gain a better understanding of what they do. They see the state as a whole,” Zelaya said. “They can call upon each other.”
ASU is the only provider of the nine-month program in Arizona, which is accredited by the National CPM Consortium. Zelaya said the program explores public management from three perspectives: individual, organizational and systemic, while advancing continuous improvement and teaching change management.
The first two cohorts in Tucson were exclusively for Tucson city employees. Twenty-six city workers completed the program at the end of its first year in 2021. Twenty-five more completed it in May 2022. Employees from Pima County and the Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation and Reentry participated in the program’s third cohort. Seven county and two state employees joined 17 from the city who graduated in May 2023.
Former program manager Marena Sampson said the program gives participants the opportunity to gather each week and learn concepts in detail.
“The magic I see in the CPM program is the idea that there are all these people who are public servants who are there because they want to help their communities in a certain way,” Sampson said. “They learn what it means to be a part of the government at different levels in an environment that is similar but different.”
Each student graduates after completing a capstone project that recommends a solution for a real-life problem or for improving an existing service. Sampson said the program provides the city with a strong return on its investment through the capstone projects.
Sampson said students have similar backgrounds and experiences, but they come from diverse areas of local government, from architecture to parks and recreation.
“It can make an existing community even stronger,” she said.
Graduates of the program described how much it has meant to their careers.
Ana Corcoran, an administrator with Tucson’s Public Safety Communications Department, has spent 20 years working in public safety. She currently oversees information technology training and development for the department. She was a manager there in 2020 when she signed up for the Tucson CPM program.
“I enrolled following the recommendation from our interim director at the time, with the support of my leadership team. They emphasized that, as an emerging leader within the organization, this course would help enhance my leadership experience,” Corcoran said. “With my goal of joining the executive management team, I saw this as the perfect opportunity to expand my knowledge and skills.”
Once she enrolled, it was evident that the experience would help prepare her for a more advanced leadership role by providing invaluable insights into how city government operates beyond the first-line supervisory level, she said.
“It taught me how to support my team better and manage in a broader, more strategic context. I gained practical skills in navigating the complexities of city governance and learned how to align my leadership with the organization’s larger goals,” Corcoran said.
Corcoran said the strong network of friendships and professional relationships she developed remains with her today.
Tucson Fire Capt. Tyler Berndt, who manages safety and wellness for his department, remembers reading about the program and agreeing to find out more after a colleague recommended it.
“I am very thankful I did, because some of those skills and ideas that we were taught I still use to this day,” he said.
Berndt said a major idea he took from the class was the city’s notion of “one city, one team.”
“For the 15 years prior (to learning that), I was always about police and fire,” he said. “This program really opened my eyes to how it really takes all parts to make the city machine run and run well.”
Tucson City Manager Timothy Thomure said the program is directly related to city employees serving Tucsonans.
“The role of project manager is critical to the city of Tucson’s ability to deliver services, both large and small, to our community. By enrolling our employees in the CPM program, we've enhanced our capacity by developing the skills of our existing staff,” Thomure said. “This program has proven to be a valuable investment in our most important resource — our people.”
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