It’s summertime, which means the Illinois and Wisconsin City/County Management Associations both recently hosted their summer conferences. The conferences are a wonderful chance for local government administrators to connect with one another, troubleshoot, learn best practices and refresh themselves for the work ahead. The NIU Center for Governmental Studies has had the association management contracts for both associations – which includes conference planning and registration – for many years.
CGS Association Management Team Leader Dawn Peters (center in photo) talked with us about the conferences. Keep reading for some highlights from each location and a full interview with Dawn.
Highlights from Illinois
- The ILCMA hosted its 2025 Summer Conference June 3–5 at the I Hotel & Illinois Conference Center in Champaign.
- We had near record turnout, with 300 attendees from across the state.
- The location in Urbana-Champaigne made the conference accessible for a wide range attendees, and we plan to stick to a central state location for future conferences!
- An overwhelming 98% of attendees rated the conference as “Excellent” or “Good,” with 94% expressing similar satisfaction for the variety of breakout sessions.
- Attendees enjoyed a diverse range of sessions, with particular praise for “AI in Action: Practical Strategies for Local Government” and “Beyond Right and Wrong: Decisions, Dilemmas, and Dialogue.” The latter session’s use of interactive elements like live polls made ethics training especially memorable.
- Social events stood out, especially the Downtown Champaign Tour and the dinner at Memorial Stadium, where access to the field and interactive activities fostered new connections and a sense of fun.
Highlights from Wisconsin
- The WCMA hosted its annual summer conference June 25–27 at the Stone Harbor Resort and Conference Center in Sturgeon Bay.
- An overwhelming majority rated the conference positively, with 95% rating it “Excellent” or “Good.”
- The opening keynote “Building Resilience in Times of Change & Transformation” by Leah Roe and the closing keynote by city manager Danny Langloss, Jr., were noted as inspiring and energetic.
- Legal updates and technical sessions received especially high praise for their practical value.
- Social events such as golf outings, dinners and networking receptions were well-attended, and attendees made suggestions for even more structured networking at next year’s conference.
- Save the Date for the 2026 ILCMA Winter Conference from Feb. 11 – 13, 2026 at the Marriott in Normal, IL.
- Save the date for the 2026 WCMA Winter Conference February 25 – 27 at the Marriott in Oshkosh!
Here’s our conversation with Dawn.
Can you start out by telling us a bit about NIU’s role in managing the associations and organizing the conferences?
ILCMA and WCMA contract with the NIU Center for Governmental Studies to administer their respective associations. One of the major events we manage are two conferences per year for each association (winter and summer conferences). We work with the various conference committees to select speakers, determine which topics to offer as sessions and plan fun social activities that provide networking opportunities for members. We love to get member feedback to be sure the conference will serve their needs, so we send out proposals forms for people to fill out where they suggest speakers and panel topics, and then the committee reviews them. Then, finalizing the conference is a committee effort and we create the program from there. We use NIU Conference Registration Services for the registration and attendee information portion of the conference, and they do a wonderful job.
In addition to the conferences, we manage the associations’ governance, which includes doing their board agendas, newsletters and professional development. We manage their websites, membership data and financial administration. We also work with each committee to implement programs and services that serve the members.
What were some of the pressing topics this year that local government managers wanted to learn about?
One of our very popular sessions was about workforce development. We also had a very popular session called “Innovative Placemaking,” which is about transforming spaces to build community connections. Artificial Intelligence is always a hot topic these days, and managers particularly wanted to learn more about practical uses of AI and how it can help their organizations run more efficiently.
Another popular topic was optimizing rewards to attract and retain employees – beyond just the compensation package. Leaders right now are very concerned especially with retention – how can you keep the best and brightest of your employees?
Infrastructure was another popular topic. Many of our members are in communities where a previous lack of investment or adequate funding for infrastructure is catching up with them. They need to know – how can you get back on track and make the necessary updates to keep infrastructure functioning properly?
Why are these conferences so valuable to the attendees? What are some of the benefits of attending?
Conferences provide city/county managers and administrators with an opportunity to not only gain new knowledge and skills that they can take back to their organizations and communities, they also are able to network with other professionals across the state. They talk about issues, share ideas and find solace knowing that they have colleagues who understand what they are going through. Conferences provide a valuable support structure that managers need to thrive and be successful.
Are there similarities in the types of cities or counties most attendees come from, or a wide variety?
It’s a wide variety. We get managers from suburban areas, as well as stand-alone small and mid-sized cities. Big cities, small cities, suburbs and rural towns – we really had it all. For the Illinois conference, the central location in Urbana-Champaign this year made it really accessible to downstate folks, including from the St. Louis area, to participate, so we had an even wider variety of communities, which was great.
How long has NIU CGS been working with the Illinois and Wisconsin City/County Managers Associations?
We’ve been working with Wisconsin since 2013 and Illinois since 1974 – so it’s been quite a long time! ILCMA came to NIU under the direction of Professor Jim Banovitz in 1974. He was the chair of the NIU Master of Public Administration Program, which is one of the top MPA programs in the country, and a program that still has connections to many of the city and county managers in both states, especially in the Chicago area.
Can you share a bit about benefits of the city manager form of government and the history of that government form in Illinois?
The first city manager or village manager in the state of Illinois was hired in 1951 in Glencoe, and then Illinois formally adopted a state statute allowing for the council-manager form of government in 1952. Then ILCMA was founded in 1953.
One of the main benefits of the council-manager form is the level of professionalism it brings to local government, especially for smaller communities. This form of government balances democratic accountability with operational expertise by bringing in trained managers to focus on the day-to-day running of the community in a way that takes politics out of it. Members of ILCMA and WCMA abide are accountable to the International City/County Management Code of Ethics.
There are a few different ways the city or county manager can be hired and fit in with the elected officials. But essentially, the city council is elected by the people, and they set the policies. Then the city manager implements the policy, and they’re specifically trained in how to do that effectively.
I often compare it to a school superintendent versus an elected schoolboard. Like the school board, the city or county board sets the policy direction, but the city manager, like the superintendent, has professional expertise to manage the day-to-day running of the organization.
Why do the citizens benefit from having their managers attend the ILCMA or WCMA conference to get this level of
professional development?
The managers are learning from one another and keeping on top of the latest trends. You know the old saying, why reinvent the wheel? When someone is a member of the Illinois or Wisconsin City/County Management Association, they have access not only to the professional development at our conferences, but also to a listserv of all the fellow members. People often write to the listserv to ask – I need to draft an ordinance to address this issue. Does anyone have any example to share? Several different managers will write back with examples that are all slightly different, so the person can take those, learn from the community, see what’s working well and what’s not.
Local government managers are always willing to share. As a group, we’re all about public service and the public good. That’s to the benefit of all the citizens because it helps each municipality learn best practices and have support to implement them.
Is there anything else you want us to know that I haven’t asked about yet?
I always want folks to know that local government management is a great profession, and a wonderful way to make a positive difference in the world. We’re always looking for our next generation of managers and administrators. I want to encourage people to consider this profession, whether they’re just starting out or are mid-career and considering a change of direction.
If you care about public service, there’s nothing better than local government to really make a difference in people’s lives and see the impact on a daily basis.
