That the City Council consider and approve the development and implementation of a Civics Academy for La Habra residents, to include a program outline, curriculum and outreach plan.

Background:
The La Habra City Council has long placed an emphasis on local government transparency, encouraging public participation, and developing strong community relationships. In support of this emphasis, the City Council has adopted, as part of its annual goal setting process, Goal 6: Community Outreach and Civic Engagement, Objective H: to “establish a local government ‘civics academy’ program to educate and inform interested La Habra residents about local governance and the roles and responsibilities of City departments, staff and officials.”

To achieve this Council goal and objective, Staff researched programs developed in other cities across Southern California and has created a proposed structured educational program, otherwise known as a “Civics Academy” for La Habra residents, designed to help increase civic awareness and encourage resident involvement in local government.
 
The purpose of the proposed Civics Academy is to educate participants about the operations and processes involved in municipal governance and administration, explain the various paths available to them to increase their community involvement, and help provide them with knowledge and information to help them become more effective leaders in the community. Although each civics program is designed specifically for the needs and goals of each respective city, program goals and classes typically follow the same general structure by exploring the inner workings of a city’s major departments and functions. 

Staff found that civic academies ranged in duration from six weeks to ten months long, depending on the program. Sessions were typically held once per week or once per month, and some lasted for only a few hours, while others were full-day classes. Many programs also offer City tours or exercises, such as attendees participating in a mock Planning Commission or City Council meeting. Oftentimes, civic academies culminated with a graduation ceremony at the conclusion of the program and/or recognition of the participants at a City Council meeting. 

The class structures also varied depending on the agency. In many cases, classes were led by city staff, though some programs collaborated with local colleges, nonprofits, or other agencies to both sponsor and facilitate the program. In these cases, the college, non-profit, or outside agency assumed the primary role of managing the academy and then partnering with that particular city to facilitate the program. Both approaches have their benefits and drawbacks.

Staff has reviewed various civic academies from other cities and met with staff from neighboring agencies to learn more about their programs and what changes or enhancements they would suggest. After considering all the alternatives, staff has outlined a proposed program for City Council consideration that takes into account the goals and objectives of the City Council, while fostering community engagement and resident participation in local governance. 

Proposed La Habra Civics Academy Program Structure:
If approved by City Council, the City will offer a Civics Academy to La Habra residents over an eight week period through interactive in-person sessions primarily focused on how City policies are developed and how programs, services and projects are managed, operated and delivered. The program is designed to enhance community input and involvement, and is ideal for those interested in an opportunity to further engage with their local government and gain knowledge about how La Habra’s municipal government is organized and operates.

The program will provide participants with a general overview of the City’s governance structure, the roles and responsibilities of its various departments, and how the City interacts with various external agencies, non-profits and community partners. Participants will have the opportunity to have one-on-one interactions with City officials, ask questions about government operations, and learn about ways they can enhance their own community engagement and participate in ways to help address community issues. The program seeks to encourage resident involvement, input and participation across various City projects, programs, committees and commissions. 

If approved, it is recommended that the La Habra Civics Academy be managed in-house with City personnel. This will allow sessions to be tailored to reflect the City’s operations, will be presented by City staff, will help control costs so that the program can be free to participants. This will also help ensure that sessions can be scheduled at City Hall on dates and times that are convenient for program participants.

The proposed program framework includes:

Objective:

Session Structure and Outline:
Over the course of the eight week program, participants will learn about the roles and responsibilities of various City Departments, staff and elected officials, with each session focusing on a specific department’s role, responsibilities, programs, services, etc.  The Mayor and the City Manager will welcome participants in the first session of the academy and will provide a brief overview of what they will experience over the course of the program. The last session will conclude with attendance at a City Council meeting to receive a Certificate of Recognition for their participation in the program. 

Staff proposes the following sessions for the program:

The outline included above is a general overview of the program; a more detailed outline of the program is attached to this report (Attachment 1). In addition, each session will end with a survey soliciting participants’ feedback and input about that specific session, and there will be a final survey taken asking participants for their feedback and opinion of the program. City staff involved with teaching the sessions will also be asked to provide feedback to determine what, if any, changes to the program might be suggested or necessary.

The first academy will serve as a pilot program to gauge participant interest and feedback. The information provided by participants will help staff improve the program over time based on the feedback that is provided. Each individual session will include opportunities for program participants to ask questions to further engage with staff and officials.

Outreach Plan:
The City is fortunate to have a number of platforms to advertise various programs, services, and events to La Habra residents. Should this program be approved by the City Council, staff will design and post advertisements on the following platforms:

Furthermore, staff recommends a branding platform that is unique to this program. Many cities offering this program have used names such as “Resident Academy,” “Citizens Leadership Academy,” “Leadership Academy", or “Citizens’ Academy.” Other cities, such as the City of Brea for example, elected to create a unique name for their program (“Engage Brea”) that captures the spirit of their community, and included a tagline of “Understanding Your City.”

Since the La Habra Police Department already successfully utilizes a very effective “Citizens Academy” title for their police-focused community outreach program, staff proposes using a different, unique name for the general municipal civics academy so the two programs are not confused. 

La Habra is often to referred to as “a big city with a small-town feel,” which is why staff proposes the following options for names and bylines for Council consideration and input:

Proposed Names:

Proposed Bylines:

Cost:
In order to create an opportunity where anyone in the community can participate in this program, staff proposes offering the academy to residents free of charge.  Assuming the program is approved, and the City Council elects to keep the program in-house and not partner with an outside organization, the operating costs for the program will likely be minimal.  Staff anticipates some program costs for light refreshments for each session, costs for supplies such as workbook binders for participants, and outside printing costs. As currently envisioned, most of the sessions will be presented by managers in various departments; therefore, there should be minimal to no additional labor costs involved with the program. In total, staff anticipates a program budget of approximately $3,500, of which budgeted funding is available.

Student Government Day Recap:
On April 10, 2025, the City hosted its 36th Annual Student Government Day with students from La Habra and Sonora High Schools, Whittier Christian High School, Washington and Imperial Middle Schools, and Rancho-Starbuck Intermediate School.  Student Government Day is an opportunity each year for students from local schools to experience firsthand the responsibilities of civic leadership and consider complex issues and policies. As participants, students are given a contemporary issue to deliberate in their role as a member of the City Council or other City Executive.

This year students were asked to review and consider the implementation of a resident civics academy with the same program guidelines outlined in this report. There was a robust discussion and interaction with the students about this concept, and the following questions and concerns were raised:

In addition, the students held a brief discussion regarding the proposed name for the civics academy, and showed interest in the following proposed names and bylines for the program:

The overall discussion at Student Government Day was positive and enlightening, and there was an overwhelming consensus among the students that the program should be approved and implemented. Some of the recommendations made by the students have been incorporated into the proposed program, as outlined above.
 

Conclusion:
The proposed civics academy is designed to be a proactive initiative that aligns with the City Council’s stated goal of increasing civic participation and fostering a more informed and engaged community. By providing residents with direct access to city leaders, officials, and staff, the program is designed to help strengthen public trust and encourage future potential leaders to participate in La Habra’s continued growth and success. The intent of the program is to provide an opportunity for La Habrans to become more involved with their local government, become more familiar with City operations, programs and services, and to better understand how their local government operates.

If approved, the pilot program will be offered first in English and if successful and sustainable, and if there is interest for a Spanish version, staff will explore options to provide the program to the CIty's Spanish-speaking community.

Staff recommends that the City Council consider and approve the development and implementation of a resident civics academy, to include a program outline, curriculum and outreach plan. 

While it is proposed that the program will be provided free to interested participants, there will be minimal operating costs associated with the program, which is not anticipated to cost more than $3,500 per academy. There is sufficient budgeted General Fund resources in the Administration budget to fund the costs for this program.

Goal 6, Objective H: Establish a local government "civics academy" program to educate and inform interested La Habra residents about local governance and the roles and responsibilities of City departments, staff and officials.