Vice Mayor Randall Franks (center) of Ringgold receives the GMA (Georgia Municipal Association) Certificate of Achievement from (left) Jennifer Frum, vice president for the University of Georgia Public Service and Outreach and Albany Mayor Dorothy Hubbard, chair of the GMA Municipal Training Board.
Randall Franks, Ringgold vice mayor, received the prestigious Certificate of Achievement from the Georgia Municipal Training Institute at the Georgia Municipal Association’s (GMA) Annual Mayors’ Day Conference in Atlanta.
"This training is a unique opportunity offered to elected officials that allows us to keep up with state and federal opportunities for our community," Mr. Franks said. "It also allows us to learn about what is working effectively to grow other Georgia communities and then bring those ideas back home. Since joining the council in 2009, working with my fellow council members, I have been able to apply many of the lessons learned bringing added benefits to our residents."
The Georgia Municipal Training Institute, a cooperative effort of GMA and the University of Georgia’s Carl Vinson Institute of Government, provides a nationally recognized series of training opportunities for elected city officials. To receive a Certificate of Achievement, a city official must complete a minimum of 72 units of credit, including six required courses. The training program consists of a series of more than 40 six-unit courses.
“This is an outstanding achievement,” said GMA Executive Director Lamar Norton. “We commend Vice Mayor Franks for this accomplishment and for the dedication he’s shown in using this valuable resource to become a more effective city official.”
Based in Atlanta, GMA is a voluntary, non-profit organization that provides legislative advocacy, research, training, employee benefit and technical consulting services to its 500 member cities.