Effective Community Engagement: A Toolbox for Local Elected Officials and Staff
- Chapel Hill, NCSeptember 17, 2026
September 17th, 2026 | 9am-3pm | School of Government | Price: $225
Registration will close on 9/09/2026.
This class is designed for both the elected officials and local government professionals.
Do you aspire to have more active participation in your local government processes? Do you feel like your citizens are disengaged, or is your concept of community engagement framed solely by what the Open Meetings Law requires or allows? This interactive webinar will teach you how community engagement is vital to democracy. Your citizens judge the value of government based on what they see and experience; they learn how important government is when they can be a part of it. Elected officials can create inviting and accessible avenues for citizen engagement when armed with actionable tools that make it doable for all.
What you’ll learn:
- How to assess the civic ecosystem
- Differences between citizen engagement and public participation
- Strategies for policy-making and service delivery engagement
- Opportunities related to citizen academies, advisory boards and committees, and public agency and elected official engagement
- Electronic tools that can improve community engagement
- Resources that can help even the most under-resourced communities
This webinar is a 201-level LELA course. Participating elected officials will receive three credits toward their master-level recognition.
There are no specific attendance requirements for this program. Please contact Registration & Client Services if you cannot attend to cancel your registration. Our cancellation policy is linked below.
There are no pre-requisites to register for this program.
The School of Government is grateful to offer a number of scholarship and discount opportunities for public officials who wish to participate in our continuing education programs. Scholarships and discounts are available both internally through the School and through the generous support of partnering organizations. Learn more about the range of these opportunities on our Scholarship and Discount Opportunities page.
Parking details will be provided to you the week prior to the program. Additional directions and parking information can be found on our Visitor Information page.
Course participants who cancel their registration more than 7 calendar days before the course start date will receive a full refund. Otherwise, participants will receive a transferrable credit to be used within 12 months. More information can be found in the full cancellation and refund policy.
Members of Civic Federal Credit Union (Civic) are eligible to apply for a scholarship towards registration fees for programs offered by the School of Government. There are four deadlines to submit applications:
- March 1: for programs starting between April 1 and June 30
- June 1: for programs starting between July 1 and September 30
- September 1: for programs starting between October 1 and December 31
- December 1: for programs starting between January 1 and March 31
The North Carolina Association of County Commissioners provides cost offsets for county elected officials to attend LELA courses. For information on this discount please click the link below.
- Chapel Hill, NCSeptember 17
Chapel Hill, NCView Scholarship Information
Members of Civic Federal Credit Union (Civic) are eligible to apply for a scholarship towards registration fees for programs offered by the School of Government. There are four deadlines to submit applications:- March 1: for programs starting between April 1 and June 30
- June 1: for programs starting between July 1 and September 30
- September 1: for programs starting between October 1 and December 31
- December 1: for programs starting between January 1 and March 31
The North Carolina Association of County Commissioners provides cost offsets for county elected officials to attend LELA courses. For information on this discount please click the link below.
View Cancellation PolicyCourse participants who cancel their registration on or before September 09, 2026 will receive a full refund. No refund will be made for cancellations on or after September 10, 2026, but you will receive a transferrable credit to be used within 12 months. Click here to view the School’s full cancellation and refund policy.$225.00Registration and payment for this course grants access for a single attendee. In order to register a group of attendees, please register each person individually. If you have questions, please contact our registration office at registration@sog.unc.edu or 919.966.4414.
