Erik Bergrud

I began writing this column on September 12, 2011, seated on an airplane bound for New York’s LaGuardia Airport. The day before, the nation and the world paused to reflect upon the 10th anniversary of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, to remember the victims and to celebrate the heroes who risked their lives, or in many cases sacrificed their lives, to protect the innocent.

Erik Bergrud

Although it is oh-so tempting, I will not offer you a refrain of President Kennedy’s famous “ask not what your country can do for you” quote this evening. Instead, I want to focus on Greater Kansas City and our collective responsibility for its future success.

Erik Bergrud

Happy Public Service Recognition Week! How are you commemorating this annual effort to honor public servants at all levels of government for the work they do to make our country a better place?

This article was published in the March/April 2011 print edition of PA TIMES. Email Editor Christine McCrehin at cjewett@aspanet.org for information on how to subscribe to the paper.


Meredith Newman

Past President Don Klingner told me, during the 2010 ASPA Annual Conference in San José, that my year as president would go quickly. He was right–the officers, staff, volunteers and I have definitely been on the “fast track!” Our mantra this year has been “ASPA on the Move.”

Guest Columnist: ASPA President-Elect Erik Bergrud

Erik Bergrud

I write this column in the aftermath of learning that my chapter’s January luncheon has been canceled. An arsonist destroyed the long-standing meeting place of ASPA’s Greater Kansas City Chapter, the venerable Hereford House, in 2008. The establishment subsequently moved across the street in a temporary location but unexpectedly closed its doors over the holidays.

Meredith Newman

I have asked a number of our ASPA leaders to share their reflections on a recent seminar that was hosted by the Chinese Academy of Governance (CAG) in Beijing. The theme of the conference was twofold: "Governmental Response to the Global Financial Crisis;" and "Encouraging Excellence in Public Administration Education and Training." Our ASPA delegation was joined by the leadership of the International Institute of Administrative Sciences (IIAS), the International Association of Schools and Institutes of Administration (IASIA), the Network of Institutes and Schools of Public Administration of Central and Eastern Europe (NISPAcee) and CAG.

We should never forget that we are here as public servants. And public service is a privilege...We must stand up together and answer a new call to service to meet the challenges of our new century.-President Barak Obama

One of the traditions that ASPA has perfected is the annual transition of officers. I have had the privilege of serving first as vice-president elect with Harvey White, as vice-president with Don Klingner, as president elect with Paul Posner and as president, with Erik Bergrud and Tom Liou. I recall long-time ASPA leader Becky Schergens urging a number of us during an ASPA Midyear Meeting to ensure that each of our respective agendas as officers be complementary and mutually reinforcing. I believe we are accomplishing this goal.

As I look back on my years as an officer and President of ASPA, I can say that they have been times full of trouble for the economy, the public sector and organizations like ours. However, I feel we have not let a crisis go to waste, as they say. Rather, we have responded to seize on new opportunities for growth and renewal.