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Over the next few months, members of the Alabaster Government Academy will have the opportunity to get an in-depth look at each of the departments within the city of Alabaster. (For the Reporter/Neal Wagner)

By NOAH WORTHAM | Staff Writer

ALABASTER – Over the next few months, members of the Alabaster Government Academy will have the opportunity to get an in-depth look at each of the departments within the city of Alabaster.

This year’s Government Academy classes began on Sept. 14 and will continue to occur twice a month through mid-February.

“It’s been going great so far this year,” Public Relations Manager Neal Wagner said. “We’ve had two classes already, with the Admin and HR departments presenting a few weeks ago and then the fire department this past Tuesday.”

The annual program initially came about thanks to the efforts of Wagner as well as City Administrator Brian Binzer. The Government Academy provides an opportunity for local residents to learn more about local city government, including environmental services and law enforcement.

Each year, the class allows participants the chance to tour various city facilities, speak with employees and department heads and learn how Alabaster provides services to its residents and businesses.

“This is a program we created to give our residents an in-depth look at how their city operates and how they can become more engaged with their local government and city departments,” Wagner said. “They’ll get to visit everything from the fire and police departments to the public works and environmental services departments over the next few months, and hopefully come away with a better understanding of what it takes to make the city run smoothly.”

According to Wagner, this year’s academy is off to a great start.

“We have a fantastic group this year and they’ve already been asking some very good questions,” he said. “The first class of the Alabaster Government Academy was more successful than we could imagined last year, and we’re already off to a great start in continuing that this year.”

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