GEOG 4823, Planning-Related Meeting Reports

Dr. Chuck Ziehr, Northeastern State University

Fall 2005


Each student is required to attend two public meetings of planning-related governmental organizations and to write a brief report summarizing those meetings. These organizations must be directly involved with the development or implementation of policies or plans related to urban, regional, economic, and/or environmental planning. You may NOT submit reports for two meetings of the same organization. For example, you could NOT report on two different meetings of the Tahlequah City Council, but you could report on one Tahlequah City Council meeting and one Muskogee City Council meeting. However, I strongly recommend that you try to attend different types of organizations.

The reports must be typewritten and one to three pages in length. YOU MUST ATTACH A COPY OF THE MEETING'S AGENDA (available free to anyone attending the meeting). Your report should give a general overview of the meeting: format used, topics discussed, major decisions reached. List (if possible) the names of the members of the council, board, or agency who participated in the meeting. Your summary should give special emphasize to decisions directly related to comprehensive plans, land use, economic development, environmental issues, and/or transportation. Include a statement as to the amount and nature of input made by members of the public at the meeting. Your summary should have a bit of "synthesis" or "analysis" to it, not just a list of topics. Show some evidence in your report that you can relate what went on in the meeting to the concepts of this course.

To find meeting dates, times, and locations call the main governmental number of the city of interest and ask for the needed information regarding the planning body of your choice.  Please plan ahead; most of these organizations meet only once or twice per month.  If you have any doubts as to the appropriateness of a particular organization, please check with the instructor before attending the meeting. Feel free to attend these meetings and even to ask questions or make comments during the meetings. They are public meetings; open to everyone. Occasionally, in meetings with small attendance the chair of the meeting may ask the audience to introduce themselves.  They're not trying to single you out; it's standard operating procedure in some organizations.  Simply state your name and note that you're an NSU student there on a class assignment.  Each report is worth 25 points.

One report must be submitted by Friday, October 28, and the second report must be submitted by Wednesday, December 7 at 5:00 p.m.

I will evaluate each report as follows:  agenda included (3 points), overview of meeting (format, topics, decisions, 5 points), members participating (3 points), public input (3 points), synthesis or analysis (7 points), related to the concepts of the course (4 points).
Originally created by Chuck Ziehr (1/30/97). Last revised November 1, 2005.