National Civic League

The National Civic League is an American non-profit organization that advocates for transparency, effectiveness, and openness in local government. It was founded as the National Municipal League in 1894 at a Philadelphia, Pennsylvania convention of politicians, policy-makers, journalists, and educators (including Theodore Roosevelt, Louis Brandeis, Marshall Field, and Frederick Law Olmsted) to discuss the future of American cities. It also promotes professional management of local government through publication of "model charters" for both city and county governments.

It is best known for its All-America City Award, given to ten communities annually. It also has a Community Services Program, New Politics Program, and Federal-Community Partnership Program.

In the last 25 years, NCL has worked intensively with communities through its Community Services program to address current challenges including developing green and sustainable solutions, addressing racial inequity, and strengthening immigrant integration strategies.

Presidents of the League[1]
Name Term
James C. Carter 1894–1903
Charles J. Bonaparte 1903–1910
William D. Foulke 1910–1915
Lawson Purdy 1915–1919
Charles E. Hughes 1919–1921
Henry M. Waite 1921–1923
Frank L. Polk 1923–1927
Richard S. Childs 1927–1931
Murray Seasongood 1931–1934
Harold W. Dodds 1934–1937
Clarence A. Dykstra 1937–1940
John G. Winant 1940–1946
Charles Edison 1946 – December, 1950
Henry Bruère January, 1951 – November, 1953
George H. Gallup December, 1953 – November, 1956
Cecil Morgan December, 1956 – December, 1959
William Collins January, 1960 – November, 1962
Alfred E. Driscoll December, 1962–1970
William W. Scranton 1970 – November, 1972
Wilson W. Wyatt December, 1972 – November, 1975
Carl H. Pforzheimer December, 1975 – November, 1978
Robert H. Rawson December, 1978 – November, 1981
James L. Hetland, Jr. December, 1981 – November, 1985
Terry Sanford December, 1985 – November, 1986
John Parr December, 1986–1995
Christopher T. Gates 1995 – June 14, 2006
Derek Okubo (interim) June 15, 2006 – December 31, 2006
Gloria Rubio-Cortés January 2007 – present
Chairs of the Board
Name Term
Terrell Blodgett January 1, 1987 – October 31, 1987
William F. Winter November 1, 1987–1988
Henry G. Cisneros 1989–1991
George Latimer 1992
William F. Winter 1993
John W. Gardner 1994–1996
Anna F. Jones (acting) 1996
William W. Bradley 1997–1998
R. Scott Fosler 1999–2000
Dorothy S. Ridings 2001–2004
Robert Rawson, Jr. 2004–2007
Elizabeth Hollander 2007–2008
Sandra W. Freedman November, 2008 – present

References

  1. ^ Stewart, Frank Mann (1950), A Half Century of Municipal Reform; The History of the National Municipal League, Los Angeles, California: University of California Press, OCLC 6588777 

External links