in Raleigh

Raleigh Neighborhood College

The first floor of my building houses the Raleigh Urban Design Center. Usually I walk by without paying much attention to it but something caught my eye today: an advertisement for the upcoming Raleigh Neighborhood College.

The City of Raleigh’s website doesn’t do a good job of describing just what the Raleigh Neighborhood College is, but I think of it as a kind of boot camp for citizens interested in what the city and its services are all about. I figure its a bit like the Garner Citizens Academy I attended five years ago. As a guy very much interested in ways to make Raleigh a better place to live you know I can’t pass up this kind of education!

The classes are pretty intense, with 2-3 hour sessions each week for 13 weeks. Topic range from City and County Government, to Community Services, Planning, Police, Fire, and other services and departments. Classes are limited to 25 seats each and there’s no guarantee of being invited to participate. I hope to be among the lucky few.

And, of course, if I get selected my MT.Net readers will go along for the ride. Classes start next week, so wish me luck!