The California Association of Public Information Officials (CAPIO) announced their selection of Valerie Kushnerov, as their first-ever “Communicator of the Year”.
Valerie has been serving as Goleta’s Public Information Officer for the past four years. She will be recognized at CAPIO’s annual conference next week.
“Goleta places a high value on community engagement and the distribution of timely, accurate information. We are proud of the work Valerie does on our behalf and are pleased to see her talents acknowledged,” said Mayor Michael T. Bennett. “It’s an honor for our small City to have one of our own recognized by a statewide organization.
The Communicator of the Year award is presented to the individual who demonstrates exceptional abilities, skills and talents in leading their organization to greater and more successful communications and public engagement and who demonstrated extraordinary success in 2013 for a program, project or year-long communications effort.
“It’s a testament to the City Council that a part-time public information position was established in 2010 when budgets were tight. It demonstrates their commitment to public outreach and engagement,” said Dan Singer, City Manager. “Our community expects to hear from us and by having a public information officer we are able to provide timely and pertinent information using a variety of tools. Valerie has brought our outreach to a whole new level and we are pleased at the good work she does on a daily basis.”
Kushnerov started as the part-time Public Information Officer with the City in July 2010.