In The Arena

Latest Episodes:

Rebecca Rhynhart, City Controller, City of Philadelphia Aug 20, 2019

Show notes

People thought Rebecca Rhynhart was crazy when she decided to run for Philadelphia controller. At the time, the city never had a woman in the position. Rhynhart also did not have a traditional political background, working on Wall Street for seven years before transitioning to city government. In Philadelphia, she took on the role of city treasurer, budget director and chief administrative officer prior to jumping into the controller race.

Despite the doubts, Rhynhart shocked thepolitical establishment by ousting a three-term incumbent to become the city's first female controller in 2018. Now, she's shaking up the old-school political climate by auditing public spending and identifying ways to help taxpayers get the most for their money.

You listen and learn more about In The Arena at https://www.governing.com/ITA

Michael Crow, President, Arizona State University Aug 06, 2019

Show notes

We live in a time of political division and public fear about the future. But one conversation with Dr. Crow might just make you optimistic. Dr. Crow has been the president of Arizona State since 2002. He previously served as Executive Vice Provost of Columbia University, where he also taught science and technology policy.

In Crow's years working with students of the digital age – the Sapiens [dot] net as he calls them – he has been comforted by their intelligence, their creativity, and their commitment to inclusivity.

For more on the In The Arena podcast, visit https://www.governing.com/ITA

Toi Hutchinson, State Senator, Illinois Jul 23, 2019

Show notes

Toi Hutchinson knows how to make a comeback. Her first foray into politics came when she challenged an incumbent to run for atownship supervisor seat in Illinois. She lost.The day after the election, an Illinois state senator asked Hutchinson to be her chief of staff. A few years later, when the senator won a seat in the U.S. House, Hutchinson took her place in 2009. But taking on a state legislator role as the mother of three young boys wasn't all Hutchinson had going on. She was also in law school at the time.

For more about In The Arena, visit www.governing.com/ita

Young Mayors: Recorded Live at GOV Summit on Government Performance and Innovation Jul 09, 2019

Show notes

U.S. mayors have a lot on their plates these days. From infrastructure to climate concerns, today's rising class of local politicians are changing the way things are done and seeking out creative solutions to help their residents. Four of these promising leaders had the opportunity to speak on a panel at Governing's Summit on Performance and Innovation last month. Mayors Melvin Carter of St. Paul, Minn., Jenn Daniels of Gilbert, Ariz., Jacob Frey of Minneapolis, Minn., and Francis Suarez of Miami, Fla., shared their experiences bringing new perspectives to their governments.

For more on this podcast, or to subscribe for free on major platforms, visit In The Arena online at governing.com/ITA.

Chris Castro, Director of Sustainability, City of Orlando Jun 25, 2019

Show notes

Chris Castro is full of big ideas, and he's ready to shake up how local governments do business. Castro's love for the environment grew on his parent's palm tree farm in Miami. Now, he combines that passion with innovation as Orlando's Director of Sustainability.

His project includes the city's Fleet Farming program, which provides nutrition to food insecure communities by turning front yards into small farms. But Castro has another ambitious effort underway: making Orlando carbon-free by the year 2050.

There is more about Chris and the In The Arena podcast at www.governing.com/ita

Kim Foxx, State's Attorney for Cook County, Illinois Jun 11, 2019

Show notes

Kimberly Foxx is unapologetic for where she came from and what she believes in. Foxx grew up in the 1970s and '80s in Chicago's infamous Cabrini-Green public housing project, a development known for high crime rates and police neglect. Her family later moved to the more affluent Lincoln Park, but her background shaped her in meaningful ways. After moving, she started to notice the disparate opportunities available to her new neighbors versus those from her old housing project.

That seed later grew, driving Foxx to leave her position in insurance law to work with the Cook County Public Guardian's office representing children in the foster care system. This role cemented her desire to work in public service. Foxx eventually served as an assistant state's attorney for 12 years. In 2016, she challenged — and beat — the incumbent Cook County State's Attorney Anita Alvarez to become the first African-American to hold the position. As top prosecutor of the nation's second-largest county, Foxx oversees more than 1,000 people. In this role she has worked to make the office more transparent, advocate for bond reform and vacate dozens of wrongful convictions.

These efforts drew Governing magazine's attention, recognizing her one as a member of its 2019 Women in Government Leadership Program.

Doug Burgum, Governor, State of North Dakota Aug 08, 2018

Show notes

Theodore Roosevelt doesn't have a presidential library. Yet.

A nonprofit foundation in North Dakota, with the help of technologists, historians and Gov. Doug Burgum, is working to correct that oversight.

When Burgum talks about public service, he sounds a lot like Roosevelt, who said, "It is not the critic who counts. ... The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood."

Burgum says that "anybody with a phone and two thumbs can be a critic." He advises public officials to "stay above it" and muster "the courage to jump in."

He did just that in 2016, when the business man made a last-minute run for political office. He tells those stories, plus reflects on his first 18 months in office, on this episode of "In the Arena," a podcast about public leadership.

Nan Whaley, Mayor, City of Dayton, Ohio Aug 01, 2018

Show notes

It is the way things have always been done in Dayton. Neighbors talk to each other over fences and on porches about what they are really thinking about.

Tapping into that dynamic helped Nan Whaley become mayor in 2013. Even after she won, she still keeps in touch with the Ohio city's 140,000 residents through "porch tours."

Whaley says she listens fearlessly because she has learned that in public service, you cannot be afraid of failure. Before becoming mayor, she served as one of the city's youngest commissioners.

On this episode of "In the Arena," a podcast about public leadership, Whaley talks about her porch tours and what she has learned from them.

There's more at www.governing.com/podcasts

Steve K. Benjamin, Mayor, City of Columbia, SC Jul 25, 2018

Show notes

Mayor Steve Benjamin is no stranger to having difficult conversations on a public scale. He got his start in politics as a student activist seeking to bring the Confederate flag down from the South Carolina statehouse.

In his new role as president of the U.S. Conference of Mayors, he speaks with and for 1,500 mayors about common challenges -- opioid addiction, homelessness, immigration and trade. In his town, Columbia, he is focused on the "three I's" of city life -- infrastructure, innovation and inclusion.

On this episode of "In the Arena," a podcast about public leadership, Benjamin talks about the things that make cities work at this "definitive moment" in the country's history.

Kristen Cox, Executive Director, OMB, State of Utah Jul 18, 2018

Show notes

Kristen Cox knows about constraints. After the fiscal crisis, the Executive Director of the Utah Office of Management and Budget applied the same kind of fiscal stress tests the Federal Reserve uses on banks to do a reality check on the State of Utah's books. It surfaced both the state's strengths and vulnerabilities. Her life is really a story about strength and vulnerability. In coming terms with becoming blind, she hit bottom in a man hole. That's not a metaphor. Nor is her solo skydiving. But they do give you a sense of the highs and lows she's confronted. And she'll tell you that embracing your constraints makes for good public policy – and a good life.

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