ICMA’s Graduate Education Committee (soon to be renamed to the Academic Relations Committee) met in Tampa to honor outgoing chair Mark Nagel, welcome new members, and discuss new initiatives for the committee to tackle in 2026, including updating MPA curricula and increasing efforts to engage students and managers. Nagel served as the chair of the Graduate Education Committee, 2019 – 2025, frequently serving as a panelist for the committee’s “Managers as Teachers” sessions, which we plan to resume at Long Beach in 2026. 

After receiving a plaque for his service from Mike Land, Mark thanked the committee for years of support and success, as the committee continues its work to strengthen the professional pipeline of local government professionals. During the meeting, the committee also welcomed the incoming co-chairs, Dr. Angel Wright-Lanier, assistant city manager of Winston-Salem, North Carolina, and James Fisher, city manager of Levelland, Texas, who expressed excitement supporting the next iteration of the committee. In terms of next steps, the committee plans to finalize work plan development for the committee’s activities in the coming year.