Great nickname, right? "Firebrand in the front row"? David Gregory earned this moniker from Washingtonian Magazine for asking tough questions. 

CityClub will have this firebrand on the stage on Tuesday, September 21 - but this time you'll be asking the tough questions. He's been praised for a commitment to accountability and analysis, and he'll be kicking off CityClub's third annual Community Matters Campaign focused on public trust, with a fascinating discussion of forces, trends and issues at the heart of the national political scene. 

An interesting bit from his bio: it was during David Gregory's first year that "Meet the Press" jumped into social media: "Gregory has successfully brought the program into the digital community, enhancing its presence and creating an ongoing dialogue with viewers through his blog, Facebook and Twitter."

To connect social-networking style:

• David Gregory's Facebook
• @davidgregory on Twitter
• Blog: The View from Here
  

Read more about David Gregory from his bio, after the jump! (And click here to register!)

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Dennis Schatz, an active CityClub volunteer who sits on both our Program Committee and Education Task Force, has some exciting times ahead! It has been with Dennis's help that CityClub has hosted the Washington State LASER Awards three years running - and he's been invited to develop a similar program at the University of Queensland. (During this time, he'll also work on his 22nd children's book!) After that, he's been invited to be a temporary Program Director at the National Science Foundation.

Congratulations, Dennis, from the whole CityClub family! To read more about these adventures, continue below the cut.

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CityClub's 2008 panel conversation "The Making of a Candidate"

In 2008, CityClub hosted a conversation as part of our Law & Politics Series called "The Making of a Candidate". We asked our panelists questions like: do people choose to run for office, or do interest groups choose them? How do candidates reach the point where they can successfully run for major state and national public office? What role do parties and consultants play in terms of messaging, and how concerted are their efforts?

Next month, we're picking up that conversation with new panelists in a new discussion. Our new question: Once a candidate is in the running, how do they win? Our panelists represent four different organizational structures in the campaigning process: grassroots, youth focused and driven, private consultants and the state party structure.

You can watch our previous event, "The Making of a Candidate", online in full thanks to The Seattle Channel - click here to see what we learned!

Then, learn more about our upcoming program "The Race to Reach Voters", including our panelists and more questions we'll be asking. What are your questions? Click here to register today!

Not yet registered to vote in Washington, or moved/changed your name recently? Today's the deadline for online and paper applications and updates to your voter registration!

You can register online here, or to update your information click here. More info on updates from the King County Elections webpage:

If you have moved from one address in King County to another address in King County, you can call us at 206-296-VOTE (8683) to report your new address, complete a voter registration form (external link), or write to us with the following information:

• Registered name
• Date of birth
• Voter registration number (if known)
• Prior address/new address
• Mailing address (if different)
• Signature
• Daytime and nighttime phone number

To be eligible to vote in your new precinct or under your new name, you must change your record no later than 30 days prior to the election.

(Late deadline for in-person registration if not already registered in Washington is August 9.)

The Civic Health Index (CHI) is the nation's definitive measure of civic health, demonstrating how Americans connect to each other and their communities. It measures voting, volunteerism, philanthropy, neighbor-to-neighbor connections, political expression and religious affiliation.

Reported since 2006, the CHI is national in scope, but for the first time this Fall, there will be supplementary reports measuring the civic health of targeted municipalities. Metropolitan Seattle — including Pierce, King and Snohomish Counties — will be among the first communities featured.  CityClub is honored to be coordinating this project with generous underwriting from The Boeing Company and The Seattle Foundation.

Why is this important?

Since government, business and the independent sector invest heavily in building robust civic participation, it is critical that we have tools to evaluate our investments, performance and goals. By aligning with the national CHI, we gain a proven methodology to understand our progress over time and compare our civic health to that of the nation and other municipalities. There is inspiring precedent for national CHI data being used as a catalyst that inspires civic action by legislators, businesses, foundations, and non-profit organizations. Our goal is to use metropolitan Seattle’s first Civic Health Index to inspire this kind of civic advancement in our region.

To learn more about the National Conference on Citizenship and Civic Health Index, click here.

Diane Douglas

Executive Director

If you're subscribed to our e-news, you already know we're gearing up for our 2010 Community Matters Campaign! (CMC for short.) This year's theme is public trust: we'll explore different aspects of public trust through forums, election debates, community dialogues, online resources and (new this year!) an online living voters guide.

What do you think about public trust?

• Do you live in a close-knit community?
• Do you trust your neighbors or your government to step in and intervene if necessary?
• How do you think public trust influences current immigration policy reform discussions?
• How would you prefer to engage with your fellow citizens and elected officials to express your voice and play a role in policy outcomes?
• Do you feel like you know about issues that are important to you and how you can take action on them?
• If you take the time to get involved, do you feel like it matters?

New this year, CityClub is partnering with the University of Washington Center for Communication and Civic Engagement and Department of Computer Science and Engineering to create a first-ever "Living Voters Guide" developed by and for the public on the fall ballot initiatives. Through community deliberation, participants will create opinion statements and recommendations for fellow voters.

As always, the campaign begins with United Way's Day of Caring and ends on Election Day. This year our kick-off event will be on September 21: A Conversation with David Gregory, host of NBC's "Meet the Press"!

Did you know CityClub updates Twitter live from our programs?

If you're interested in a program but unable to attend, you can follow the conversation at CityClubLive - our Twitter feed dedicated to real-time information about what's being discussed by our panels. (Our other feed, SeattleCityClub, is where you'll find daily updates - and reminders of when we're live-tweeting from CityClubLive!)

Visit today to see our tweets from today's program, "Redesigning the Delivery of Care: A Conversation with Health Care CEOs".

Both The Seattle Channel and TVW were at today's program - so full video of the entire discussion will be available soon!

Stu Jacobson, Washington's National Nominee for the 2010 Jefferson Awards, shared with us a video of his speech from the national ceremony in Washington, D.C. Click here to view on YouTube! (We have added the video as a favorite, but credit and ownership goes to Parents for Safe Childcare. See their YouTube channel here.)

You may have heard that at our 2010 Anniversary Gala, honorary chair William D. Ruckelshaus read a proclamation from Governor Christine Gregoire declaring June 14, 2010 Mark Emmert Day. As I was marking the day on our internal calendar and setting it to repeat every year - thereby adding it to our collective memory - I thought perhaps it would be nice to share the text of this proclamation with you!

WHEREAS, today CityClub is recognizing the importance of Washington’s entrepreneurial culture with its Gala focused on “Revolutionary Innovation;” and

WHEREAS, CityClub enjoys a long-standing partnership with University of Washington in support of building civic knowledge, connection, trust and action in the greater community; and 

WHEREAS, since June 2004, Mark Emmert, a native son of Fife, Washington, has served as President of the University of Washington, one of the state’s flagship research universities and a linchpin of the region’s economy and health care; and

WHEREAS, the University of Washington, under President Emmert’s leadership, strengthened its commitment to educational opportunity and accessibility by launching the Husky Promise, a guarantee to the state’s hardworking students that financial challenges will not stand in the way of a college education; and

WHEREAS, during President Emmert’s tenure, the University of Washington completed the most successful fundraising campaign in its history, garnering the support of nearly 300,000 donors; and 

WHEREAS, President Emmert has fostered a dynamic, collegial environment for growth and advancement at the University of Washington, exemplified by the creation of new initiatives in leading-edge fields, revitalized strategies for attracting a talented, diverse student body and providing a rich learning experience, and the expansion of the University’s reach across the globe; and

WHEREAS, under President Emmert’s direction, the University of Washington has built significantly upon its capacity for improving the health and welfare of people at home and around the world; and

WHEREAS, President has championed the University of Washington’s position as a world leader in environmental research, education, and practices; and

WHEREAS, President Emmert has advocated passionately and eloquently for the fundamental contributions research universities make to the quality of life and well-being of us all;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, Christine O. Gregoire, Governor of the state of Washington, do hereby proclaim June 14, 2010, as

Mark Emmert Day

in Washington State, and I urge all citizens to join me in this special observance.