By Shamona McClary

Kannapolis Citizen

Adults from various walks of life sat in one room Thursday night for one reason — to learn more about their community and city government.

"Citizens in Action sounded so much better than couch potato," joked 83-year-old Evelyn Sills, a retired dance instructor.

Sills and 17 other residents — some employees of Wachovia, NorthEast Medical Center and American Red Cross and others retirees — joined together to kick off the Citizens in Action (CIA) program at the Kannapolis city offices. The program is modeled after the current city-sponsored youth and employee academies.

"We've gotten such positive responses from the youth who are currently participating in our Youth Academy that we decided to make a similar program available to adults in our community," said Community Relations Director Jennifer Woodford.

The goal of the program is to educate citizens about city services and how local government works. It is also a way for city officials to gain citizen input on the changes taking place in the community right now.

Thursday, residents got a review of the North Carolina Research Campus and the city's role in the development as well as a lesson in how the city functions overall.

Assistant City Manager Eddie Smith quizzed the group on services they thought the city had to provide, and they were surprised when they learned differently. Police and fire protection were two of several services Smith said the city can opt not to provide.

"You now know more about city government than about 60 percent of elected officials in the state," Assistant City Manager Eddie Smith told the group after his presentation.

That was not the end of their lesson. As a homework assignment, Woodford gave each of them a disposable camera and asked them to take pictures of anything they have questions about regarding community development and land use planning. Participants will be educated in these areas, as well as water treatment and distribution and fire and police protection via city tours.

They will also engage in mock budget sessions.

The program will run for eight weeks, ending May 25. Woodford said it is too late to sign up for this session, but the program will be repeated in the fall.

Contact Shamona McClary at 704-933-3450 or smcclary@salisburypost.com.