Master Citizen Planner Certification Overview

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Maurice Butler
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1 Master Citizen Planner Certification Overview 1. Complete the Citizen Planner Online or Classroom Modules to receive status of Citizen Planner graduate. You must be a Citizen Planner certificate-holder in order to receive Master Citizen Planner Status. 2. Turn in by mail, fax or scanned copy your Master Citizen Planner Application within 60 days of completion of Citizen Planner Core Series. Mailing Address: Michigan Citizen Planner Michigan State University Extension 219 E Paw Paw St. Suite 201 Paw Paw MI Fax: Take the Master Citizen Planner Exam. Access granted once MCP Application is received- you will be notified by angel@msu.edu within 3-5 days of receipt of application. You need a score of 70% or higher to pass the exam. Exam can be taken up to 3 times free of charge during 60-day period. Access to the exam lasts for 60 days from the initial date of access. Contact Client Services at (517) if there are problems with accessing the exam. 4. Complete a Capstone Project and submit Impact Statement via mail or fax to Citizen Planner before your 60 day time-period for completing the MCP process ends.

2 Master Citizen Planner Component Descriptions The following pages describe the various components required to earn the Master Citizen Planner (MCP) credential. Capstone Project Goal The primary goal of the capstone project is for Citizen Planner Program participants to apply their learning to benefit their community. This is the transformational education component of the program. The capstone project will be required for those wishing to earn the Master Citizen Planner (MCP) credential. Objectives To increase learning among participants through a real life situation where technical information learned in the classroom is applied. To benefit the community by having officials/residents promote and implement sound land use decision-making. To create measurable impacts and outcomes of the Citizen Planner Program in the community. Commitment The capstone project should generally be an activity that is related to the course material and benefits the city, village, township, or county in which the participant resides in some tangible way. A commitment of six to ten hours is recommended for each capstone project (including preparation, presentation, and follow-up). Every capstone project would include a written outcome/impact statement. Participants would have sixty days from the completion of the last core session to complete the project. However, participants are encouraged to finish their project prior to completion of the program. Only participants seeking the MCP credential would be required to complete the capstone project. Capstone Project Ideas Since Citizen Planner participants have different roles and experiences in land use planning and zoning in their community, a menu of options is needed for Citizen Planner participants. Any participant would be able to do any project on the list, no matter their status as an elected or appointed official. Suggested Menu: 1. Identify the most relevant Smart Growth Tenets for your community. Review the local unit of government s Master Plan or Zoning Ordinance. Document (written report or PowerPoint presentation or both) how the plan/ordinance supports or does not support the relevant tenets. Make recommendations as

3 to how the community could better support the relevant Smart Growth Tenets. Share your findings with the local unit of government by: Doing a presentation to the Planning Commission ideal Meeting with a staff person, planner, manager, planning commission chairperson, supervisor or mayor to share findings You must also share your findings with the local MSU Extension office and document the date of your presentation and or meeting. Estimated project duration: 6 8 hours 2. Evaluate the consistency/inconsistency between the community s master plan and zoning ordinance. Participants could pick one or several themes presented in the citizen Planner material to focus on (i.e. open space conservation, rural character, downtown development, traditional neighborhood design, etc.). Share your findings with the local unit of government by: Doing a presentation to the Planning Commission ideal Meeting with a staff person, planner, manager, planning commission chairperson, supervisor or mayor to share findings You must also share your findings with the local MSU Extension office and document the date of your presentation and or meeting. Estimated project duration: 6 8 hours 3. Volunteer (or be appointed) to a committee to conduct a special study or complete a plan (e.g. open space plan, recreation plan, transportation study, housing needs assessment, non-motorized trail system, etc.). The project must be approved by the local MSU Extension office. This requires a commitment beyond regular planning commission/zba meetings or elected official meetings. A written summary of the project and projected outcome would be required. Total project duration should be no less than 6 hours. 4. Conduct a community-wide survey on a land use issue. Estimated project duration: hours 5. Make a presentation to the Planning Commission, ZBA, Elected Officials, or other official body concerning key concepts you learned during the class and how they might be applied in your community. A written summary of the project and projected outcome would be required. Total project duration should be no less than 6 hours. 6. Become appointed as a planning commissioner or ZBA member in your community (within two months of last core module session; for first-time appointees only). Participants would be required to provide a written summary of how they plan to use the information they learned. 7. Volunteer to work with youth in classroom and/or 4-H Club settings using the Junior Citizen Planner Curriculum for 3 rd, 4 th or 5 th grades. Easy to use curriculum materials are available. An MSU Extension staff person may assist you in planning your lesson(s) and connecting you with a 4-H Club and/or

4 classroom. Present at least a one-hour lesson to a class or 4-H club. Each presentation will require preparation prior to the presentation (approx. onetwo hours), the presentation (at least one hour), written report with observations (one hour). Estimated project duration-six hours. Impact Statement The primary goal of the Impact Statement is for participants to communicate to Citizen Planner what kinds of benefits and impacts their Capstone Project has had on the community. This is the summary of the transformational education component of the program. The Impact Statement is required for those seeking to earn the Master Citizen Planner (MCP) credential Competency Examination Upon completion of the 7 core sessions and submission of the MCP application to Citizen Planner, you will be provided access (via ) to the MSU Angel website ( to complete an online exam. You will have 60 days from the approval of this application to successfully complete the exam with a score of 70% or higher. Upon successful completion of your exam, please print your final score and submit it to Citizen Planner when you send your Capstone Project and Impact Statement.

5 Master Citizen Planner APPLICATION For Office Use Only Approved by: Master Citizen Planner (MCP) is an optional incentive based credentialing program for planning officials. The MCP credential is a component of the Michigan State University Extension Citizen Planner program offered in Michigan. All participants seeking the Master Citizen Planner credential MUST complete this form and submit this top page to Citizen Planner, either by at cplanner@msu.edu, fax at or by mail at Michigan State University Extension, 219 E Paw Paw St., Suite 201, Paw Paw MI PARTICIPANT INFORMATION First Name: Last Name: Organization: Home Address: City: State: Zip: Daytime Phone: Residing County: (required for exam): CP Online Participant Classroom Participant in County CAPSTONE PROJECT Please indicate your selected Capstone Project (See Capstone Guide for full descriptions of examples.) Provide youth education through Jr. Citizen Planner Identify and present smart growth applications within your community Evaluate the consistency/inconsistency between community zoning and master plan Volunteer (or be appointed) to a committee to conduct a special study or plan Present to local government key concepts learned in class and potential applications in the community Conduct a community wide survey on a land use issue Become appointed on a planning commission or ZBA (first time appointees only) Local advisory team project (identified by county hosting the program) Other (describe): Location of the Project: Benefactor of the Project/Name of Organization: Project start date: Project end date:

6 Master Citizen Planner Capstone Project Impact Statement Upon completion of your capstone project, please complete and submit this impact statement to Citizen Planner to meet requirements for the Master Citizen Planner credential. Name: Today s Date: Title of Project: Location of the Project: Benefactor of the Project: Project start date: Project end date: Describe the methodology used for your capstone project and how you applied concepts from the Citizen Planner Program. Describe the outcome of the capstone project and its impact in your community. Submit by at cplanner@msu.edu, fax at or by mail at Michigan State University Extension, 219 E Paw Paw St., Suite 201, Paw Paw MI

MSU Precollege Scholarship Nomination Form (to be completed by an MSU Precollege Program Director)

MSU Precollege Scholarship Nomination Form (to be completed by an MSU Precollege Program Director) : Program Title: Director s Name: Nominee s Name: Nominee s Permanent Address: Last First Middle House