ALBEMARLE — The city of Albemarle was recently named as the recipient of three 2024 Region of Excellence Awards given by the Centralina Regional Council.
Albemarle received an award for its strategic plan in the category of Local Government Innovation, while retired City Manager Michael Ferris was honored with the James D. Prosser Excellence in Government Leadership Award.
In the category of Cross-Community Collaboration, the city’s Parks and Recreation Department was recognized for its partnership with Stanly County Schools to offer the Project Next Step education program.
Presented annually, the awards — selected by an independent panel of judges — recognize individuals, communities, and organizations for their achievements in support of Centralina’s mission to expand opportunity and improve quality of life in Stanly, Anson, Cabarrus, Gaston, Lincoln, Iredell, Mecklenburg, Rowan, and Union counties.
Albemarle’s Local Government Innovation Award is given to local governments that make optimum use of resources while being innovative and bringing value to communities.
The award honored the city’s strategic plan, which was created to increase resident satisfaction, enhance internal teamwork, and realign city staff and elected officials by assessing the need for a way to tie organizational and financial planning processes together.
Meanwhile, the James D. Prosser Excellence in Government Leadership Award is designed to honor an individual who exhibits leadership and high ethical standards in a government setting.
“Michael Ferris has exemplified the qualities of excellence throughout his nearly 30 years of service,” the City of Albemarle wrote in a press release.
The city’s statement continued: “Mr. Ferris’s career is a testament to creative problem-solving, visionary leadership and a deep commitment to ethical standards that has left a lasting impact on both the community and the organization he led. Beginning his tenure with Albemarle in 1997 as Assistant City Manager and serving as City Manager from 2014 until his retirement in February 2024, Mr. Ferris played a pivotal role in transforming the city from a former textile mill town into a vibrant and modern community.”
Lastly, the Cross-Community Collaboration Award is annually given to a city that demonstrates the value of partnerships across communities to achieve better outcomes for its community.
In Albemarle’s case, the award pertains to the city’s Project Next Step summer program, which is initiated to improve students’ access to learning strategies and engage local students in interactive enrichment opportunities with Stanly County Community College.
Through an integration of academic enrichment with real-world experiences, the program was able to prepare Albemarle Middle School students for future academic success.
Established in 1968, Centralina Regional Council is a public organization — one of 16 regional councils in North Carolina enabled by the General Assembly — that serves its mission to lead regional collaboration and spark local action; it is governed by a Board of Delegates of local government members.
Additional information about the council is available online at centralina.org.