Q&A with Ariah Leary, Evansville’s community affairs and special projects director
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On June 17, Ariah Leary began her new role as community affairs and special projects director for the city of Evansville.
In a news release, Mayor Stephanie Terry said Leary’s “enthusiasm and energy for the work we are doing, coupled with her passion for serving the Evansville community, made her the ideal candidate for the kinds of grassroots community engagement that will be critical in this position. I can’t wait for people to see what she brings to our team and the city of Evansville.”
Leary spoke with Inside INdiana Business about the experience she brings to the role and her goals for the newly created position.
Tell me about your background.
I graduated from Indiana State University and majored in public health and massage therapy. I came back home and knew I wanted to take that public health route and work with my community, especially being someone who was raised by their community and had to rely on community resources.
I ended up working for the YMCA as the director of 21st Century programs, doing some grant writing, helping a few schools plan family engagement events, helping families get resources, things like that. From there, I got very involved in my community, meeting new people, networking. And then I moved on to community affairs director at the mayor’s office.
Explain your responsibilities as community affairs and special projects director.
No one has had this position before, so I get to mold it into what I’m good at and where my talents are best served. Right now, I am serving on a few of the mayor’s roundtables. She has an interfaith council and education roundtable, and I get to be her voice in those meetings.
I’m also in the special projects area. Right now, the big project I’ve been working on since I’ve been here is the Mayor’s Youth Advisory Council. We’re accepting 20 students to help address issues they see are important and work alongside the mayor and give them a foundation in local government.
The second big project is 812 Day, which is a community-wide celebration for the 812 area code. We’re going to be starting a block-by-block cleanup initiative, and I’ve been able to take charge of that and getting all our department heads together and seeing what we can do to be boots on the ground in neighborhoods.
Why did the city of Evansville create this position?
There was no one pushing city initiatives within the mayor’s office as far as specific events and things like that. It was a shared duty among the people who were working in the office. There was no clear line on, “Whose responsibility is this?”
In our office, we have a communications director, deputy mayor, city attorney and administrative assistant. No one had that role of event planning, community affairs and relationship building. So that networking component now belongs to me.
How is this role being funded?
My position is funded through the general city fund, same as all city employees.
How will your background help you in this position?
I’m someone who feels like they have a lot of responsibility to their community. Growing up on a lot of different youth programs and community services, having a single mom, relying on other people to fill that educational and emotional gap caused by poverty. I know the resources that my city has given to me, and I feel a responsibility to give that back and inspire other people to do the same, to have that citizen responsibility.
What challenges have you faced so far in this role?
Because no one else has had this role before me, there’s no blueprint. I have to ask a lot of questions. I’m grateful to have a good team who’s there to back me up. But having to mold this role myself has been a little bit difficult to see where I fit and what’s needed in this administration.
What are your goals in this position?
I want to be an influence on young professionals in the area and be able to help in that space. I see myself growing in this position. I want to learn as much as I can from this opportunity to be in the mayor’s office at this young age.
I see myself being able to be an influence probably more on social media and other spaces in Evansville, inviting young people into spaces where they feel like they don’t belong, whether that’s city council meetings or neighborhood association meetings.
You don’t see a lot of young people in those spaces, but they’re just as much a piece of the city as someone who’s 40 plus. They have just as much say in the things that they want to be here. So inviting people into those spaces and making them feel comfortable.
Why did you want to take on the role of community affairs and special projects director?
A personal goal I have is to be a community resource to people, to young professionals in the area. When I came back from college, I had a hard time transitioning and finding a career and something that I felt was meaningful. I’ve been looking for positions to put me in a spot where I can bring others up with me. When I’m in these spaces, I know what jobs and career paths are available, and I can pass down knowledge.
I have a professional goal of being a community servant in the best way I can and taking up as much space as I can. I know a lot of young people feel there aren’t a lot of spaces for that early 20s demographic in Evansville, and they want to leave. I like living here. I wish there was more of that early 20s theme, but I want to show people there is space for us here. Exciting things are going on, and it’s a great place to live.