Editor's Note: This article has been updated to correct the spelling of Neighborhood Services Coordinator Taitelyn Morris-Wise's name.
College Station’s Citizens University celebrated its 30th graduating class on April 20, marking 30 years of educating the public on local government.
At a glance
Citizens University is a program run by the city of College Station to allow residents to learn and understand what the local government does and how it works. Residents spend time with a variety of agencies connected to local government to learn the fundamentals of being a government employee. The city said the benefits of Citizens University include:
Civic engagementNetworking opportunitiesA closer look
University and Community Relations Manager Barbara Moore told Community Impact the significant anniversary is a sign of the growth of the community and their interest in the program, along with preventing information gaps and making the course available to the public about how local government works.
“In the past, [the city] tried to offer ways through different media formats, but they said to themselves, ‘why don’t we just let people see what we do directly?’ And that’s the magic of how it started,” she said.
A goal with Citizens University is focusing on the outward facing departments within the city. Neighborhood Services Coordinator Taitelyn Morris-Wise said being able to show people various sectors of the city helps them grasp how much it takes to run a city from top to bottom, especially in regards to tourism that can feel understated by the community.
“A lot of people don’t see the tourism impact in the work [the businesses] do, they might just see more traffic,” Morris-Wise said. “They don’t see the heads in beds or the work and effort that the tourism folks are doing to bring those events to town to help build up our businesses. Heads in beds also means mouths to feed, which means more for our restaurants, convenience stores, even our Northgate businesses.”
The breakdown
Citizens University’s impact on local government can be felt within the city council, with at least two of the seven members having participated in the program since 2015, according to Morris-Wise.
Since 2020, 15% of the 130 people serving on council appointed board, committee or commission have participated the program. Other participants include:
Sitting member of the Texas House of RepresentativesCity employeesOpening the doors
The program has successfully gained more participants throughout the years, and Morris-Wise said that it has been nice to see people who are interested in seeking public office attend the program and learn more about the city they’re seeking to represent.
“It shows that they’re trying to get that baseline knowledge before they step into a role,” she said.
She also said this is a great way to open the doors for anyone in College Station who is interested in learning more about the city as an entity.
“This is the stuff you see every day and interact with the most, whether you know it or you don't,” Morris-Wise said. “This opens those doors and it shows those people how you interact with them and be a better steward of the community that you live in. This is all of the work that goes into your community so it can be well-run and vibrant.”
Learn more
The 2026 Citizens University session wrapped up in April and applications for the 2027 class will be opening later in the year. Those who are applying must live in College Station to participate, come to at least nine of the 13 meetings and not be actively seeking political office.
- Celebrating 30 years
- 1101 Texas Ave. College, Station
