My name is Vicki Scaman, and I am asking for your vote for village clerk on April 4. We need a strong village clerk with the know-how to protect the voice of the community and serve residents. I am that person, with the skills, experience and relationships to improve transparency, customer service and community outreach at village hall.
I am a graduate of OPRF High School. I raised my family here and have worked in the community for the last 20 years, first as a school teacher, then in the restaurant business, later as the executive director of a local nonprofit, and now as the program coordinator for a grant through the Department of Human Services at Oak Park Township.
At the township, I work with every governmental body in Oak Park and River Forest to facilitate shared decision making for positive youth development. I have served on the Oak Park Liquor Control Review Board for the last six years, four as chair. I have a long history of volunteering on committees and working with community-based organizations with a focus on improving access to services for all residents on a range of topics from mental health resources to arts and education.
I am action oriented through data-driven decision making. I served as the co-chair of the education committee with the West Garfield Park Community Stakeholders Coalition to reduce youth drug and alcohol use and am trained in restorative justice. I have worked to understand the needs of the community as part of my work. My values are deeply rooted in community involvement as a way of moving through life.
If elected, I would work to identify more effective modes of communication to provide timely, relevant and needed information on a regular basis. I would be accessible to the community to hear concerns and share resources available to residents. I would work to develop processes that allow for community input before important decisions are made by the board; particularly board agenda items that could potentially affect the quality of life for residents or change the culture of the community.
I believe strongly that people solve community problems and would work to empower community leadership opportunities. I would work to see our commissions valued in that process. I would actively recruit members of our community from cultural groups that are underrepresented on commissions.
We need a strong village clerk with the know-how to protect the voice of the community and serve residents. I am the person to fill that role. Please vote for Vicki Scaman for Oak Park village clerk on April 4.
