It is my pleasure as Ways and Means Director to introduce to you
"The 2020 Clerk of the Year Nominees!"

The following Clerk of the Year nominees have been selected by the nominating committees to appear on the ballot.

City Clerk of the Year Nominees

Jane Cartwright - City of Howell 

Jane Cartwright has served in public life for over twenty-five years. Prior to her current role as the Howell City Clerk, a position she has held for fifteen years, Jane was the elected Township Clerk of Howell Township. In addition to her current City Clerk duties, Ms. Cartwright has also served as the HR Director since 2011. Nominated by the entire Howell City Council, Jane’s performance is described as “second to none.”

Ms. Cartwright is an active member of MAMC and IIMC. She has earned her CMC, MMC and MiPMC from these organizations. She has served in leadership roles in the Livingston County Clerks Association, including President of the Association in 2005, 2008, and 2009. Recognized in her region as a leader in the field, Jane has served on the Brighton City Clerk interview panel and regularly attends community events promoting voter registration. Jane recently participated in the Bureau of Elections Lean Process Improvement Focus Group to help create best practices for absentee ballot processing. She was also one of the original pilot communities for electronic pollbooks and before that, she was helping train and mentor other clerks when the Qualified Voter File was first introduced.

Ms. Cartwright is also active in her role as HR Director. She has been a member of the Society for Human Resource Management since 2011 and participates in her regional HR association.

Jane has modernized election administration in Howell, creating the City’s first permanent absent voter list, a list that has grown to over 800 voters. Jane also secured State grant funding to establish Howell’s first Absent Voter Count Board. With Ms. Cartwright’s leadership, ADA improvements in election administration have been realized. Jane has secured grant funding to improve physical access, including construction of new sidewalk to the polling places and to purchase new accessible voting booths.

Jane has simultaneously improved the Clerk’s Office and HR Department. Improvements under her leadership include electronic agenda item submission, converting the City’s payroll from a vendor system to in-house, and centralizing the filing and electronic storage of the City’s contracts.

Ms. Cartwright’s nomination is supported by her City Council, City Manager and County Clerk. Her city manager says about Jane, “She is a rare individual who is respected by election officials, coworkers, fellow municipal clerks, and the public alike.”

Michelle LaVoy - City of Monroe

Michelle J. LaVoy has over six years of municipal experience, beginning in 2014, upon her election as Clerk-Treasurer for the City of Monroe. She serves as a key member of the City’s administrative team for the completion of operational projects. 

Ms. LaVoy has modernized the functions of her office by moving to a paperless agenda system for the city council and pension board, which is now being implemented for other boards.   She has reorganized her department, including the elimination of separate Deputy Treasurer and Deputy Clerk positions, merging them into one chief deputy position. She has worked to improve customer service through expanded office hours, a reimagined website, and providing for convenient bill pay options for customers. 

Ms. LaVoy has worked with the Director of Communications to ensure there are regulation communications on the city’s social media platforms and other venues to bring awareness to election processes and rights and other services offered. She attends meetings outside city hall to help others see that the clerk is “not just someone who takes minutes and keeps files, but is an important part of city government.”

When describing how she has gone above and beyond, Ms. LaVoy indicates that she has taken an office mandated by the City Charter and elevated it by having an eye for ensuring the continuous improvement of service delivery to her constituents.  

Ms. LaVoy holds a Master of Public Administration and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science & Public Administration, is a board member for various community organizations including the Monroe Family YMCA, the Monroe Center for Healthy Aging, and the United Way of Monroe/Lenawee County. Among her list of skills include organizational strategy, non-profit board relations, budgeting, communication and attention to detail.

Melanie Ryska - City of Sterling Heights

Melanie’s career in municipal government began in 2002 as an Election Assistant for the City of Hamtramck.  Melanie accepted the appointment of City Clerk in 2005. She took a position as Deputy City Clerk in Grosse Pointe Woods in 2007.  In 2014, Melanie joined Wayne County as the Assistant Director of Elections, broadening her knowledge of the law and strengthening her professional network. In 2017 the City of Sterling Heights appointed Melanie to serve as their City Clerk.  Along with her duties as City Clerk, she also serves as a Lieutenant in the Hamtramck Police Reserves and has been a reserve since 2003.

Melanie received her CMC in 2009 and her MiPMC in 2014.  She is a member of IIMC and MAMC for which she serves on the Board of Directors as Chair of Education.  She also serves as Secretary of the Macomb County Clerks Association, Team Manager of the FC Union Soccer Club, Vice President of the St. Anne Athletic Board, and is a former President of the Association of Wayne County Clerks.  Melanie earned a psychology degree from the University of Michigan-Dearborn and expects to complete her Master’s Degree by 2022. 

Throughout her career, Melanie has been a champion for clerks across the State, oftentimes mentoring new clerks and encouraging association membership and education. She has been called upon to speak at various organizations such as the American Society for Public Administration and the Association of Wayne County Clerks, to share her experience, best practices, and provide legislative updates. 

In her current position as Clerk, she worked to streamline and automate the processing of more than 200 FOIA’s and more than 2,000 licenses annually. In 2017 she implemented new election equipment in the six weeks preceding the November local election, including revamping all election material for 45 precincts. Melanie has streamlined precinct AVCB, and receiving board procedures to promote efficiency and accuracy in election reporting. Melanie has worked with various ethnic communities in Sterling Heights to recruit election inspectors and focuses on hiring bi-lingual workers to assist voters. 

Most recently, Melanie implemented OnBase Agenda Management system as the first phase to modernizing the City’s record keeping and has begun a plan to expand OnBase to serve as the citywide content management system.  Her Clerk’s Office also earned the “Department of the Year” award from Sterling Heights. 

Melanie feels she is dedicated to public service and appreciates the support and encouragement of her professional mentors, colleagues, staff, and especially her family, which includes her husband, Jason, and three children, Landon, MaKenzie, and Reid.

Township Clerk of the Year

Penny Shults was nominated for Clerk of the Year by Village Council President Ken VanPortfliet.

Penny was elected Clerk of Orion Township in 2008 and is currently in her third term. However, her career with the Township began when she completed training with the Federal government and was hired by Orion Township in 1989 in the Assessing Department.

Penny’s impact can be seen in many aspects in her Township government in the areas of:  preserving 137 acre BS camp in the Township and purchasing a 38-acre parcel to develop recreational fields, community center, and amphitheater. She worked with Rebuild Michigan conducting energy efficiency audits and applied for grant funding to comply with alternative energy standards.  She worked to ensure that Orion Township had a complete census count in 2010 and appealed addresses with the Federal government that were scheduled to be removed, reinstating over 90%.  She applied and received grant funding to bring several polling places into compliance with ADA.

Penny has achieved her MiPMC with MAMC, MMC with IIMC, and Michigan Master Assessing Officer, State of Michigan. Penny has also served on the Oakland County Clerks Association as both Vice President and President, helped establish a record retention policy, start a mentorship program, enhance sponsorship opportunities, and institute accounting procedures for the Association.

Penny’s involvement in her community is especially active.  She is an Ambassador for the Orion Area Chamber of Commerce.  She has produced several public access government television programs and recently interviewed former SOS Ruth Johnson.  When the new community center was built she wrote a series of articles encouraging seniors to participate in programs and events.  Penny also serves on the Orion Township Senior Advisory Board, Community Block Grant Committee, Parks and Recreation Advisory Board, North Oakland Community Coalition, and currently serves in the Oakland County Jail Chaplain’s program.  She actively engages citizens to learn about their local government and the Clerk’s responsibilities, working to increase government transparency, citizen involvement, and voting opportunities.  Since taking office, she organized and promoted the annual ‘Take Our Children to Work Day’ and leads tours for scouting troops and home school groups encouraging them to get involved in local government.  She also conducts voter registration events at the local high school.

Penny says “I love the people and the community I represent and have always approached my responsibilities with the heart of a public servant.  I am grateful to be in the position that I’m in and I never want to take for granted what has been entrusted to me.  I believe it is important to give back to the community in every way possible.”  She is a firm believer that education is the key to success and when we help people in our circle of influence to succeed our community is stronger.”

Village Clerk of the Year Nominee

Angie Koon began her municipal career as a Records Clerk for the Kalkaska Police Department in 2001.  In 2008, she took on the roles of Accounts Payable Clerk, Administrative Assistant, and Deputy Clerk for the Village of Kalkaska, while still maintaining her duties for the Police Department. In 2010 Angie was sworn in as Village Clerk at which time she assumed the positions of Payroll Clerk, Utility Billing Supervisor, and Benefits Coordinator/Human Resources Director.

Village Council President Harley Wales nominated Angie and stated that she is an exemplary employee who shows respect to her community leaders and holds them in the highest regards. She takes her position seriously and to heart.

Angie states that with little time to prepare for the duties as clerk, her initial training was self-taught until attending Clerking 101.  Angie is an active member of the MAMC, many civic programs, and serves as the Vice President of the Parish Council of Catholic Women.   

Angie, states, that she takes pride not only in accomplishments as Clerk, but also in her ability to balance the numerous duties in which she is responsible for.

Deputy Clerk of the Year Nominees

Sue Hoff - City of Westland

Sue Hoff, deputy city clerk of the City of Westland, has over 18 years experience in the clerking profession. She has served as the deputy city clerk of Westland since 2015 and prior to that, she served the City of Livonia from 2002 to 2015. In the City of Livonia, Sue moved her way up the ranks from elections coordinator, deputy clerk, and finally to the appointed city clerk.

Sue is a member of MAMC, IIMC, and the Wayne County Clerks Association. In 2017, she earned her CMC certification.

In her many years of service, Sue has experienced three different voting systems, including the implementation of two of them, as well as implementation of the Electronic Poll Book. Sue has played an active role in creating election training materials and in the training of hundreds of election inspectors. Sue is always willing to share the materials she creates, as well as her knowledge of elections, with her fellow clerks in Wayne County.

In addition to her work in elections, Sue led the effort to digitize the City of Westland’s documents, which resulted in improvements in the FOIA process, as well as internal staff requests. Sue, upon her appointment in Westland, also revised and edited many of the City’s forms for licenses and permits.

Nominated by her City Clerk, Richard LeBlanc, he says this of Sue, “She respects and treats others as equals. This is an exceptionally admirable quality. Sue communicates honestly, is transparent and forthright, is entirely ethical, and works with me to verify all elements of our conduct are honest and trustworthy. She also asks permission to complete certain tasks that fall outside normal protocol or are outside our normal scope of work. This initiative brings our office to a significantly higher level.”

Sue states that her hope for her career is that she has served the cities of Livonia and Westland well and that they are more organized and serve the citizens better by her having worked there.

Brian Jackson - City of Lansing

Brian P. Jackson has served as deputy clerk for the City of Lansing since 2014. Prior to his service for the City of Lansing, Brian worked on several political campaigns and previously served as a congressional aide to Debbie Stabenow. Brian holds a bachelor’s degree in Political Economy from Michigan State University and a Master of Organization Leadership from Siena Heights University. Brian was nominated by his clerk, Chris Swope, for his outstanding contributions and leadership skills.

Since joining the Lansing City Clerk’s Office team, Brian has created an internship program in the office, where students have the opportunity to learn about elections, records management and City Council support. The success of that program has resulted in several interns returning to the office in other capacities. Another major initiative that Brian has provided leadership is the City’s extensive voter outreach and education program. Brian can regularly by found leading these events at churches, farmer’s markets, and Lansing Community College. These outreach events often feature Brian’s custom all ages “fun” ballot that he created to allow the community to practice voting using the tabulator.

Brian also has a background in media relations and has used these skills to engage the community regarding voting and voter education. In 2019 Brian coordinated a regional press conference to education to the public on no-reason absentee voting.

Brian is recognized by his boss as willing to go above and beyond in his duties. In 2016, Brian stepped in to run the City’s election inspector training program due to staff vacancies. He was also an integral part of the City’s implementation of Lasherfiche, a document management system.

Mr. Jackson is a member of MAMC and the Capital Area Municipal Clerk’s Association, as well as the Mid-Michigan Association of Records Managers and Administrators. He is a graduate of MAMC’s Institute and has his Michigan Professional Municipal Clerk certification. When not busy with all that he does to support the Lansing City Clerk’s Office, Brian can be found serving his local church, including regularly volunteering at the food bank to serve others.

Leanne Scott - City of Rochester Hills

Leanne Scott has served the City of Rochester Hills for 23 years with the past 13 being in the Clerk’s Office.

Leanne earned her CMMC and MMC from the International Institute of Municipal Clerks, her MiPMC from the Michigan Association of Municipal Clerks, and a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration with a concentration in Managements.

Leanne has applied and been accepted in the Leadership Oakland Class of 2020-2021.  Leadership Oakland strives to be the premier leadership and networking organization in Southeast Michigan by challenging their members to reach their full personal, professional, and public leadership potential.     

Leanne is very active supporting and contributing to the clerk profession both locally and at the state level. She served on the Oakland County Clerk’s Association Executive Board from 2015 through 2019 in all positions: Secretary, Treasurer, Vice President, President, and Immediate Past President.

She also serves on the Bureau of Elections’ Forms Committee, the Risk Limiting Audit (RLA) work groups, and the Absent Voter Ballot Processing – Lean Process Improvement Project. In 2018, she had the opportunity to travel to Denver, Colorado to observe a Risk Limiting Audit. Leaning on all that was learned in Colorado, the City of Rochester Hills was the first community in Michigan to conduct a Risk Limiting Audit pilot.

Participating in the AV Lean Process Improvement Project gave Leanne the opportunity to discuss and share best practices with the others in this process, which was extremely insightful. Having others tell her they implemented some of the procedures she shared was extremely gratifying.  She stated that she want to do more of that and has agreed to teach AVCB classes at the MAMC Summer Conference!

Nationally, Leanne has attended multiple Elections Assistance Commission (EAC) Summits in Washington, D.C. and IIMC conferences around the country, establishing relations with election officials and Clerks from all over.  

In addition to Leanne’s work in the Clerk’s Office, she also works closely with the Mayor and City Council members.  In addition to setting agendas, preparing minutes, and organizing educational/training events, she is responsible for putting together joint meetings between the City Council and other communities’ City Council. City Clerk Tina Barton states, “Leanne has played an integral part in working with the City Council building relationship among neighboring communities, and creating team-building opportunities. Fellow Clerks recognize her as a leading resource for questions pertaining to City Council operations.” 

Supporting causes that impact family and friends is a priority for Leanne. She has volunteered at Senior Olympics, Step Out and Serve, Scare Away Hunger 5, and Walk MS and is very passionate about the work she has done with the youth in her community.  She has worked with the AP Government teacher to recruit students to work our elections, conducting voter registration drives at the high schools, or working with the Government Professor at a local community college to bring in students to help stuff ballots for our bulk mailing. She also takes great pleasure in serving as the Adult Advisor to the 15-member Rochester Hills Government Youth Council, and more recently as administrative oversight to this group. Teaching high school students about local government, getting them involved at Council meetings, serving on numerous boards and committees, and giving back to their community through fundraising/charity events, has confirmed the potential in our youth to be the next generation of community leaders.

Leanne states “I have been blessed to serve in local government for 23 years; the past 13 within the Clerk’s Office.  I love my job, and the people I get to work with, including the hundreds we hire to work elections.” 

Amy Whipple - Township of Brownstown

Amy Whipple was nominated by the Brownstown Township Clerk, Brian Peters.

Amy Whipple was appointed Deputy Clerk in 2006.  Prior to her current position, Ms. Whipple, was the Clerk of Erie Township.

When Amy was appointed to Deputy Clerk of Brownstown Township, she was asked to get the elections department in order. Not only did she accomplish this, but she constantly works to improve and make advancements to enhance the election experience for all voters. She has worked with and mentored countless new clerks, deputy clerks, elections clerks and conducted election training for other clerks around the state.  Amy has developed and shared her own manuals, training materials, strategies, policies and procedures.  Her skill and commitment have been recognized and she has been invited to participate at the State level to document best practices and standard operating procedures for absent voter ballot processing in the State’s Lean Process Improvement Project.

Amy has maintained memberships in the IIMC, MAMC and Association of Wayne County Clerks.  As a part of these organizations, she has attended conferences, training seminars and networking events over the course of her career and worked with fellow members to coordinate election training and idea sharing events. Through her involvement in these organizations, she has achieved her MMC and CMC through the International Institute of Municipal Clerks, and her MiPMC certification through MAMC.

Clerk Brian Peters states that “Beyond her contributions to the Brownstown community, Amy consistently gives her time and efforts in support of other Clerks and election staff in the region, freely sharing her manuals and election materials, training other clerks and staff, assisting with training election inspectors in neighboring communities, and being willing to answer questions and talk through issues with her colleagues at the drop of a hat, at all hours of the day. She is highly respected by her peers.”

Peters goes on to explain that ”Since her appointment as Brownstown Deputy Clerk, Amy has molded the Clerk’s Office into a professional department, excelling in all they do, especially elections. Amy is known to her colleagues for her attention to detail, her outspokenness on making sure elections are administered the right way…. Over her years of service, clerks and election staff have come and gone in Brownstown, but there has never been a decline in the quality of work and professionalism in the office. This is directly attributable to the hard work and dedication of Amy Whipple.”  Amy has strived to make sure her community is accountable to the public by installing new software and public access applications, allowing the public to search documents, agenda, minutes, financial data, etc. 

Amy says “Most importantly, I have tried to do all of these things as part of a team; a team of employees in our office, a team of volunteers from our community, and a team of colleagues from around the State that share a passion for public service.  As much as I have worked to build our community, our public trust, and our integrity, I have also worked just as hard to do the same for those around me in the profession.”