Michigan Citizen Planner

• Michigan Citizen Planner Video: Impact Testimonial

Who We Are
The Michigan State University Michigan Citizen Planner program was developed to address the basic, ongoing training needs of citizens appointed to serve on local land use planning bodies. We cultivate global thinkers who skillfully manage development patterns in Michigan and nationally to ensure that our communities and regions are great places to live, yet competitive in the new economy. Visit the Michigan Citizen Planner website at www.citizenplanner.msu.edu.

Our Vision
The Michigan Citizen Planner program will be recognized in Michigan, the Great Lakes region and nationally as the premier planning official credentialing program through innovative teaching, creative and accessible delivery, and quality continuing education. The product suite will engage and empower youth and adults to help shape the built and natural landscape for generations to come.

Education Where It Counts
At any given time, Michigan Citizen Planner educates the right people, at the right place, at the right time. Its product suite includes five distinct programs:

Michigan Citizen Planner
The seven session classroom-based course is the state's premiere land use training and certificate program. The program promotes excellence in land use decision making and fosters a new generation of leaders equipped to understand the consequences and impact of land use choices. Go to www.citizenplanner.msu.edu/classroom.html to learn more.

Citizen Planner Online
Our online training option is a convenient way for volunteer community leaders to obtain the latest technical knowledge and information needed to perform their duties more effectively and responsibly. The program consists of seven modules each containing a set of self-paced, independent learning units, presenting the core elements associated with being a planning official. Each module takes approximately five hours to complete (units take about one hour). Visit Citizen Planner Online at www.citizenplanner.msu.edu/online.html.

Master Citizen Planner
The Master Citizen Planner designation is recognized as the standard of excellence among planning officials and community leaders. Offered statewide, it is an advanced credentialing program that encourages continuing education in land use and involves completing a basic course, passing an exam, developing a capstone project and meeting ongoing continuing education requirements. Go to www.citizenplanner.msu.edu/mcp.html for more information.

Junior Citizen Planner Program
Created to help youth understand the connection between civics, the environment, and their community, Junior Citizen Planner is a joint venture between Citizen Planner and 4-H Youth Development. It uses fun and creative teaching strategies and learning methods to help young people grow and develop into involved citizens who understand the importance of wise land use. See further detail at http://web1.msue.msu.edu/cplanner/jcp/jcp.htm. 

American Citizen Planner
This new initiative builds on MSU's national leadership role envisioned under the Land Policy Institute. We're using our extensive experience in adult education, our award-winning approaches to online learning, and our national network of university experts to create American Citizen Planner, the first-of-its-kind planning training program. This approach consists of three main paths: the Basics of Planning, the Citizen Planner Advocate and the Certified Citizen Planner.
www.americancitizenplanner.com

Conferences, Workshops & Specialized Training

Leadership Academy
A weekend event, the Leadership Academy provides hands-on leadership development for planning and zoning chairs. Never before has the unique combination of leadership training, skill development, and peer mentoring been offered exclusively for local planning and zoning board chairs in a condensed weekend format. Find out more at www.citizenplanner.msu.edu/leadershipacademy.html. 

Advanced Academy
Designed to provide a continuing education opportunity for alumni of the Michigan Citizen Planner program, the Advanced Academy, a two-day workshop, is offered to anyone who has enrolled in the Michigan Citizen Planner program (one or more sessions). The training provides advanced skills in zoning, site plan review, and important court and legislative decisions, as well as an innovative development bus tour. Visit www.citizenplanner.msu.edu/advancedacademy.html for an overview.

Smart Growth Readiness Assessment
The Smart Growth Readiness Assessment is a set of online assessments for scoring how well a community is prepared to develop according to Smart Growth principles. Built around the ten tenets of Smart Growth, it provides communities with a baseline score and can be used to measure progress. Related facilitated community workshops are available upon request. Take a closer look at the assessment tool at www.landpolicy.msu.edu/sgrat.

Train the Trainer
A one-day workshop, Train the Trainer is by invitation only and offered to practitioners, Extension Educators, and other MSU employees who have expressed an interest in being a Citizen Planner instructor.