DAYTON — The City of Dayton is joining the National Civic League Hall of Fame in recognition of its police reform work and four, “All-America City,” awards, according to a news release.
The award honors municipalities demonstrating outstanding work in civic innovation, inclusion, and collaboration.
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The league is recognizing Dayton for community engagement surrounding the police reform initiative that was launched in mid-2020 and developed more than 140 recommendations identified by five working groups co-chaired and comprised of over 100 community volunteers and members of the Dayton Police Department, the release said.
“We are happy to welcome Dayton into the Hall of Fame,” said Doug Linkhart, National Civic League president. “The recent police reform initiative shows that the community is still embodying the ideals of an All-American City and is committed to the practice of civic engagement.”
A Dayton City Commission work session will be held today at 4 p.m. to update the progress of the implementation efforts, the city said.
“By utilizing several diverse community voices and partners, we re-imagined what community engagement is policing looks like,” said Dayton Mayor Jeffrey Mims, Jr. “There is still more work to do, but this process has already resulted in positive outcomes. I am please that our effort has been recognized with national praise.”
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Dayton has earned the All-America City designation four previous times: 2017, 1991, 1978, and 1951, the release said.