Citizens Academy Profile

Through a seven-week series, attendees of the Hennepin County Citizens Academy learn how county government works. The Citizens Academy features topics like winter road plowing, light rail transit and property tax assessment. Participants meet county leaders and learn about all the services the county provides. The series is free to the public, and we spoke with Dheenu Sivalingam to learn more about their experience so far.

Dheenu Sivalingam Elliot Park

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How did you hear about the Citizens Academy?

I used to live and work in the Duluth / Superior area, and about 3 years ago I moved to Minneapolis. When I lived up north, I had heard about programs that were put on by the sheriff’s office, or the police and fire department, where you could learn more about how they operate. I knew from that experience that things like that existed here, and found out about Hennepin County’s program.

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Why did you decide to participate?

I like the show How It’s Made. I am fascinated to learn about how things work, and when I moved here, I thought, “New city, new beginning.” I don’t know how things are done here, and this could be really interesting. This was an opportunity for me as a new citizen who wanted to be involved in the community. I thought I’d go to places I could get involved, and the Citizens Academy was a way I could get some exposure. I hoped this would provide more opportunities in the future as well for me to get involved with other programs in the county and in the community.

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What has your previous experience with Hennepin County been like? Does this help your understanding of how the organization functions?

The only thing I knew about the county system was that Hennepin County Medical Center (HCMC) existed, and thought it might be a County run hospital. Living in Elliot Park, HCMC has a large presence. Other than that, I really didn’t know how important the county was.

I now know that Hennepin has a $1.9 Billion budget, and for every dollar spent, 27 cents are spent on social services, which is a huge area. My knowledge has expanded vastly, and while I’m not an expert, I have a great idea about who I need to talk to about different services. It feels great to have the knowledge to navigate Hennepin County.

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What has been the most interesting session so far?

While it isn’t run by Hennepin County, the Hennepin County Medical Center was the most interesting session. It was exciting getting to know more about the hospital and its relationship with the County. It is close to my home, and I use their services, so I was really interested in that. I am fortunate not to need the services of Human Services, but to see the scale and see the impact it has on peoples’ lives was also very impactful.

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Which facility did you enjoy touring most?

I enjoyed touring the Hennepin Energy Recovery Center (HERC). I didn’t know we burned garbage to create energy so close to downtown. I have gone to Target Field to watch games, and have walked that area often, but I had no idea it existed and have never smelled garbage. We got to see the furnace, and the command center which monitored the capture of all the harmful gasses. The size of that facility was impressive.

It was also interesting learning how they integrated the HERC into Target Field Station and made that into a community space. They also heat the ground under sidewalks and do rainwater collection there. Very interesting use of technology and space.

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What are your bigger takeaways?

The size of the county is incredible. The scale of things going on is impressive. I am a private sector employee, and I was incredibly surprised with the scope of the work and the professionalism of everyone we’ve heard from so far.

The other thing that struck me was that we need to have all these agencies working for us in order to keep law and order, keep the streets clean, do recycling. Rather than taking those things for granted, I have an appreciation for it like I didn’t before. Just because you don’t see it happen doesn’t mean it doesn’t matter.

 

Dheenu Sivalingam resides in the Elliot Park neighborhood. The Hennepin County Citizens Academy is held twice yearly, in the spring and fall. For a summary of each session, see below or click here. To stay informed about the fall session, click here.

• Week 1: Your county government
• Week 2: Sustainable development and transit, economic development and environmental services
• Week 3: Health and medical services
• Week 4: Human services
• Week 5: Law enforcement and corrections
• Week 6: Emergency management, transportation and county fleet
• Week 7: County Attorney’s Office, 4th Judicial District Court, collaborations, volunteering and jobs