Dothan proclaims Black History Month, Career and Technical Education Month and Arbor Day; names employee of the month and debuts citizen-engagement app

The Dothan City Commission opened its February meeting with three proclamations: February 2025 was declared Black History Month, Career and Technical Education Month, and Arbor Day.

Black History Month: Mayor Mark Sliver read a proclamation recognizing February as Black History Month and thanked organizers and community partners. Anita Dawkins, representing the Black History Gala, spoke after the proclamation and thanked the commission for the recognition, saying the observance is "more than a month of celebration" and a "continuous acknowledgment of resilience" that should be honored beyond the month itself.

Career and Technical Education Month: School leaders and students joined the commission for the Career and Technical Education Month proclamation. Dothan City Schools Superintendent Dr. Dennis Coe, workforce coordinator Ryan Richards, and Dothan High School principal Dr. Keith Bland were present along with students who introduced themselves. Student Lillian Walding said she represents the health-science courses at Dayton Tech. School staff provided program statistics during remarks: the district reported 18 career-tech programs (four with dual enrollment), 832 career-tech students at the end of the fall term, 66 additional dual-enrollment students, 103 JROTC students for a total of 993 students enrolled in career-technical programs (reported as about 63% of grades 10-12). The school representatives said 313 credentials or certifications had been earned in the fall term and that 638 credentials had been earned the prior school year.

Arbor Day and city horticulture: The commission proclaimed February 2025 as Arbor Day and recognized city horticulturist Dan Williams for his work maintaining the city's trees. In remarks recorded during the meeting, city staff and commissioners described recent and planned tree plantings in parks and neighborhoods, work on a large live oak at Eastgate, planting of 10 palms at Waterworld, and a federal grant that will fund planting hundreds of trees in parks, schools and disadvantaged areas with no city match required. The commission announced an Arbor Day event at the Dothan Area Botanical Gardens on Feb. 20 at 10 a.m., including a tree planting, a free tree giveaway and a guided tree walk by forester Ed Lewis.

Employee of the month and other recognitions: The commission named Travis Faulk (neighborhood enhancement coordinator / building/code enforcement background per staff remarks) as February 2025 employee of the month. Staff described Faulk's long service and neighborhood work; colleagues and commissioners offered public praise during the meeting.

Citizen-engagement app: City staff announced a new citizen-engagement application to replace QAlert, saying the new app will allow residents to create accounts, submit and track service requests, use location services to report concerns, and opt into text or email alerts. Staff said the app is available through the city website under "Report a Concern." The transcript records the announcement and staff's encouragement to check the app, but it does not include a live demonstration in the excerpt provided.

Ending: The proclamations and recognitions occupied the communications portion of the meeting before the commission moved on to ordinance and resolution business.