CAO'office outlines new Access and Engagement officer role to coordinate ADA, training and workplace culture

The CAO's office presented a proposed Access and Engagement officer position Tuesday, describing a role that would sit in the chief administrative officer's office to coordinate ADA accessibility, workforce training and organization-wide engagement.

Hillary Angelusi, senior special projects administrator, said the work group that drafted the proposal included CAO staff, HR and other department representatives and described the position as centered on three pillars: culture, compliance and connections. "The purpose is to bridge culture, to create an environment where employees from diverse cultural backgrounds can effectively collaborate and understand each other," Angelusi said.

The proposal would make the new officer a central coordinator for ADA complaints and requests for reasonable modifications across LFUCG, complement existing HR training, and use data and surveys to monitor workplace climate. Angelusi noted the city is already partway through an ADA transition plan (phase 1 complete; phase 2 expected this winter) and said the new role would not replace HR but would coordinate policy and trainings across departments.

Council members generally responded positively and asked for additional detail about qualifications and implementation. Council member Brown said he supported the pivot of the vacant position toward a role focused on workplace culture and ADA implementation while cautioning that the officer should coordinate trainers rather than become the sole trainer. Council member Sheehan and Council member Ellinger highlighted the ADA implementation and compliance aspects, saying they welcomed a centralized coordinator to move transition-plan recommendations into action.

The CAO's office said it planned to submit the proposal through the usual agenda/blue-sheet process for council approval and then begin recruitment. Staff described an intent to fund kickoff training with outside partners and to retain HR as the primary executor of civil-service processes such as employee accommodations. No final ordinance or job posting was presented at the work session; council members asked staff to provide the proposed qualifications and pay grade as the item proceeds through the formal approval process.

The presentation includes three primary work areas: training coordination (civility, emotional intelligence, professional conduct), centralized ADA coordination (reasonable modifications and complaint handling) and data-driven measurement of workplace climate and engagement. The CAO's office said the role will report to the CAO to preserve neutrality in cross-department coordination and avoid overlapping enforcement responsibilities with HR.