CCO press release - City of Bartlesville

 From: Kelli Williams, Chief Communications Officer City of Bartlesville Date: June 29, 2015 In an effort to enhance communication between local government and its citizens, the City of Bartlesville recently made a new addition to its staff. Kelli Williams has been tapped to serve as the city’s chief communications officer, City Manager Ed Gordon said Monday. “Our goal is to better communicate with the citizens of Bartlesville so they are informed and can facilitate their government,” Gordon said. “To help accomplish that, the City is launching an aggressive Communications Program, and Kelli Williams has been brought on board to implement and oversee that program.” The program includes a larger social media presence to help keep citizens informed, and a more interactive, intuitive website is currently under development. Williams will also focus on producing a newsletter and facilitating town hall-­‐style City Council meetings in each of the city’s five wards. She will also work with local media to provide information about City projects and programs, as well as other issues as they arise, Gordon said. Williams was most recently employed as the editor of the Bartlesville Examiner-­‐
Enterprise, a daily newspaper primarily serving Bartlesville and Washington County. She began her career with the newspaper in 2000 — covering the “city beat” and writing the popular column, “The Bottom Line.” She was named managing editor of the Pawhuska Journal-­‐Capital, the E-­‐E’s sister paper, in 2006, and returned to the E-­‐E as assistant managing editor in 2007. She was named editor in 2008. Williams was previously employed by the City of Bartlesville as a police officer, and by the Washington County Sheriff’s Office as a deputy. “In each of her career paths, as a police officer and as the editor of the local newspaper, Kelli Williams has advocated for the citizens of Bartlesville. She has built and carefully guarded her reputation as someone who tells the truth, as a woman of integrity,” Gordon said.