WASHINGTON, DC--(Marketwire - Jul 7, 2011) - GOVERNING has appointed former Kansas City, Missouri Mayor, Dr. Mark Funkhouser, as Director of the GOVERNING Institute, a new initiative focused on state and local government performance, innovation, leadership and citizen engagement.

Funkhouser served as mayor of Kansas City, Missouri from 2007 to 2011. Prior to being elected mayor, Funkhouser was City Auditor of Kansas City for eighteen years and is an internationally recognized auditing expert, author and teacher in public administration and its fiscal disciplines.

Drawing on GOVERNING's twenty-five years of experience chronicling what works in the states and localities, the Institute aims to advance better government through research, decision support and executive education to help public sector leaders govern more effectively.

"Dr. Funkhouser is a visionary leader who brings a deep professional and personal commitment to improving government performance, fostering public leadership and reinvigorating the relationship between citizens and their government through the work of the Institute," says Fred Kuhn, Publisher of GOVERNING magazine. "For over two decades, senior public officials have turned to GOVERNING for the trusted information they can't find anywhere else. The creation of the Institute under Funkhouser's leadership builds on that legacy and extends our commitment to improving government by serving those who serve."

"Healthy, vibrant communities are the result of governments and citizens working together," says Funkhouser. "It is time to change the conversation back to co-producing the results Americans want and need. It's no time to fear the future. Instead, we need to get on with the hard work of barn-raising in our time. This is the time. The Institute is the place."

Funkhouser received his BA from Thiel College, a Masters in Social Work from West Virginia University, a Masters in Business Administration from Tennessee State University and a Ph.D. in Public Administration and Sociology from the University of Missouri in Kansas City.

Funkhouser is an internationally recognized expert in government efficiency and effectiveness who has received numerous awards in the fields of performance auditing and public administration, including the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Association of Local Government Auditors and the UMKC Bloch School of Business & Public Administration Alumni Achievement Award. GOVERNING recognized Funkhouser as one of its Public Officials of the Year in 2003.

During his term as mayor, Funkhouser was active in the U.S. Conference of Mayors. Among other affiliations, he is a long-time member of the American Society for Public Administration and a Life Member of the Association of Local Government Auditors.

In the course of his career, he has written extensively about government performance and accountability and spoken at seminars and workshops throughout the world. His book, Honest, Competent Government: the Promise of Performance Auditing, was published in 2009 and earlier this year, Performance Auditing: Contributing to Accountability in Democratic Government, published in the United Kingdom, included a chapter contributed by Funkhouser.

Funkhouser works out of the GOVERNING offices in Washington, DC. His wife of 32 years, Gloria Squitiro, his daughter, Tara, and soon-to-be son-in-law, Charles, have moved to the DC area with him.

ABOUT GOVERNING

Since 1987, GOVERNING has provided state and local leaders with the non-partisan information, insight and intelligence needed to govern effectively. As a catalyst for innovation, GOVERNING is dedicated to covering the politics, policies and programs essential to this audience. See www.governing.com.

GOVERNING is a division of e.Republic, a national publishing, event and research company focused on smart media for public sector innovation. See www.erepublic.com.