Brownsville city manager earns international accreditation

Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

Brownsville City Manager Helen Ramirez has been designated a “credentialed manager” by the International City/County Management Association, or IMCA.

The designation goes to those who have “significant experience as senior management executive in local government; have earned a degree, preferable in public administration or a related field; and demonstrated a commitment to high standards of integrity and to lifelong learning and professional development,” according to ICMA.

Ramirez, who was named city manager in January 2023, was already among 1,300 local government management professionals credentialed through ICMA’s Voluntary Credentialing Program. ICMA says its mission involves “advancing professional local government through leadership, management, innovation and ethics,” while identifying “leading practices to address the needs of local governments and professionals serving communities globally.”

Brownsville Mayor John Cowen Jr. said Ramirez attaining the credential “underscores her commitment to excellence in public service and her ability to effectively manage and lead.”

“Her ongoing initiatives and the quality of work she oversees for Brownsville continue to set a benchmark in municipal management,” he said.

Ramirez has more than 20 years experience in municipal government, urban planning and economic development, including 10 years of private-sector experience in engineering, urban planning and international business development. She was hired by the city as deputy city manager in 2019 and also simultaneously served briefly as head of the Greater Brownsville Incentives Corporation.

Ramirez earned a bachelor’s of science in city and regional planning from California Polytechnic State University, holds certification by the American Institute of Certified Planners, and is a founding member of the Texas City Manager Leadership Circle.

She is Brownsville’s first female city manager.

“I would like to thank the ICMA for positively advancing the local government profession, and this credential is not only a recognition of my professional journey in public service, but it reflects the hard work and dedication of our organization, made up of over 1,200 (city) employees,” she said.

Ramirez said her office strives on a daily basis to improve its practices and “raise the bar for our community.”

“I am grateful for the opportunity to learn from and contribute to the ICMA network of professionals who are equally dedicated to ethical public service and governance.”