The Lynn Spruill Effect
When I was getting ready to move to Mississippi from
Atlanta this time last year, the first person I talked to in Starkville - apart from SDN Publisher
Don Norman - was a property owner who would soon be my landlord.
A few months later, she would also be my mayor.
As busy as Lynn Spruill had to have been during that time, I doubt she remembers the conversation.
But to me, the kindness and accessibility I was immediately met with were things I needed coming from the bustle of a big city and working in national news. The uncertainty of voluntarily leaving a safe job at The Weather Channel to come to a small town community newspaper felt like a huge gamble, and I admit I was terrified I would be viewed as an outsider with nothing to contribute.
I came here to be a leader, not only at the newspaper, but in the community, and few people set a better example for me to learn from than our current mayor.
When watching Spruill give her first State of the City Address as mayor at Rotary on Monday, for some reason it made me remember that first phone call.
It still feels like something more than serendipity that made her phone ring with me on the other end, because it could have been anyone else in the office … I just happened to dial the boss.
I recalled her name from the research I did on the upcoming mayoral election before taking over as editor at the SDN and I remember asking “you're running for mayor, aren't you?”
She responded with a chuckle saying she was the same Lynn Spruill of political headlines, but there was a great deal of humility in her downplayed explanation of her political aspirations - another trait I've come to admire.
Little did I know at the time, though, just how much I would soon view her as a marquee example of what it means to be an ambassador for your community.
She will likely tell you the growth and success of the city can be attributed in some part to what she calls “The Dak Effect” - with the success of Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott raising the profile of Starkville - but I think the elbow grease Spruill, and leaders before her, have put in on a daily basis in City Hall deserves some praise.
In only six months, Spruill has embraced millennials in Starkville - a demographic that I'm included in - while continuing to listen to every voice, big and small, in the community. She is a political heavy-hitter with the business sense and legal know-how to go toe-totoe with anyone and pulls no punches in making known how she feels on certain subjects.
Take some time to scroll her Twitter feed if you don't believe me. On any given day, at any hour, you will find her responding to questions and quarterbacking other local leaders to help address even the smallest concerns. In a country where our president has weaponized social media, it is refreshing to see an elected official making productive use of the platform as a tool for discourse.
I have wanted to bring the newspaper into the 21st Century since my first day as editor to better connect us with our ever-changing audience. Spruill is doing the same thing in City Hall.
As she said during her speech on Monday, she is making a noticeable effort to post all city documents online. Every Board of Aldermen meeting and work session is streamed live on Facebook (even though they sometimes compete and overlap with the SDN).
I acknowledge some issues - such as the alcohol ordinance, the proposed industrial park and potential annexation - have been divisive and likely would still be, regardless of who pushed it. But I commend Mayor Spruill's foresight and willingness to listen - even to a hayseed from west Alabama like me.
In her first six months, Spruill has also spoken out in favor of downtown murals and a bollard plan to boost special events in the city, which also warrants some praise. Starkville is culturally rich and has a vibrant social scene, which are aspects of the community that should be further cultivated and promoted.
I believe we're on the right track to do the aforementioned with our current leadership.
What I see in Spruill's leadership is an attitude I have been promoting at the newspaper since day one - attraction over expectation.
The world is too competitive of a place to sit back and expect the masses to flock to your doorstep. Whether it be a newspaper or city government, a proactive approach is the only way to stand out in the sea of static.
A proactive attitude is what I will continue to provide at the Starkville Daily News and is something I hope continues in City Hall with Lynn Spruill at the helm.
Ryan Phillips is the executive editor of the Starkville Daily News and the Daily Times Leader. The views expressed in this column are his and do not necessarily reflect the views of the newspapers or their staffs.