Throughout his career in municipal and state government, Jerry McCoy of Phoenix, Arizona, has leveraged his strategic public relations and communications skills to strengthen communities. He received his undergraduate degree in journalism and served as a reporter for several years prior to his career in communications and marketing. He entered public service in 1991 as a public information officer for the City of Glendale, which soon promoted him as its communications manager.
In this position, Jerry McCoy created the public relations campaign “It's Our Town, Please Slow Down!” which successfully reduced the number of speeding citations issued by 65 percent. The campaign received the Allstate National Safety Leadership Award. He also created a number of signature festivals including Glendale Glitters, which earned the Governor's Tourism Award for Best Special Event in Arizona.
Later, as communications administrator, Jerry McCoy created and implemented City Safe, an outreach initiative that connected almost 15,000 people to local safety programs. He went on to become deputy communications director, in which position he created an publicity campaign that kept a $2 million economic driver in the area. Mr. McCoy left Glendale in 2014 as its communications director, the top communications official in the city.
He went on to serve for nearly three years as chief of staff for the City of Surprise, where Mr. McCoy developed and executed constituent outreach and communication programs and initiatives that helped the city's mayor earn the highest approval rating among all area elected officials. He now serves as community relations project manager for the Arizona Department of Transportation, where he serves as a liaison between the state’s second-largest agency with government, business and community leaders and other stakeholders.
