Open Meetings Award

During the first agenda meeting of 2025, Police Jury Secretary Megan Ramos and Assistant Secretary Ashley Ezell were presented with an award for operating the new software they use to conduct meetings in the jury room.  

Megan and Ashley won the OpenMeeting Awards for Excellence from OpenMeeting Technologies Company for 2024 along with two other recipients, Virginia Beach Public Schools, and Dodge County Clerk’s Office in Wisconsin. Last year, the police jury made several digital upgrades in the courthouse, including the technology and software to operate the OpenMeeting software in the jury room. According to the company, the software is designed to streamline and improve the public’s experience during open meetings. It enables transparent, efficient, and engaging legislative meetings by enacting electronic roll calls and voting, request-to-speak queues, meeting displays, public comment timers, agenda management, and automatic minutes.

The company said on its website that it created the award to recognize customers who demonstrate hard work and commitment to running exceptional, innovative meetings for their community. “The Bossier Parish Police Jury has proven to be an outstanding example of local government leadership. They have gone above and beyond using the OpenMeeting system to run fantastic meetings and provide us with meaningful and innovative suggestions to make our system even more effective.’”

This is the first award of its kind for the Police Jury.