Lincoln’s city clerk, Heather Hillegeist, was recognized by the Lincoln City Council and Mayor Travis Schwerdtfager for her recent accomplishments as a city clerk. In October of last year Hillegeist became one of only 30 city clerks state-wide who have earned a Master Municipal Clerk designation. The designation took eight years of study, state-wide participation and hard work to complete.
In February 2023, Hillegeist will celebrate her 23rd year in the City Clerk’s office. Eight of those years were spent as an office clerk, followed by five years as Deputy Clerk. She was named Lincoln City Clerk in 2015 following the retirement of Rose Gourley.
Heather has not only grown and developed her own skills in working on behalf of the City, she has become so accomplished she now teaches other city clerks and helps with their questions in new situations that may arise.
City clerks are an integral part of local governments in cities and towns of any size. While the work a city clerk does may vary depending on the size of their municipality and the way their local government is organized, much of the work they do keeps their local government operating.
Among the many varied duties of the clerk is recording data; transcribing and proofreading documents; filing, storing and maintaining records; preparation of official reports, legal documents and financial records; and ensuring public access to public records. In a city the size of Lincoln the clerk is also responsible for budgeting, forecasting, and accounting procedures; ensuring the required documents are created and presented to the city council and mayor for approval; payroll for city employees; working with contractors on projects outside the realm of city employees; the city’s bidding processes; supervision of employees in the clerk’s office and other duties.
