AUSTIN, TX — City of Austin Animal Services Office (ASO) in collaboration with the Financial Services Department (FSD) are excited to announce the launch of a community survey aimed at gathering valuable feedback on animal services priorities. This survey is a key step in shaping ASO’s upcoming strategic plan and ensuring that animal services align with the needs and expectations of our community.

The City Auditor’s Office and the National Center for Animal Shelter Evaluations conducted reviews of ASO in 2023. Both reviews identified misaligned departmental goals as well as issues with stakeholder engagement and alignment. One of the City Auditor’s recommendations was for the Chief Animal Services Officer to work with stakeholders to develop, implement, and monitor a strategic plan.   

ASO, FSD, and third-party facilitator Dr. Larry Schooler have launched the assessment phase of the strategic planning process. Along with opening the community survey today, this phase includes:

• External partners and stakeholder interviews and listening session  

• Staff and volunteer listening sessions  

• Reviewing previous audits, documents, surveys, and reports  

• Analyzing and reviewing data 

• Identifying best practices from and benchmarking similar animal services organizations

“We are excited to work with the community, key stakeholders and the Animal Advisory Commission to create a strategic plan that best serves the community of Austin. This collaborative effort will produce a working plan,” said Stephanie Hayden-Howard, Assistant City Manager.  

The community survey and additional information about the planning process are available at publicinput.com/asoplan2024. The survey will be active from July 17 to August 14, 2024. 

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About Austin Animal Center 

Austin Animal Center is the municipal shelter for the City of Austin and unincorporated Travis County. In 2011, Austin City Council passed a resolution to increase the shelter’s live outcome rate to the national no-kill standard of 90%. In 2019, Council increased the mandated rate to 95%. Austin Animal Center has consistently been at or above this rate but has had to take measures to maintain this level in the past few years, including restricting intake due to declining adoptions.  

About Financial Services Department 

The Financial Services Department provides a host of services to support the financial management of the city. The Budget and Performance Team within FSD provides the annual budget, supports the creation of the citywide strategic plan, and provides process improvement and consulting services to City departments. 

About Dr. Larry Schooler 

Dr. Larry Schooler will serve as facilitator for the strategic planning process; he is the former founding manager of the City of Austin's public engagement division and facilitated meetings on this topic over his tenure as a City employee.  He is now an assistant professor of practice at the University of Texas Moody School of Communication.