ALLENTOWN, Pa. — A familiar face in Allentown’s administration will soon take on a new role, focused on making employees and residents “feel like they are a part of what we're doing as a city,” Mayor Matt Tuerk said.
Lucinda Wright, who has been Allentown’s special events manager for the past four years, is set to become the city’s first equity and inclusion coordinator on May 1.
- Allentown Special Events Manager Lucinda Wright on Wednesday was chosen as the city's equity and inclusion coordinator
- Fifty-five people applied for the job, but Wright was the "clear" choice, Mayor Matt Tuerk said
- Wright was born and raised in Allentown and attended both Allen and Dieruff high schools
Wright will be tasked with making sure city departments are “fostering an inclusive work environment” and serving residents in a “fair and equitable” way.
She will also work with local businesses and nonprofits to help them implement initiatives to promote diversity, equity and inclusion, Tuerk said.
“We heard overwhelmingly that … parts of the city felt like they were left out when it came to the delivery of services. Groups felt like they didn't have a seat at the table.”Allentown Mayor Matt Tuerk
Allentown is an “increasingly diverse” city, so its administration’s response “to the needs of a changing city requires that we be intentional in our efforts,” the mayor said.
The position was created after it became “abundantly clear to us that we have to work to deliver city services in a more equitable fashion,” Tuerk said.
Funding for the $77,000-a-year job was approved as part of the city’s budgeting process for 2023.
“We heard overwhelmingly that … parts of the city felt like they were left out when it came to the delivery of services,” Turek said. “Groups felt like they didn't have a seat at the table.”
A product of Allentown
Wright was born and raised in Allentown and attended both Allen and Dieruff High schools. She “came up through the ranks” of city administration after starting as a clerk and working her way up to special events manager, Tuerk said.
“She really gets the city,” he said. “She lives and breathes the city of Allentown.”
As a special events manager, Wright “worked across departmental boundaries and got to know how the city functions,” Tuerk said. She also worked to make city events more inclusive, he said.
“We've really focused those efforts on not just having fun, but having fun in the most inclusive way possible,” Tuerk said.
Wright has shown “a level of courage” by trying “to do things a little bit differently” with the city’s events, he said.
'Pretty clear that she was the choice'
Allentown holds several large events each year for Earth Day, the Fourth of July, Halloween and the winter holiday season. The city added Juneteenth to its special-events schedule in 2021, and the celebration has expanded to multiple days this year.
The city’s 2023 Juneteenth celebration, scheduled for June 16-19, will feature Black-owned businesses and food vendors, as well as basketball, football, aquatics, fireworks and other entertainment.
Fifty-five people applied to be Allentown’s first equity and inclusion coordinator, and administration officials selected several to whom they wanted to speak about the role, Tuerk said.
"But when Lucinda came through, it was pretty clear that she was the choice.”Allentown Mayor Matt Turek
“But when Lucinda came through, it was pretty clear that she was the choice,” the mayor said.
Allentown now is looking to hire a special events manager.
The hiring team wants a “creative” person who has “energy and a passion for bringing our community together through events,” Tuerk said.
Wright will continue working as special events manager through the end of April to make sure the city’s upcoming events are successful, the mayor said.
