LAWTON – Lawton’s Geographic Information Systems supervisor, Judy Franco, was recently named as the city’s director of information technology.
Franco, who began working for the city as a programmer/analyst II in 1999, has served the city for 23 years, according to a news release from City Hall. In 2010, she accepted a position as an analyst on the GIS team.
Franco was promoted to GIS supervisor in 2020 and held that title until she became the director of information technology earlier this month.
As the information technology director, Franco will manage the department and oversee operations within the IT support services team. She will also oversee the operations and GIS teams, as well as the application development division.
“I am excited to have this opportunity to excel in my career as the IT director,” Franco said in the news release. “I look forward to seeing the many changes of IT as we continue to implement new technology within the city of Lawton.”
Franco earned her master’s degree in computer information sciences in 2004, according to the news release. Under her supervision, the GIS team won the Environmental Systems Research Institute’s Special Achievement Award in 2021 for the iHelp Citizens Portal, which will allow residents to report problems including potholes, tall grass and weeds to the city.
Franco is also a member of the Oklahoma South Central Arc User’s Group, where she serves on the board as a vendor coordinator.
Franco is the ideal candidate for her new role as Lawton’s information technology director, City Manager Michael Cleghorn said in the news release.
“An extensive nationwide search for the city of Lawton’s next information technology director was conducted and the perfect candidate was found right here, among our own employees,” he said.