The Origins of Better Lives, Better Ohio

As a Judge, Secretary Brunner started a drug court because she saw the need to address the challenge of repeat drug-offenders in our state.
As Secretary Brunner travelled across Ohio in 2006 on her campaign to become Ohio Secretary of State, she saw the need to tell the whole story about our state.
These experiences and others throughout her career led to the birth of the Better Lives, Better Ohio initiative.
The plan for Better Lives, Better Ohio was announced at the Allemas Childcare & Enrichment Center in Shaker Heights, Ohio amidst a group of daycare children, educators and parents.
From there, Secretary Brunner was elected and took office in January 2007. She hired Michelle Hussong, a Ph. D. in sociology, to lead the initiative in her office.
Secretary Brunner and her team travelled the state from top to bottom holding informal forums to gather information about what Ohioans were interested in learning about their state.
Information was collected from 18 federal and state agencies and organizations to be made available on the Better Lives, Better Ohio Web site.
Secretary Brunner’s Information Technology Division worked for months to develop and test the Web site they built specifically to house this information.
On July 8, 2009 Secretary Brunner announced the official launch of the Better Lives, Better Ohio initiative.