'You only live once' Smedley wins dynasty City Council primary; remains uncontested in upcoming election By Sarah Donaldson Digital Editor
A
Photo by Maggie Prosser
thens native, Ohio University graduate student and public servant Arian Smedley will soon be taking on a new role when she starts her tenure as the First Ward Representative for the Athens City Council. Smedley, the assistant superintendent of the Athens County Board of Developmental Disabilities, moved to Athens with her family when she was 8 years old. She grew up on the West Side, attend- SMEDLEY ed Athens City schools and graduated from Ohio U in 2007 with degrees in journalism and Spanish. “I’m pretty familiar on where we have progressed and where we haven’t as a city,” Smedley said. “To serve your city, you really have to know it.” For a period of time after college, Smedley moved to New York City to pursue a career in journalism, but she knew she wanted to return to her roots.