I actually think I know the answer to this, and it is:
current_working_directory = os.getcwd().split("/")
local_working_directory = current_working_directory[len(current_working_directory)-1]
this works for me. none of the other posts I've checked out (ex:Find current directory and file's directory) seem to explain how to get the local directory, as opposed to the whole directory path. so posting this as an already answered question. perhaps the question should be: how do I post the answer to a question I've already answered, in order to help others out? and hey, perhaps there's a better answer :-)