Leadership Wayne applications sought
By Matt Shaw
Published in News on July 3, 2005 2:00 AM
For the past 15 years, a program has been quietly working to change the face of leadership in the Wayne County area.
Approximately 350 individuals who come from diverse backgrounds - health care, education, financing, law enforcement, manufacturing, human services, agribusiness, military and local government - have successfully completed Leadership Wayne County.
Applications are now being accepted for the 2005-06 class. The deadline to apply is July 31.
Leadership Wayne County is an educational and enrichment program sponsored by the Wayne County Chamber of Commerce, the Wayne Charitable Partnership, as well as various corporate sponsors.
Its goal is to create a corps of leaders who are dedicated to the betterment of the community through service. Leadership Wayne County is designed to assist emerging leaders as well as individuals who have demonstrated leadership potential in order to prepare them for leadership positions in local business, industry, non-profit, and community and government affairs. Leadership Wayne County offers class participants an inside look into Wayne County, community involvement opportunities, tools needed to become a more active civic leader, and business and social contacts.
Participation is open to individuals who live or work in Wayne County. Participants are chosen by the selection committee of Leadership Wayne County and are subject to the approval of the executive committee of the Board of Regents, a volunteer board of alumni that administers the program.
The committee seeks representatives from a cross-section of the community - business, industry, education, government, community-based organizations, and ethnic and minority groups.
Class participants will attend a team-building retreat in September at Camp Sea Gull in Arapahoe. From October through April 2006, the class will meet the third Friday of each month for an educational and enrichment session. Graduation will be in May 2006.
Participants are given the opportunity to visit and tour various companies and organizations throughout the Wayne County area. The program will focus its attention on history, agri-business, law and government, education, business and industry, community service agencies, and Seymour Johnson Air Force Base.
Class participants will also choose and implement a community project that further enhances Wayne County and its citizens. Some class projects have included development of the Junior Leadership Program, a concrete walkway at a public school, landscaping at the Boys and Girls Club, cleaning and reclaiming an outside public walking trail behind the Family YMCA, and preservation of the Cogdell Family Cemetery at Waynesborough Village.
For more information or an application, contact the Wayne County Chamber of Commerce at (919) 734 - 2241 or visit www.waynecountychamber.com and click on "Leadership Wayne County."