Fifty community leaders have successfully completed the year-long Delta Leadership Institute Executive Academy, a program of the Delta Regional Authority. The Executive Academy is a training program that brings together business and community leaders from each of the eight states of the Mississippi River Delta and Alabama Black Belt regions for a collaborative leadership development experience, emphasizing regional approaches to growing local economies and creating opportunities for the people of the Delta region.
Each graduate completed leadership development coursework and field studies in the year-long program that included five sessions in Delta communities and one session in Washington, DC.
Nine DLI fellows, nominated by Governor Asa Hutchinson and DRA Federal Co-Chairman Chris Masingill, represented the State of Arkansas this year:
Andrea Allen of Jonesboro
Bevin Hunter of Little Rock
Spencer Lucker of Little Rock, Clinton School of Public Service alum
Robert Moery of Little Rock
Abby Olivier of Little Rock, Clinton School of Public Service alum and staff member at the Center on Community Philanthropy at the Clinton School
Trudy Redus of Pine Bluff
Jessica DeLoach Sabin of Little Rock, current Clinton School of Public Service student
Wesley Ward of Little Rock
Peggy Wright of Jonesboro
“For our communities to grow and support strong economies that create opportunities for Delta residents, we need local leaders that understand the local and regional challenges that we face as well as the networks and resources that can help identify solutions and address these challenges,” Chairman Masingill said. “The Delta Leadership Institute’s dynamic programming and ever-growing alumni network are helping to meet this need and empower our region’s leaders to make the Delta a better place to live and work.”
In addition to the program certificate, participants graduate with an industry-recognized certification in Crucial Conversations. Present for the ceremony were Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson, DRA Federal Co-Chairman Chris Masingill, Alternate Federal Co-Chairman Mike Marshall, and Amy Fecher, executive vice president for the Arkansas Economic Development Commission and Governor Hutchinson’s designee to the DRA Board.
“Congratulations to the nine Arkansans graduating from the Delta Regional Authority’s Delta Leadership Institute. The Delta is lucky to have passionate public servants, like the graduates here today, who are dedicated, hardworking, and ready to take on new challenges to continue to improve the quality of life and expand opportunity in their communities. I am excited to see the positive impact these graduates will have on the region,” Governor Asa Hutchinson said.
About Delta Regional Authority
The DRA is a federal-state partnership created by Congress in 2000 to help create jobs, build communities, and improve lives through strategic investments in economic development in 252 counties and parishes across eight states. Through the Rural Communities Advancement Program, the DRA has provided leadership development to more than 400 community leaders over ten years and strengthened regional collaboration with its Delta Leadership Institute.
Picture Caption (left to right): Wesley Ward of Little Rock, Jessica DeLoach Sabin of Little Rock, Andrea Allen of Jonesboro, Abby Olivier of Little Rock, Amy Fecher of the Arkansas Economic Development Commission, Peggy Wright of Jonesboro, Bevin Hunter of Little Rock, Robert Moery of Little Rock, Trudy Redus of Pine Bluff, Spencer Lucker of Little Rock, and Chris Masingill and Mike Marshall of teh Delta Regional Authority.
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