Local Government Leadership Academy Accepting Registrations and Scholarship Applications for 2024 Session
The Local Government Leadership Academy (LGLA) is a hybrid online/in-person program for elected officials or professional staff of any county or municipality in Wisconsin who understand the basics of their role and are ready to take on new leadership challenges, as well as anyone interested in becoming a more effective leader in local government.
The nine-month program begins January 11 and concludes at the end of August. Registration for the academy is now open and there are a limited number of scholarships available for financial assistance.
The LGLA is a cohort-based program that includes a blend of in-person workshops, virtual sessions, online self-study, and goal-setting. The program covers relationships, communications, decision-making, and visionary leadership in local governance to help participants develop professionally while also contributing to the improved capacity of their local government.
Sessions draw upon leadership skills and knowledge in the private, nonprofit, and public sectors, but are always brought back to their value and application for leading in the local government context. The reported results are intra-agency improvements such as improved staff morale, strategic decision making, and clarity of purpose, that ultimately improve the overall functioning of local governments as organizations, and their capacity to provide quality services to Wisconsin communities.
Participants cite improved relationships with and among staff, greater engagement of staff in problem-solving, clearer communication of goals, expanded networks, and increased awareness of resources that support their local government’s goals. They emphasize that LGLA provided them with real-worlds strategies to achieve these results.
Immediately following the LGLA, over one-third of participants reported completing at least one goal related to a professional challenge they were working to address during their academy experience, mostly related to improved trust and organizational culture, more effective decision-making and procedures, and moving key initiatives forward. Interviews conducted six months after each program confirmed that graduates applied course content in ways that have had a positive impact on the functioning of their department and/or local government.
Leadership Wisconsin, Inc. has provided scholarships that cover the full program fee for local government leaders who identify as African American, Native American, Hispanic/Latinx, Asian, or Pacific Islander, as well as socioeconomically disadvantaged persons whose registration and participation in the LGLA would cause financial hardship. The Wisconsin Counties Association also supports the program with an annual financial contribution, advises on program content, and hosts the LGLA graduation ceremony during their annual conference.
You can learn more and register for the Local Government Leadership Academy at https://leadershipdevelopment.extension.wisc.edu/programs/local-government-leadership-academy/. Contact Elizabeth McCrank, UW-Madison Division of Extension, Community Leadership Development Specialist, lgla@extension.wisc.edu or (715) 436-0704 with any questions.
Lake Geneva Middle School, 600 N. Bloomfield Road, conducted its annual Veterans Day celebration Nov. 10 in the school's gymnasium.
Lake Geneva City Administrator Dave Nord reacts to the final sample of Hellfire Hot Sauce.
