Greater IC Launches the 34th year of the Community Leadership Program (CLP)

Posted May 15, 2024
CLP - group cohort photo

The Greater Iowa City, Inc. Community Leadership Program (CLP) has opened applications for the 2024-2025 cohort. Created in 1990, CLP is the Iowa City area’s longest-standing, community-programmed leadership course. It uniquely engages local leaders from a variety of industries to plan, organize, and present to the next generation of community leaders. CLP has over 700 alumni, many of whom are leaders within their organizations, serve on community boards and commissions, and have been elected to local offices.

 

“The Community Leadership Program has a long legacy of cultivating thoughtful and passionate local leaders and illustrating the many ways they can contribute to our community’s flourishing,” says Mackenzie DeRoo, Greater IC Senior Director of Advocacy. “We are excited to see how next year’s class will grow, learn, and positively impact the greater Iowa City area.”

 

The goal of the program is to foster informed, well-equipped, and invested leaders by exposing them to the resources and challenges outside of their specific industries. The CLP cohort graduates with a wholistic understanding of the greater Iowa City area and a strong network of peers and leaders from across the community. Connecting and educating local leaders aligns with Greater IC’s approach of growing a resilient economy. Through continuing established leadership programs and launching the new Innovation Councils, Greater IC brings together local leaders from all sectors to guide economic development strategy and embed a spirit of collaboration.

 

CLP participants attend day-long sessions each month on a variety of topics, including: healthcare, economic development, agriculture & environment, arts & culture, and more. Along with a small subset of the cohort, participants also complete a group project that aligns with community needs and their personal interests. A past CLP project led to the creation of the Community Foundation of Johnson County (CFJC). Cohorts have also organized a Community Board Fair to increase participation in non-profit boards, assessed community need and best practices for a young professionals network, and created resource guides to promote participation in high-need careers.

 

Each cohort includes 24 participants and applications are competitive. With Greater IC’s new inclusive membership model, anyone can apply and will pay the same program cost if accepted. The application deadline is June 21st, 2024 and the program will run with monthly sessions from August 22nd, 2024 – June 13th, 2025.  To learn more about the program and apply, the public is invited to visit www.greateriowacity.com/community-leadership-program