Citizens' Leadership Academy

The Citizens' Leadership Academy (CLA) is a grassroots leadership development project for caring, community-conscious people. The purpose of the academy is to equip emerging community leaders with tools to organize, mobilize, develop and engage citizens.

In early 2004, the LexLinc Community Involvement Team identified a need to train neighborhood advocates to better lead their community and formed the program through a partnership with the East End Empowerment Project and the University of Kentucky Community Outreach Partnership Center. The first 25 participants graduated the 12-week course in the spring of 2004. To date, 94 people have graduated from the academy. As of 2006, the Citizens’ Leadership Academy will be offered each fall and is supported and coordinated by LexLinc and its neighborhood partners. While the sessions are offered at alternating neighborhood centers, they are open and free to the entire community. The 2007 course was hosted by the West End Community Empowerment Center.

As part of the project, LexLinc makes mini-grants available to graduates to immediately put their new skills to use. To date, the Citizens' Leadership Academy boasts projects that have given rise to ongoing youth step teams, and monthly activities for senior citizens, several alumni have also run for public office including Andrea James, the first African American woman ever elected to LFUCG's City Council.

Click here to see a list of all CLA graduates.

Click here for the 2007 CLA Curriculum (note: the 2008 curriculum is being revised and will be posted once it is finished.)