EDITORIAL NOTE: This guest blog post was written by Haley Richards, a Ruth. S. Shur Fellow and a member of the League of Women Voters of Pensacola Bay Area.
To be honest, I really wasn’t sure what to expect when I headed to the 4th annual Ruth S. Shur Leadership Institute last Thursday. The Leadership Institute is a three day training program for 28 exceptional League leaders selected to act as national coaches for the Membership and Leadership Development (MLD) Program.
This blog post was written by Carol Reimers who is a former National Board member and currently the Dean of the Ruth S. Shur Fellows and a local League leader in Connecticut.
This summer, the Membership and Leadership Development (MLD) program is providing training to local and state League leaders from nine states that are entering the program for the first time ever. After a wonderful financial out-pouring of support for the MLD program at the LWVUS Convention in June 2012, Cheryl, Carol, Kelly, and I (the League trainers for the MLD program) have been met with enthusiasm for the program and for the future of the League.
To ensure their vitality for the future, member-based organizations like the League of Women Voters must invest in themselves even as they continue to focus on the important work at hand.
The League does this through our Membership and Leadership Development (MLD) Program which helps local Leagues connect with their communities and become thriving, growing Leagues that can make (and have been making!) a big impact on our democracy.
The Regional Training for LWV State Coaches this past weekend was a great success! Thirty League leaders from 9 states (mostly in the central region of the United States) gathered with LWVUS board, staff, and 8 of the 23 Ruth S. Shur Fellows in Houston, TX from April 13-15, 2012.
LWVUS Board and staff will be training some 30 League leaders from 9 states in Houston, TX on Friday, April 13 until Sunday, April 15, 2012. The training will bring together individuals who have volunteered to be state coaches as part of the Membership and Leadership Development (MLD) program, funded by the Fund for Local League Growth.
