Reno County residents invited to participate in leadership cohort

31 Jan Reno County residents invited to participate in leadership cohort

Individuals looking to sharpen their leadership skills while applying them to a community challenge are invited to complete an interest form for the 2024 Mental Health Leadership Cohort.

Since 2019, Hutchinson Community Foundation has held a Kansas Leadership Center Leadership Transformation Grant on behalf of Hutchinson and Reno County communities. In that time, 112 individuals representing 49 Reno County businesses and organizations have attended KLC programs. The grant is part of a collective effort to instill KLC principles that spur relationships, collaboration, and experimentation toward a more connected, resilient, and thriving community for all people. Hutch CF is among 97 organizations across Kansas to be selected as a grant partner this year.

The 2024 grant program introduces a new component to the experience: a cohort of individuals will apply leadership center competencies to an adaptive challenge, this year relating to mental health in Reno County in support of the 2023 Reno County Community Health Improvement Plan and the United Way of Reno County’s Mental Health Task Force.

“We have supported more than 100 people in learning about leadership development through the Leadership Transformation Grant over the last five years, which we’re really proud of. Our Core Team felt it was time now, however, to go deep into one challenge with the goals of practicing the experimental mindset, catalyzing action on the issue through the application of KLC principles, and creating ripple effects of change across the system. We’re excited to create and support this diverse cohort in learning and doing throughout 2024,” said Kari Mailloux, director of strategic initiatives at Hutchinson Community Foundation and a member of the local grant leadership team.

Twenty individuals will be selected to form the year-long cohort and will attend local cohort connections and the When Everyone Leads program April 16 at the leadership center in Wichita. Ten individuals from the cohort will then complete Your Leadership Edge on June 25 and 26 and Lead for Change from Oct. 15 to 17 in Wichita. Ideally, two individuals from an organization will participate in the cohort for shared learning and collaborative impact. No previous KLC experience is necessary.

In addition to Mailloux, the grant leadership team includes Donna Davis, retired nonprofit executive; Denice Gilliland, Hutch Rec; David Sotelo, City of Hutchinson; Valerie Taylor, United Way of Reno County; and Gregg Wamsley, Hutchinson Public Library.

The deadline to complete the interest form is Feb. 16. To view the full timeline, program requirements and other details and to fill out the form, visit tinyurl.com/2zj577a7.

For questions, contact Kari Mailloux, kari@hutchcf.org or 620-663-5293.