Thirty-nine of the city’s emerging leaders will cap off 10 months of skill-building, leadership education and community project implementation at the Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce’s annual Community Leadership Luncheon on Friday, from 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. at the Chattanooga Convention Center.
Remarks will be given by Chattanooga Mayor Andy Berke, Julie Baumgardner, president and CEO of First Things First, and Hodgen Mainda, director of Legal Operations and Government Relations for Dale Buchanan & Associates.
Grouped into five teams, the 2012-2013 Leadership Chattanooga Class recently completed volunteer projects at local public schools. Following Mayor Berke’s address, the luncheon will feature a video summarizing their accomplishments at those schools over the last year.
The five schools which partnered with Leadership Chattanooga groups were Bess T. Shepherd Elementary, Dalewood Middle, East Side Elementary, Hillcrest Elementary and Orchard Knob Middle. Projects ranged from establishing mentorship programs and parental support space to connecting business resources with school needs.
Leadership Chattanooga is a 10-month leadership development program that identifies people of promise in early- or mid-career, familiarizes them with community issues and services and develops their leadership skills to prepare them for prominent business, cultural and political roles.