For 30 years, Leadership Sunnyvale has been churning out residents with leadership qualities from all walks of life.
The class of 2015 was no different. An Air Force veteran, a police officer, a community advocate and many more were part of the 30th group of graduates who have been working since October to strengthen their leadership skills.
Achievements were showcased during a celebration and graduation banquet June 13 at the Elks Lodge. State Sen. Jerry Hill and Leadership Sunnyvale executive director Linda Price were on hand to congratulate the attendees.
Capt. Carl Rushmeyer with Sunnyvale’s Department of Public Safety, who was named Leadership Sunnyvale Student of the Year, said that although he was reluctant at first to participate in the program, he’s glad he eventually did.
“Leadership Sunnyvale works to identify emerging leaders and facilitates education of students, building opportunities for people, which is vital to our businesses and local government, education and nonprofit committees,” Rushmeyer said. “It helps build professional networks, and a class project benefits the community and Leadership Sunnyvale. Integrity, humility, it all goes hand in hand with that, and this program has made us all better in the last 10 months. I’m fully sure of that.”
The Leadership Sunnyvale curriculum consists of nine monthly full-day seminars and nine monthly half-day Saturday seminars, according to the city.
Hill, founder of the Leadership San Mateo program, commended the Sunnyvale graduates for their accomplishments.
Leadership Sunnyvale “is so unique because you integrate not just the orientation of the community, but you bring together those leadership skills and the management skills–the things that are necessary to implement what we’ve learned in the community and bring it together,” Hill said at the June 13 event. “This is really life-changing.”
During the ceremony, three teams of graduates presented their final projects. The projects needed to benefit the community while building leadership and collaboration skills.
One group encouraged the idea of installing Little Free Libraries in Sunnyvale neighborhoods to offer youth an alternative to navigating busy streets to get to the city library. Another group’s project included a picnic table for a community garden and a sign intended to direct more traffic to the Sunnyvale Heritage Park Museum.
Ann Hines, Leadership Sunnyvale’s executive director from 1985 to 1995, commended the graduates for their contributions.
“If you want leaders, you need to give them leadership skills,” Hines said. “These projects are absolutely amazing. It’s amazing what you’ve done. You’ve made some wonderful contributions to the city of Sunnyvale.”
Founded in 1984 by then-mayor Lynn Briody, Leadership Sunnyvale has seen more than 500 participants. The program also provides insight on how government and nonprofit organizations operate. To date, 25 graduates have gone on to be mayors or city council members, more than 40 people have served on Sunnyvale boards and commissions, and more than 100 graduates have served on nonprofit or service organizations boards.
Greg Pensinger, a 2015 graduate of Leadership Sunnyvale and project manager for Sunnyvale’s Downtown Streets Team, said that the program has helped him to develop both personally and professionally.
“The connections that I made were really great. I’ve always been a little bit of a nervous public speaker, but I think I’m starting to get over that a little bit more, and this class really helped me out,” Pensinger said. “The instruction is great, but the perspective and the connections that you make through the program really, really help out when you’re trying to take that next step.”
Also in attendance at the graduation event were Mayor Jim Griffith, Vice Mayor Tara Martin-Milius, Councilman Gustav Larsson and Police Chief Frank Grgurina.
For more information about the program, visit leadershipsunnyvale.org.
