Innovative Training Program Develops Community and Business Leaders

Minneapolis (10-10-06): -- The Hennepin County Bar Association (HCBA) is seeking non-attorney and attorney applicants for the 2007 sessions of LINC – Leaders Impacting the Nonprofit Community, an invigorating and intensive six-month training program designed to provide participants with the knowledge base and skill set needed to successfully participate in leadership roles in the community, business, government, and particularly at nonprofit organizations. 

Participants will work with, and learn from, a distinguished list of national business leaders, government officials, training experts, representatives from the media,  professional colleagues, and other key players in the community.

LINC participants will receive extensive training in practical leadership including:

• Dealing with the media during a crisis

• Team building

• Experience as a service recipient in community agencies

• Fundraising

• Parliamentary procedure

• Governance

• The culture of poverty

• Running an effective meeting

• Identifying and fostering talent within an organization

• Working with diverse populations and work styles

• Finding one's passion and pursuing it

• Making a difference in your life and career

The LINC class, in session from January to June 2007, will consist of twenty-five individuals chosen through a competitive application process.  The training will develop an individual’s abilities to function successfully in his or her professional roles, and as a contributing member of the community. Minneapolis attorney Cyrenthia D. Jordan found her participation in the LINC program to be transforming. “It was a great success,” she said following the program. “It’s great for people who are interested in serving the nonprofit community.  The program provides leadership training and mentoring skills… as well as skills that can be transferred into other areas.” 

Although sponsored by the bar association, non-lawyers are encouraged to apply and have participated in the program each year since its inception.  According to 2005 LINC participant Robert Worthington, the program was “Educational, insightful, poignant, and inspirational.  This was by far the best training program for nonprofit decision-makers that I’ve attended in my 30-year experience as a volunteer.” 

Details of the program, requirements for participation, and an application form for this seven-session program (of half-day and full-day programs and a two-day retreat) are available at www.hcba.org/linc.htm.  The application deadline is October 20.

The Hennepin County Bar Association is a professional society representing nearly 8,000 area attorneys with a wide variety of services for the community and the profession.  The association strives to ensure the fairness and accessibility of the legal system by promoting public understanding and confidence in our system of justice and by working along with the courts to improve the administration of justice.

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