PHILADELPHIA – Today the Office of LGBT Affairs and the LGBT Affairs Commission in partnership with William Way Community Center, DVLF, and Independence Business Alliance released the application for the LGBTQ Community Leadership Pipeline pilot program.
The Community Leadership Pipeline, launching in late October 2018, is a recruitment and enrichment initiative focused on increasing the number of LGBTQ people of color, transgender people, youth, and elders serving in board leadership positions at Philadelphia’s LGBTQ organizations. The Community Leadership Pipeline is free for all participants and works to remove any financial or social barriers holding anyone back from participating in LGBTQ leadership positions.
“To ensure that our LGBTQ organizations can best support our community, it’s important to have people in leadership positions that reflect the diversity of the LGBTQ community,” said Amber Hikes, Executive Director for the City’s Office of LGBT Affairs. “The LGBTQ Community Leadership Pipeline is a way to level the playing field, and make sure that people from all backgrounds can receive the skills and trainings they need to effectively serve their community in leadership positions.”
Over the course of six months, participants will engage with a curriculum that will help them develop strategies, skills, and resources to strengthen their ability to be an effective Board member. Some of the training topics include strategic leadership, finances and development, personal branding, and public relations. At the end of the pilot program, each successful participant will receive a stipend and will have the opportunity to serve on one of 12 organizational boards. All participating Boards will waive any financial expectations for serving on the Board for the first year.
“As a young leader, numerous diverse mentors taught me how to participate in community leadership,” said William Way Community Center Executive Director Chris Bartlett. “Thirty years later, I am eager to participate in a process that pays back that investment from my elders.”
The Community Leadership Pipeline program is open to people of all backgrounds and levels of experience. Applicants must be 18 years or older and should anticipate spending about three hours a day once a month to attend trainings. Anyone interested in participating in the LGBTQ Community Leadership Pipeline pilot must submit an application by October 1, 2018.