Goode and Bynum Graduate from Harvard Leadership Program
Jake Bynum
Melinda Goode
CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS (July 12) – Delta Regional Authority is continuing its partnership with Harvard Kennedy School of Government to offer an advances educational opportunity exclusively to alumni of the Delta Leadership Institute Executive Academy.
The program, designed and led by Harvard faculty, focuses on cultivating “authentic leadership” to move Delta communities forward. DLI recently sent 39 representatives from across the eight-state Mississippi River Delta and Alabama Black Belt regions.
The 39 representatives, including Northwest Tennessee Development District and Human Resources Agency Executive Director Melinda Goode and Weakley County Mayor Jake Bynum, gathered on the Harvard University campus for the four-day course in June.
The program was led by retired Air Force Brigadier Gen. Dana Born, co-director at the Center for Public Leadership at HKS.
“It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience that required a tremendous amount of self-reflection in order to use our past experiences to shape our own leadership style,’ Mrs. Goode said.
Mayor Bynum stated, “I was honored to represent Weakly County at such a prestigious institution. To be able to learn both from General Born and my fellow leaders around the Delta, will only strengthen my skills a local leader.”
“This year’s class of HKS Authentic Leadership graduates represents a diverse cohort of community leaders from throughout the DRA region,” said DRA Federal Co-Chairman Dr. Corey Wiggins. “Delta Regional Authority’s partnership with the Harvard University Kennedy School of Government provides invaluable leadership training, and I am proud that we can invest in the people that are advancing opportunity and furthering the DRA’s mission to improve the lives of people living in the DRA region.”
Since 2005, the Delta Leadership Institute’s Executive Academy has enhanced the leadership skills, policy knowledge, and network of community members in the Delta region.
DLI graduates become members of the Delta Leadership Network, which includes more than 500 community leaders who understand the importance of regional collaboration, resource sharing, and innovative thinking.
DLI is a program of DRA in partnership with four institutions of higher education in the Delta region: University of Alabama, University of Arkansas, Arkansas State University, and the University of Louisiana-Monroe.
