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Published on 05/20/98

UGA Conferences Tackle Need For Rural Leadership Programs

Of the 159 Georgia counties, 104 don't have ongoing leadership programs, says a University of Georgia expert.

So?

"More than 60 percent of these counties are ranked as severely depressed counties," said Norma Reed of the UGA Fanning Leadership Center. "Counties with sustained community leadership programs are usually better off socially and economically."

Reed and other Fanning Center staff will offer back-to-back conferences July 9-10 in Athens, Ga. The day-long programs target the need for leadership development, especially in rural Georgia counties.

The Thursday, July 9, event is for people who plan adult leadership programs or see the need for them. The Friday, July 10, sessions tackle topics unique to youths.

"When a community sustains its leadership development efforts and involves dispersed segments of its population, it trains more local leaders to take on and solve problems at their lowest levels," Reed said. "That's why communities need to keep growing and grooming their leaders."

But 71 Georgia counties, she said, have had no leadership development programs or only one in the past 10 years. Another 33 have had only two or three programs.

"Georgia has just over 24,000 graduates of community leadership programs," she said. "That's less than 1 percent of the adults 20 to 49 years old."

Reed said the state's communities simply have to develop new leaders.

"The future is too uncertain," she said. "The issues are far too technical. And the pace of change is much too fast to assume that only a handful of leaders can carry out all the complex tasks of contemporary leadership."

Ongoing leadership programs, she said, will help emerging local leaders:

  • Learn more about leadership roles.
  • Practice skills such as managing conflict, solving problems, making decisions and building relationships.
  • Build the vital trust and respect for each other's perspective that enables them to seek common ground in solving local problems.

The July conferences are geared to help local planners reach those goals, Reed said. They're planned so anyone can attend both days. But each is complete on its own.

Each event will begin at 8 a.m. at the UGA Center for Continuing Education in Athens. Each ends at 4:30 p.m. To learn more about the conferences, contact the county extension office. Or call the Fanning Leadership Center at (706) 542-1108. Or fax (706) 542-7007, or e-mail leadership@flc.uga.edu.

Dan Rahn is a news editor with the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.

Experts/Sources:
Norma Reed
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