ITT BENA, Miss.— The Delta Regional Authority (DRA) is continuing its partnership with Harvard Kennedy School (HKS) to offer an advanced education opportunity exclusively to members of the Delta Leadership Network.
The program, designed and led by Harvard faculty, focuses on cultivating “authentic leadership” to move Delta communities forward. The Delta Leadership Institute (DLI) will send 41 representatives from across the eight states of the DRA footprint.
Among those participants will be 2008 Mississippi Valley State University graduate Timothy Lampkin.
Lampkin, a native of Clarksdale, described being chosen for the opportunity as a prestigious honor.
"It is an honor to be selected to attend the prestigious Harvard Kennedy School. I look forward to learning about new strategies to improve my overall leadership ability,” Lampkin said.
The class includes six members from Alabama; seven from Arkansas; six from Illinois; two from Kentucky; four from Louisiana; four from Mississippi; six from Missouri; and six from Tennessee.
“My goal is to share the best practices from this experience with local stakeholders to ensure others can benefit from this opportunity. I'm truly thankful for the Delta Regional Authority commitment to support community leaders,” said Lampkin.
This year’s four-day session will be led by retired Air Force Brigadier General Dana Born, co-director of the Center for Public Leadership at HKS.
“This executive training will equip regional leaders across the Delta with the latest advancements in leadership skills and will prepare them to make positive changes in their local communities,” said Peter Kinder, DRA’s alternate federal co-chairman.
“These participants are alumni of the Delta Leadership Institute’s Executive Academy and were selected due to the leadership they have exemplified in their communities and their ability to translate these experiences to actionable solutions for the region.”
Since 2005, the Delta Leadership Institute has worked to strengthen the knowledge and skills of community leaders across the Delta by broadening their understanding of regional issues and building a corps of alumni that have a regional and national perspective.
The DRA is a federal-state partnership created by Congress in 2000 to help create jobs, build communities, and improve lives through strategic investments in economic development and infrastructure projects in 252 counties and parishes across eight states. DRA has provided leadership development to nearly 500 community leaders over twelve years and strengthened regional collaboration through the Delta Leadership Institute.