Graduating from Forsyth County on November 20 were Mark Sosnik, USA Home Remodeling, Inc., and Nicole McCoy, Executive Director, Forsyth County Community Connection..
The Board of the Georgia Academy for Economic Development announces the local graduates from the 2007 Region 2 Multi-Day Training Program. Class participants represented a number of professional and non-professional economic development fields, including elected officials, public servants, business leaders, educators, and social service providers, from 12 counties in North Georgia. The Academy provided each of the graduates an opportunity to gain a unique understanding of the complexities of economic and community development on the local, regional, and state levels.
Graduating from Forsyth County on November 20 were Mark Sosnik, USA Home Remodeling, Inc., pictured with Facilitators Rope Roberts, Regional Economic Development Manager, Georgia Power Company and Allyson Martin, Community Development Consultant, Georgia EMC and Nicole McCoy, Executive Director, Forsyth County Community Connection (not pictured)
Created in 1993 by then-Governor Zell Miller’s Development Council, the Academy assembles a cross section of economic development professionals and resources to provide this training in all twelve service delivery regions in Georgia. The Board of Directors of the Academy consists of 29 members representing public and private economic development organizations and agencies from across Georgia. Since its organization, the Academy has provided training for thousands of professional and non-professional economic developers around the state, and since 1998 the Academy has been offered annually.
“One of the goals for the multi-day regional Academies is to encourage multi-county cooperation,” says Saralyn Stafford, Executive Director of the Georgia Academy for Economic Development. “Many times the participants discover the issues facing their community are the same as those facing other communities in their region, and can then combine limited resources to address the issue.”
Georgia EMC and Georgia Power provide facilitators for the program, and the Georgia Department of Community Affairs provides staff support to this important program. Financial support for the regional leadership training program is provided through the Leadership Infrastructure Investment Fund, originally set up by the General Assembly and now funded through the One Georgia Authority, which allows the program to be offered at an affordable cost to all participants, with scholarship funding for those with demonstrated need for this assistance.
Since its organization, the Academy has provided training for over 3000 local leaders, both professionals and non-professionals, interested in improving their communities. The Academy’s multi-day program, taught over a four-month period, includes training in the basics of economic and community development, plus specialized segments on entrepreneur and small business support, tourism product development, downtown development, quality planning, and other essentials for community success. In addition, the curriculum features specific leadership skills such as consensus building, team work, ethics in public service, building diverse teams and other segments needed for effective community leadership in economic development. Local elected officials receive certification training credits through the Association County Commissioners of Georgia and the Georgia Municipal Association for completion of this program.
The next Region 2 Georgia Academy for Economic Development will begin in August, 2008. For more information on this, please contact Kathy Papa at 770-965-8561 or by email kpapa@dca.state.ga.us
