Leadership Cumberland Set To Begin

The Crossville-Cumberland County Chamber of Commerce welcomes residents to learn new skills through Leadership Cumberland this February.

Chamber of Commerce President Ethan Hadley said the intensive seven-month program helps people better understand the mechanics of Crossville and Cumberland County. Hadley said the chamber puts on the program every year to better prepare aspiring local leaders.

“The importance of it is to realize that no leader is permanent,” Hadley said. “In order to backfill the leadership in the community you have to groom those who are interested in and willing to bet themselves in order to better their community.”

Hadley said participants will get a chance to meet and talk with local, state, and various other organization leaders throughout the program. Hadley said this year the program has 17 participants which is the most the program has ever had.

“Crossville and Cumberland County is growing so it doesn’t surprise me that we have the largest class ever,” Hadley said. “I hope there is a day in the not-so-distant future where we are looking to use different facilities for hosting the class days particularly the first one where we need a larger room to accommodate more participants.”

Hadley said the program is a great opportunity for aspiring leaders to learn new information that they did not know before.

“We have had members of that class since I’ve been here or natives of Crossville and Cumberland County who would be the most likely to know these things,” Hadley said. “And to a person they have stated that they have learned new things about their community that they were not aware of and it’s one of our most consistently praised and promoted through word of mouth programs that we ever see.”

Hadley said unfortunately the program has had to limit the participation as the current facilities are only suitable to hold 15 to 20 participants. Hadley said the application window for the has already closed. The program will begin in February and end in July.