Valley Leadership Launches Civic Engagement Impact Team!
Since 2019, Valley Leadership’s Impact Maker Teams have brought together VL alumni, staff, strategic partners, and funders to work meaningfully together to address Arizona’s most pressing issues.
These Teams have worked on issues ranging from opioid stigma reduction and housing to workforce development and early literacy. Through this work, Impact Teams have identified the connectivity between these issues and how policy and funding decisions can impact progress.
Ensuring trust in our institutions and elected officials is vital to Arizona’s future. This trust requires an accessible, transparent system that fosters engagement, participation and confidence in the democratic process.
Over the last few months, VL has brought together alumni and community champions in this space as part of our Builder Team process to discuss how Valley Leadership can help address this most pressing issue. The group has had vibrant discussions about this issue, with two of our Principles of Doing helping guide our talks:
- Arizona First – approach an issue from what is best for Arizona, not political party or individual ambition.
- Integrity – engage other perspectives with respect, take responsibility for one’s own beliefs, actions, and biases, and value information, facts, and critical thinking.
We’re now excited to announce the launch of our newest Impact Maker Team: the Civic Engagement Impact Team. This Team will work to foster civic engagement and participation by all Arizonans.
Special thanks to the alumni and leaders who helped shaped the above framework for the Team’s work:
| Jane Andersen | Catalyze Class 3 |
| Adam Goodman | Institute Class 39 |
| Melissa Guardaro | Catalyze Class 3 |
| Paul Johnson | Institute Class 6 |
| Grady Gammage, Jr. | Institute Class 4 |
| Josh Shade | Institute Class 29 |
| Ginger Sykes Torres | Ready Together |
| Koran Hardimon | Institute Class 37 |
| Greg Lim | VL Board |
| Amanda Burke | Center For The Future of Arizona |
| Meghaen Dell’Artino | Public Policy Partners |
| Denise Resnik | First Place AZ, Vote the Spectrum |
| Brandon Quester | Arizona Center for Investigative Reporting |
| Cassie Breecher | Beyond Consulting |