Classes meet for eight to ten weeks or monthly throughout a year. In these areas, specific classes examine personal leadership skills, group dynamics, local and state government, education, health care, the environment, economic development, tourism, and business retention and expansion. After the training, graduates are encouraged to get involved in their communities at some level for a year to 18 months. Some have been appointed or elected to boards, others have created task forces to resurrect chambers of commerce, and still others make grant proposals for a range of needs, from economic development planning for industrial sites to increasing parental involvement in school programs. Sieverdes said Palmetto Leadership graduates can also take a neutral, facilitating role in economic and community development.
Graduates can provide a forum to manage social and economic change through effective planning.
So many different groups attended. There were loggers, real estate developers, environmentalists, bird watchers, off-road vehicle enthusiasts and horseback riding clubs. Instead, it ran smoothly. I think most people felt they had been heard. Until recently, Palmetto Leadership has been in rural, suburban, and transitional areas.