Brushy Fork serves as coordinating agency of the East Kentucky Leadership Network (EKLN), a collaboration of organizations involved in leadership development. The network will carry out projects to enhance leadership in eastern Kentucky counties.

SPECIAL: Download the Young Leaders' Strategic Plan for Eastern Kentucky developed by the student participants in this year's Youth Leadership Program. The strategic plan identifies critical issues and suggests strategies for addressing those issues. (This file requires Adobe Acrobat reader.) You may also download an Adobe Acrobat file of the presentation made to the East Kentucky Leadership Conference.

Mission and Goals

EKLN seeks to develop, strengthen and support civic leadership by designing and implementing programs that will:

• Encourage cooperation among public officials, citizens of all ages and sectors, private organizations and government agencies;
• Engage Appalachian Kentuckians in civic activities through new initiatives;
• Strengthen the capacity and visibility of existing initiatives and affect the replication of successful models;
• Build local buy-in for leadership development efforts;
• Create a network through which all leadership programs may be enhanced and increase the impact of the programs by working collaboratively;
• Promote models of leadership that are ethical, accountable, respectful of diversity, committed to developing others as leaders and dedicated to the common good.

Projects

In 1997-98, the collaboration began a youth leadership development program designed to provide teens and adults with training and to engage them in the civic life of their communities. The program is now in its fourth year. Through the program, young people serve on local public boards and are mentored by active board members.

Youth participants attend a series of conferences at which they may share their experiences and attend sessions on such topics as communication, conflict resolution, public speaking, project planning and the role of a board member. Mentors also receive training in their roles. Boards that participate in the program also have the opportunity to request training from members of EKLN.

The goals of the youth leadership program are:

• To engage under-involved teens in East Kentucky in the civic life of their communities.
• To provide these teens with leadership training and leadership opportunities.
• To promote practices and processes on public boards that are conducive to citizen involvement.
• To strengthen networking and collaboration among leadership programs and program graduates.

The youth leadership program has operated in the eastern Kentucky counties of Breathitt, Clay, Cumberland, Elliott, Estill, Jackson, Letcher, Martin, McCreary, Owsley and Rockcastle.

To learn more about the concepts behind the East Kentucky Leadership Network, read a report on Civic Leadership for the Common Good.

You can also download a full description of the Youth Leadership Program or learn more about being a mentor.

The University of Kentucky has evaluated and written a report on the EKLN Youth Leadership Program.