National Policy Consensus Center

Civic Leadership Academy

The 2025 Hillsboro Civic Leadership Academy cohort standing together in City Hall with street signs with their names on them.

Fostering the next civic leaders

In a time of changing demographics and complex public challenges, cities and counties need to build a strong and diverse pool of talented leaders for local committees and boards. The Civic Leadership Academy enables local governments to build a stronger bond with residents, creates a knowledgeable pool of talent from which to recruit for committees and councils, and generates a collaborative solution to an important local issue.

 This is an impressive program and an effective method to build a pipeline of local leaders to drive community engagement.

- A 2025 Hillsboro Civic Leadership Academy participant 

The Civic Leadership Academy builds our next collaborative leaders across Oregon. The Academy is a partnership between NPCC and local governments across Oregon to put a city’s real priorities into action. Using hands-on learning, customized workshops, and real local priorities, the Academy helps develop a deeper understanding of civic government, collaboration, and leadership within a city’s constituents.

How it works

  • The Civic Leadership Academy is typically a six-week program, or a scaled three-week program for smaller cities, including weekly workshops presented by NPCC staff and local leadership on the principles of collaborative leadership and building an understanding of how their local government works.
  • Each participant is partnered with a local government staff who can help guide participants on local resources and processes.
  • Participants work together to research a topic relevant to the city or county’s needs.
  • The academy culminates in a presentation to local government leadership and community members on the issue at a regularly scheduled city council or county commission meeting.
  • Each academy is specific to the city or county it is housed in and adaptive to their financial needs. NPCC works closely with local leadership to develop a relevant project topic, recruit participants, and ensure a successful academy from start to finish. 

Civic Leadership Academies in Motion

A group photo of the 2025 Hillsboro Civic Leadership Academy. Everyone is looking at and smiling at the camera

Hillsboro

Since 2016, the Hillsboro Civic Leadership Academy has successfully been cultivating civic leaders that have gone onto to take leadership roles across the city. Cohorts have led projects around balanced housing, redistricting, and developing the design a new flag to celebrate the City's 150th anniversary. 

Hillsboro Civic Leadership Academy

More than ten graduates [of the NPCC Civic Leadership Academy for Hillsboro] have gone on to take leadership roles on City of Hillsboro boards and commissions, including one recently elected city councilor. What a great testimony to the success of the program and how it has paid dividends to our community in such a short period of time.

-  Robby Hammond, City of Hillsboro City Manager 

Participants of the 2025 Albany Civic Leadership Academy is sitting and standing around a table, reviewing a map together.

Albany

The first Albany Civic Leadership Academy happened in 2025. The cohort worked closely with city leadership to develop a research project on improving youth engagement within the community. 

Albany Civic Leadership Academy
The 2024 Hermiston Civic Leadership Academy participants are working over a table together.

Hermiston

In 2024, the Hermiston Civic Leadership Academy cohort helped design an engagement process for their city to decide on how to reuse an old library building. 

Hermiston Civic Leadership Academy

 I was looking at what I could do to get more involved in the city … and effect some change. [The NPCC Civic Leadership Academy] is the best thing I have done since moving to Oregon, and one of the best things I’ve ever done in my life.

- 2017 participant 

City of Sisters Civic Leadership Academy participants sitting at tables in a square together. Some folks are seen talking to each other, others are looking down at the table in front of them.

Sisters

The Sisters Civic Leadership Academy's first two cohorts brought together 22 community members with a wide range of lived experiences, many of who have since stepped into new leadership roles, including service on Sisters City Council, public advisory committees, and nonprofit boards.

Sisters Civic Leadership Academy
Cornelius Civic Leadership Academy participants stand in front of city council members, holding up street signs with their names on them.

Cornelius

The Cornelius Civic Leadership Academy is hosting its first academy in 2026, and it will be three-sessions long, over the course of one month. 

Cornelius Civic Leadership Academy

Interested in hosting a Civic Leadership Academy in your city or county?

Contact Kristen Wright (503) 725-9098 kristen.wright@pdx.edu or the National Policy Consensus Center at npccdesk@pdx.edu.