The 2015-16 class of the Leadership Fellows Program – a joint effort of The Community Foundation and the Boulder Chamber – is well underway, its 32 participants from across sectors engaged in better understanding Boulder County’s economic, civic and cultural drivers.
Among them is Boulder native Nikhil Mankekar, member of the City of Boulder’s Human Relations Commission and the first Indian and Sikh-American to be appointed to any City of Boulder board or commission. “Leaders sometimes stay in their respective bubbles, both professionally and geographically – whether it’s city and county government, business, startups or schools,” he says. “This program is an opportunity to step outside our comfort zones, and broaden and deepen our connection to – and understanding of – the larger community.
“For example, we recently learned more about Colorado public lands and the 2012 flood recovery efforts at a session held near Jamestown.”
So far, Mankekar has also enjoyed speaking with fellow participant Simone Nicolò, a software engineer with Google, about the construction of a new Google building – and how the aesthetics of a building, and any physical environment, can encourage a welcoming sense of community.
As well, he brainstormed with current program participants about how to make public spaces, such as the soon-to-be redeveloped Civic Area, more inviting to the Latino community. “The ideas we came up with are already informing the feedback I provide to the city on this project,” Mankekar says. “When underrepresented people are made to feel unwelcome in our community, it’s often due to a number of smaller issues that add up. So, in addition to larger goals like influencing city policies, I feel you can also address problems by taking smaller steps that, as a whole, make people feel more included.”
Adds Mankekar, “What’s best about the program is connecting with different people I wouldn’t otherwise meet – people who are leaders in their respective fields. As we establish those relationships, we learn and grow together, which will pay dividends as time goes on.”
This year’s program focus areas include team-building and collaboration-building, elements of inclusive and effective leadership, entrepreneurship, education, critical human needs, boards and commissions, and more. Nikhil Mankekar’s fellow participants in this year’s Leadership Fellows class represent a diversity of backgrounds, professional experiences and affiliations:
Dale Abood, Elevations Credit Union
Rebecca Alderfer, Colorado Health Institute
Beth Bartel, UNAVCO, Inc.
Guio Bravo, Boulder County Community Services, Area Agency on Aging
Rebecca Chavez, Front Range Community College
Andrew Christie, Northwestern Mutual
Reasa Currier, The Humane Society of the United States
Fred Davis, Ed and Ruth Lehman YMCA
Jorge De Santiago, El Centro AMISTAD
Shari Edelstein, Independent
Armando Garcia, Latino Chamber of Commerce of Boulder County
Jennifer Gray, USA Rugby
Olga Heifets, Social Venture Partners Boulder County
Rachel Hohensee, Boulder County Head Start
Nina Holtz, Boulder Food Rescue
Veronica Sangabriel, The Community Foundation Serving Boulder County
Tracey Jones, TRU Community Care
Summer Laws, Boulder County Public Health
Jane Lewis, Boulder Chamber
Antonio Martinez, Stellar Properties LLC
Simone Nicolò, Google, Inc.
Chelsea Pohl, Locheart Arts LLC
Tom Riley, Imagine! Foundation
Shawn Ropp, i3 Integration
Kalee Salazar, Native American Rights Fund
Laura Soto, Center for People With Disabilities
Natalie Stiffler, City of Boulder
Cathy Summer, Jewish Family Service of Colorado
Jae Taylor, CU Collegiate Recovery Center
Yasaman, Taylor, Boulder County Financial Services
Gerry Valentine, Vision Executive Coaching
