For Silvana Munro – an alumna of Leadership Fellows Boulder County, class of 2017-2018 – meeting new friends and learning about our community made a lasting impression.
“The Leadership Fellows program is so inspiring,” says the Peru-born translator, interpreter, editor, and proofreader who’s also involved with the foundation’s BRAVO Fund. “It was exciting to meet so many people working on so many community issues that are important to me – from gender equity to the environment.”
Indeed, anticipating and responding to shifting demographics and increasing cultural diversity in our community, Leadership Fellows – a joint leadership development and networking program of the Community Foundation and the Boulder Chamber – offers emerging leaders a broad-based overview of Boulder County’s economic, civic, and cultural drivers. Monthly curriculum topics include, among others, inclusive leadership and how to sell your vision; additional roundtable discussions explore a range of timely issues, from affordable housing to immigration and criminal justice.
“For me, the best part of the program was the other participants,” Silvana continues. “I made great friends that I’m still in touch with today.
“The program really expanded my network and my horizons, and strengthened my motivation to gain more knowledge. I have passion, but I learned that’s not enough. I need knowledge, too.”
So Silvana is committed to pursuing a higher education to better serve our Latino community.
“I’ve come to realize that many local Latinos who have been living here for years, never leave their houses,” she says. “I want to change that by engaging with the community, and sharing knowledge and resources with them – including the many resources our local cities offer, like free workshops for everything from recycling to cooking and raising kids.
“Especially, I want to empower other women just as I became empowered through Leadership Fellows.”
To that end, Silvana is currently enrolled in the Family Leadership Training Institute of the Sister Carmen Community Center, a grantee of your Community Foundation.
She concludes, “Leadership Fellows encouraged my desire to keep learning and growing, and to always be looking for opportunities to share my voice and my perspectives toward positive change in our community.”