TIES THAT BIND
Leadership New Mexico program builds powerful statewide network
Kevin Cook has lived in Bayard near Silver City for 22 years, but until joining Leadership New Mexico, he had never visited Hobbs, save for a quick drivethrough decades ago during a trip elsewhere.
Now, after three days of local tours, networking and workshops there in early March with this year’s core class of Leadership trainees, Cook has a better grasp of the hustle and bustle of life in New Mexico’s booming oil patch.
“I didn’t have a clue how vibrant it was,” he said. “The sheer size of the community impressed me. I thought it was just a small town, but it’s nearly a 50,000 population.”
As manager of strategic community development for copper mining company Freeport McMoran, Cook joined the Leadership program to learn more about the issues and challenges facing New Mexico, and perhaps gain more ideas and skills that could enrich the impact of his own work in Grant County. Now, after participating in Leadership events in Hobbs and three other regions of the state, Cook said he’s “sold” on the program’s benefits.
“Many of the issues we’ve examined in each session around the state are directly
aligned with my own focus on education, economic development and the health and wellness of local communities,” Cook said. “I’m finding that so many of the problems I see locally in my region are common throughout New Mexico.”
Those common threads are at the heart of the Leadership program, now in its 22nd year. The nonprofit organization brings together leaders from a broad range of industries and communities to learn about each other and to collectively explore the state’s challenges and assets.
In the process, participants forge a better understanding of both the state’s diversity, and of the common ties that bind people together.
“We work to educate people about the issues facing New Mexico so that they’re better equipped to make more informed decisions in their own companies and communities,” said Leadership NM President Patty Komko. “We’ve built a diverse network of leaders over the years that include people from dozens of communities, professions and viewpoints who are all working in their own ways to improve their communities.”
Since launching in 1996, about 1,600 New Mexico residents have graduated from Leadership programs. That includes an annual, 10-month core class, plus two shorter programs for local government leaders, and for younger, “next-generation” leaders ages 25-40.
In the core class, participants travel together around the state to tour facilities, meet with local business and community leaders, and attend presentations by experts on critical issues. The class is broken into six, three-day sessions from fall to spring, each one focused on a specific theme.
This year’s class, which began in September, includes 41 people from 19 communities and many different professions ranging from education and engineering to health care and business.
Among them is Leadership’s
first veterinarian, Belenbased Valencia Animal Clinic owner Brenda Mack-Cain, who said the group’s eclectic mix provides a variety of perspectives on issues.
“It brings together a ton of diversity,” she said. “That offers a broad spectrum of thought beyond simple blackand-white conversations.”
Taos Community Foundation Executive Director Lisa O’Brien said she’s meeting people outside her normal circle of nonprofit associates.
“It’s taken me out of my comfort zone in northern New Mexico and exposed me to a much broader vision of things,” O’Brien said. “In the process, I’ve realized we have very similar experiences across all our different industries and professions.”
Since September, the class has attended workshops on leadership in Santa Fe, health care and human services in Las Vegas, economic development in Las Cruces, and education in Hobbs. Still to come: environment and natural resources in Farmington and crime and justice in Taos.
During its latest stint in Lea County, the group visited the $4 billion uranium enrichment plant run by URENCO USA in Eunice. They also toured the planned Center of Recreational Excellence in Hobbs, a $61 million facility now under construction to improve the community’s health and quality of life.
Santa Fe-based Cisneros Design owner and founder Fred Cisneros said such tours and workshops offer deeper insight into the state’s strengths and weaknesses.
“People all over New Mexico are dealing with the same types of issues we face in Santa Fe, whether it’s education or economic development,” Cisneros said. “We’re all working on the same challenges and seeking positive outcomes.”
After graduating, participants expect to continue networking with one another.
“Leadership challenges us to think about what we can do to engage in issues and how we can tap into a network of leaders to work together on things,” said Tommy Sanders, vice president for customer and support services at New Mexico Gas Co. in Albuquerque.
Leslie Cervantes, New Mexico State University’s associate vice president for alumni donor relations, said the program is cultivating generations of future leaders.
“It helps to better address challenges as people become decision makers in their own organizations and communities,” Cervantes said.