O.U.R. Asheville Academy - A Community Engagement Leadership Academy
O.U.R. Asheville Academy - A Community Engagement Leadership Academy
If you've ever wanted to become more invovled with the City's projects and decision-making processes, here's your chance. City staff have joined forces with Findlay House Global to launch a community engagement leadership academy program—Organizing and Uniting to Re-Power (O.U.R.) Asheville. This collaborative, certificate program aims to equip and connect community leaders from historically-underrepresented groups to be able to engage with City government and their neighbors to ensure that all Asheville residents have a say in defining future projects and initiatives. Your input is crucial to this endeavor! Take our Community Engagement Survey now. By completing the survey, you play a pivotal role in shaping how the City will engage Asheville residents moving forward. Let your voice be heard. Join us in building a brighter, more inclusive tomorrow for all who call Asheville home.
Organizing and Uniting to Re-Power (O.U.R.) Asheville is a community engagement leadership academy that offers practical, hands-on training in an interactive workshop setting that addresses the areas of: community connectedness, community research, community development and mental health, and community mobilization.
Academy participants will benefit from the peer-to-peer learning opportunities, networking connections, pooling of different community resources and the alignment of different synergies. Additionally, participants will earn a stipend of $500.
Graduates ("O.U.R. Asheville Community Connectors") will receive a certificate of completion and will be ready to assist with organizing events in their communities and/or leading community discussions related to other City projects and initiatives.
We're excited to kick-off Cohort 2 on June 1st at the Stephens-Lee Community Center!
UPDATE: A SPECIAL THANK YOU to the participants of Cohort 1 who have successfully completed all sessions.
Photo by: Noel Argueta Photography
Frequently Asked Questions
Approximately 3 hours for 7 consecutive weeks. The time commitment includes up to 90 minutes for a weekly virtual session and up to 1 hour of Community Work (assignments that require application of lessons learned during sessions in the Asheville community).
Every time you complete an academy assignment, every time you show up and contribute to a session, you will be earning towards that $500 stipend! Participates will receive half their earnings at the mid-way point and the remainder during a culminating, celebratory graduation event.
Participants will receive practical, hands-on training in an interactive setting led by certified workshop facilitators.
Participants will work together to workshop an agreed upon community development project/initiative and walk through the steps of community engagement and mobilization.
Participants will lead the City forward by conducting community research, interpreting the data, and designing a plan for mobilization.
Upon graduation, these Community Connectors will be added to a pool of consultants the City will call upon to assist with community engagement on upcoming projects.
O.U.R. Asheville Academy Virtual Info Session
Interested to learn more about the O.U.R. Asheville Academy? Join us for a one-hour, virtual info session.
Use the RSVP button to sign up. We'll send you the link to join the session on Friday, May 10.
Questions? Email Kristina Israel, CAPE Manager with the CIty of Asheville at kisrael@ashevillenc.gov.