GNO, Inc. Spearheads Initiative to Foster Leadership Among Regional Business Community
40 Business and Civic Leaders Named to NORLI Class of 2010
The New Orleans Regional Leadership Institute, an organization founded and led by Greater New Orleans, Inc., was established in 1999 to provide current and emerging leaders with a thorough understanding of the most pressing issues in the region and an enhanced ability to collaborate for the benefit of Greater New Orleans. As 40 business and civic leaders are named to the Class of 2010, NORLI celebrates its 10th anniversary.
“NORLI gives us the platform to motivate leaders to promote the understanding of our local economic development needs, specifically the need for collaboration and cooperation among all ten parishes in the Greater New Orleans region,” says Michael Hecht, President and CEO of Greater New Orleans, Inc. “We are excited to celebrate the 10th anniversary of a program that has encouraged such positive change in our communities.
NORLI selects a diverse group of leaders to participate in a thought-provoking, nine-month educational program, which addresses a variety of topics, including public policy, environment and sustainability, diversity, workforce development, education and healthcare. Participants experience these statewide issues through lectures, on-site visits, readings, discussion groups, simulations, and other leadership development activities.
BENEFITS OF NORLI
· For the Participant – The program creates opportunities for networking with influential leaders, and provides experience in group dynamics, team leadership, presentation skills, ethics, decision-making, and critical and creative thinking. Most importantly, NORLI builds confidence and motivation to become actively involved in promoting positive change for the Greater New Orleans region.
· For the Region – The program helps develop committed, knowledgeable, and action-oriented people to serve as catalysts in promoting positive change and encourages creative partnerships and initiatives between the public and private sectors.
“It is extremely important that we develop strong professional relationships with the most engaged and energetic leaders across southeastern Louisiana. Our region’s success depends on it,” says Bob Brown, Managing Director of the Business Council of New Orleans and NORLI Alumnus. “My NORLI experience was the single biggest boost to getting me connected.”
Since its inception, NORLI Alumni have played vital roles in enhancing communication and cooperation, addressing key issues, and advancing economic growth and development throughout the Greater New Orleans region. NORLI Alumni have made and continue to make a real difference in our Region.
The Class of 2010 includes:
Jodi Aamodt, Jacobs Manuel Kain & Aamodt
Christine Albert, Touro Infirmary
Bill Bailey, New Orleans Hornets
Denis Bechac, Northshore Conifer
Renee Blanche, Covenant House
Lisa Blossman, NOPG/CityBusiness
Christe Brewton, East Jefferson General Hospital
Avery Corenswet, Ochsner Medical Center
Richard Cortizas, Jones Walker
Jennifer Couvillon, LSU Health Science & Junior League
Brian Dassler, KIPP to College
Elijah Feinstein, Feinstein Fixed Assets & Stirling Properties
Thomas Freel, Laporte Sehrt Romig Hand
Betsie Gambel, Gambel Communications, LLC
Beverly Gariepy, City of Covington
Kristin Gisleson Palmer, Rebuilding Together New Orleans
Annvernette Graham, Motivate 4 Change
Juan Gutierrez, Cox Communications
D'Juan Hernandez, Sun Energy Group
Chanel Jolly, Chevron
Annette LeBlanc, Second Harvest Food Bank
Amy Mahfouz, Scott Cowen Institute for Public Education
Austin Marks, Greater New Orleans, Inc.
Leo Marsh, AT&T Louisiana
Leon Mathes, Loyola New Orleans
Erika McConduit, Urban League of Greater New Orleans
Dana Moore, JP Morgan Chase
Emily Remington, AdvanceNOLA
Melissa Sawyer, Youth Empowerment Project
Alex Schott, Entergy Corp.
Karla Sikaffy, Catholic Charities of New Orleans
Victor Smeltz, Volunteers of America
Allen Square Jr., Henry Consulting, LLC
James St. Pierre, International Matex Tank Terminals
Melanie Talia, New Orleans Police and Justice Foundation
Kathy Tolliver, Tolliver & Associates
Mignhon Tourne’, ASI Federal Credit Union
Richard Traina, Seal Ross
Sean Warner, Gulf Coast Bank & Trust
Kyle Wedberg, New Orleans Center for Creative Arts