January 12, 2004

With funding from the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation, the U.S. Conference of Mayors and the National League of Cities are organizing a two-day leadership academy for mayors to build or increase their capacity to further develop and expand afterschool programming. The meeting is entitled "Expanding Learning Opportunities Leadership Academy."

The Leadership Academy will take place in Washington (DC) on March 18 and 19, 2004. Approximately 25 local mayors and state municipal league staff from across the nation will be competitively selected to participate. Applications will be going out this week and are due by February 3, 2004. Travel and hotel subsidies will be provided to the participants.

The purpose of the Leadership Academy is to provide in-depth training and networking opportunities for those cities that have demonstrated a commitment to promoting afterschool programs. Participants will not only share their experiences, discuss issues and learn about best practices, but will also have the opportunity to hear from experts on implementation and funding strategies, and national policy. The expectation is that the participants will return to their cities with tools to put the new ideas into action.

The two-page application is due by February 3, 2004. Final decisions on participants will be made no later than February 13, 2004. For more information contact either Shannon Holmes at 202-861-6728 or sholmes@usmayors.org or Mark Ouelette at 202-626-3052 or Ouelette@nlc.org.

The two-page application is available on the U.S. Conference of Mayors website: usmayors.org/education