Jackie Krentzman is a Bay Area-based writer and editor.

Last year, long-time Lakewood resident and Los Angeles Police Department helicopter pilot Rudy Villarreal was looking for a meaningful volunteer opportunity in his community. He wasn't sure what he was looking for, but he figured he would know it when he saw it.

One day he saw an advertisement in the paper for the city's new leadership academy. A few days later, he saw a similar ad in a city newsletter. Then, driving home from work one day, he saw a huge, illuminated billboard.

"I told my wife that night the universe is trying to tell me something," said Villarreal. "I needed to apply."

In fall 2023, Villarreal graduated from the first cohort of the Lakewood Leadership Academy. Sponsored by the city of Lakewood, the Greater Lakewood Chamber of Commerce, and LA County Supervisor Janice Hahn, the academy educates participants on how a city operates while helping them develop leadership skills that can further their own careers. A second cohort ran this past fall and the third will begin in January 2025.

The primary goal, says Deputy City Manager Paolo Beltran, is to deepen community engagement by helping participants find volunteer opportunities, reduce intimidation around civic involvement, or simply help people know their neighbors better. An ancillary goal is to cultivate future service organization leaders and even city elected officials or commission members.

"We believe our program is unique in that some cities have programs to introduce residents to the workings of the city, and others may have a career development leadership program," said Beltran. "But ours has both."

The first graduating class of 39 participated in a series of nine sessions, meeting once a month for a dinner session with a guest speaker, including elected officials, department heads, and local business owners or nonprofit leaders. The modules covered personal leadership development, as well as city government functions.

The personal leadership development modules focused on effective communication, collaborative team-building skills, work-life balance, networking, and diversity, equity, and inclusion training. Villarreal said these sessions were invaluable.

"Not only was I learning new skills, but it also gave me confidence in my abilities," he said. "I learned I had strengths in areas I never knew I had."

The program also introduced the participants to organizations in the city where they could flex their new leadership muscles and confidence. Villarreal was inspired to join the Rotary Club.

"I always wanted to help people outside work, in my own community, but didn't know how," he said.

The crash course in city government not only was informative, but it also exposed Villarreal to leaders in the public and private sectors. For example, a council member invited him for coffee to glean his insights on public safety. That connection led to Villarreal's nomination and appointment to the Los Angeles County Aviation Commission. Beltran said that at least 25 people from the first cohort became more civically involved, doing everything from organizing neighborhood block parties and joining city committees, to volunteering with service clubs and nonprofits.

Lakewood psychotherapist Carissa Karner formed the Well.Being Collective, a nonprofit that brings together wellness practitioners, such as massage therapists and meditation leaders, to build community around wellness and mental health awareness. She also formed a women's leadership group that sponsored several events in Lakewood.

She noted that one of the unexpected benefits of the academy was connecting with a diverse group of people, not only in terms of race and ethnicity, but also age and profession.

"I realized I was in my own Lakewood bubble, and I loved that through the academy I met people I wouldn't otherwise have met," said Karner, who later joined a local women's volunteer organization and the Lakewood Chamber of Commerce. "Now I feel so much more connected to my city."

Karner was not alone. "Many friendships were formed and to this day, subsets of the groups stayed in touch and get together," said Beltran.

This widening of circles has a downstream benefit for the city, he added.

"I gave the group an example [of] how when we have a new neighbor, my daughters bake banana bread, and we bring it over," he said. "This led several people to apply that same concept in their own neighborhoods. Over time, this helps build community cohesiveness and breaks down mistrust and barriers."

The participants were also introduced to local businesses, starting with the restaurants that catered each dinner. "Trying food from so many local restaurants I didn't know about was a delight," Kerner said. "Now I dine at pretty much all of them."

The group also toured the Lakewood mall, an important driver of the local economy but one with a mixed reputation. "By touring the mall, the participants learned how the mall keeps shoppers secure, and the importance of shopping at the mall, as sales there fund the city services we all use," Beltran said.

As the academy welcomes its third cohort, staff have made adjustments to the curriculum based on feedback from the first two. Beltran said most of all, the participants wanted more opportunities to cultivate relationships with each other, guest speakers, and city leaders. The city is contemplating making it a longer program or adding in regular networking sessions and periodic reunions.

Just a couple years in, says Beltran, the academy has already surpassed expectations and led to unexpected benefits. "An excellent byproduct is that several graduates have told us that because of their increased knowledge of city operations, they are taking advantage of city services they may not have used before," he said. "It's a win-win for everyone."

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