Established in 1987, in cooperation with the Hagerstown/Washington County Chamber of Commerce, the mission of Leadership Washington County (formerly known as Leadership Hagerstown), is to enhance the quality of life of the community by enhancing the quality of its leaders.

This is done by giving participants an opportunity to delve into the challenges facing our community. It all starts with a weekend retreat followed by nine months of intensive community orientation and involvement. Over the course of nine-months as participants meet, up close and personal, with prominent speakers and area experts, discussing issues facing the greater Hagerstown area -- issues including economic development, health and human services, criminal justice, education, history, state and local politics, culture and quality of life.

While there are certain elements that are mainstays and follow fairly consistent patterns such as leadership development and boardsmanship, each class is itself responsible for designing the curriculum and arranging the day’s events. Participants are thus key stakeholders in the experience and the experience of each class is different. Each program day, each presentation of an issue is a reflection of that class’s participants perspective and their unique experiences and expertise. For instance, Class XIX developed a poverty simulation. Participants were divided into groups and each group was presented with a different scenario. One group had to walk in the shoes of a single mom who lost her job, was behind in the rent, facing eviction, and desperately needed to obtain food stamps to feed her baby. The group had to walk from agency to agency in search of answers . . . just as an individual in that situation would have to do. It was an eye opening experience for many. And opening eyes, opening minds is what Leadership Washington County is about. Another class project had members become certified in emergency preparedness.

After nine months of intensive study and dialogue, individuals who go through the program have a comprehensive knowledge and understanding of the complexity of the community and are uniquely positioned to make meaningful contributions. And it works -- as witnessed by the number of individuals from within the ranks of Leadership Washington graduates:

• that chair community projects
• that serve on boards
• that volunteer their time
• and that give, that invest in the greater Hagerstown area . . . and the future of Washington County

THE APPLICATION PROCESS - click here to apply
Participants are nominated and selected on the basis of a past demonstration and ongoing commitment to the ideals of trusteeship, volunteerism, and making our community a better place.

TUITION
Tuition is $1,500 and may be paid by the individual or the sponsoring business or organization. A limited number of partial scholarships are available each year for individuals who might not otherwise be able to participate.

CLASS SIZE
To ensure the quality of the experience, class size is limited. No more than 35 individuals are invited to participate. Individuals are selected from business, government, education, not-for-profit and for-profit organizations.