Civic Leadership
Strengthening civic leadership throughout Arizona, particularly at the state level.
The Arizona Center for Civic Leadership
The Arizona Center for Civic Leadership strengthens civic leadership throughout Arizona, particularly at the state level, through in-person programs and publications on issues and leadership. The independent, nonpartisan Center is part of the Flinn Foundation. The Flinn-Brown Fellowship, the Center’s flagship program, selects Arizonans from all perspectives and walks of life each year for a high-level, 14-session seminar series, membership in the Flinn-Brown Network, and long-term support for state-level public service. The 2020 Flinn-Brown seminar series is accepting applications through April 27. The Thomas R. Brown Foundations of Tucson provides generous co-sponsorship resources for the Flinn-Brown Fellowship.
Apply for 2020 Flinn-Brown Fellowship by April 27
The Flinn-Brown Fellowship, Arizona’s premier statewide civic-leadership program dedicated to preparing emerging and established leaders to enter all levels of public service, is seeking applicants for its 2020 Flinn-Brown seminar series.
The deadline to apply is Monday, April 27.
The Fellowship provides unparalleled learning about Arizona policy and politics; connections with top state leaders and policy experts; membership in the powerful Flinn-Brown Network; and personalized long-term civic leadership support. About 25 Arizonans will be selected in a thoughtful and competitive process. [Learn more]
Flinn Foundation names state-government executive Dawn Wallace to direct civic-leadership program
Dawn Wallace, a public-policy expert who has advised Republican and Democratic governors and guided policy development in both houses of the Arizona Legislature, is joining the Flinn Foundation as its new Vice President, Civic Leadership. Wallace will begin her new role March 23. The application for the 2020 cohort of the Flinn-Brown Fellowship will open two weeks later, on April 6.
Wallace served in the office of Arizona Governor Doug Ducey for more than four years, including leading the development of the Governor’s P-20 education agenda. Most recently, Wallace completed a short-term role as the education-policy advisor to the president of the Arizona State Senate. Her previous experience includes a stint as director of government relations for the Maricopa County Community College District and policy-advisor roles in the Arizona House of Representatives and State Senate. [Read more]
Nancy Welch retires after nearly a decade leading statewide civic-leadership program
Nancy Welch led the effort over the last nine-plus years to create Arizona’s leading statewide civic-leadership program through the development of the Arizona Center for Civic Leadership and its Flinn-Brown Fellowship. Welch, who retired at the end of 2019, was hired by the Flinn Foundation in October 2010 as the inaugural director of the center.
Welch constantly innovated to ensure a relevant, timely program for Arizonans on their way to becoming state-level civic leaders. As the program director, Welch developed the Flinn-Brown seminars that have attracted more than 350 Flinn-Brown Fellows and provided opportunities to strengthen connections among Fellows with the creation of the Flinn-Brown Network. Welch also created “Strong Foundations” as a guide for civic leaders and wrote detailed policy pieces, including “Choices, mechanics, and competition: The many facets of voting in Arizona.” [Read more]
Coronavirus outbreak brings work of Flinn-Brown Fellow Jessica Rigler into the public eye
Flinn-Brown Fellow Jessica Rigler, an assistant director overseeing the division of public health preparedness at the Arizona Department of Health Services, was at the forefront of identifying and responding to Arizona’s first case of the 2019 Novel Coronavirus.
As part of her role at ADHS, Rigler provides public health information to the Arizona Legislature, helps inform ADHS’ policy direction, and champions public health issues. She is also responsible for leading the state’s preparedness for a possible infectious disease outbreak and sharing critical information with the public. Rigler said her selection to Flinn-Brown has led to new connections with health experts and organization leaders. [Read more]
Flinn-Brown Fellows, former Flinn Foundation staff appointed by governor to high-ranking state positions
Two Flinn-Brown Fellows and the former senior program manager of the Arizona Center for Civic Leadership at the Flinn Foundation were appointed by Gov. Doug Ducey to high-level state positions.
Ducey appointed Flinn-Brown Fellow Daniel Ruiz as the state’s chief operating officer and Fellow Trista Guzman-Glover as the director of boards and commissions. Emily Rajakovich, who had served as director of boards and commissions since 2017 after working for the Flinn Foundation, is the new state human resources director at the Arizona Department of Administration. [Read more]
Flinn-Brown Fellow and Flinn Scholar Sarah Coles advocates for today’s patients and tomorrow’s doctors
Dr. Sarah Coles, a Flinn-Brown Fellow, is a physician, educator, curriculum developer, policy expert, a member of state and national boards, and overall advocate for patient health. She exercises her civic leadership through activity around health-care policy at the state and national level and works alongside community organizations and government agencies.
“I use the skills I learned in Flinn-Brown every single day,” Coles says. “For people interested in health care and who want to have an impact on the health of their communities at large or advocate for a profession and patient, Flinn-Brown prepared me to do that and enhanced the skills necessary to be successful.” [Read more]
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News and Updates
Civic Leadership
Flinn-Brown Fellowship application now open
The Flinn-Brown Fellowship, Arizona’s premier statewide civic-leadership program, dedicated to preparing emerging and established leaders to enter all levels of public service, is seeking applicants for its 2020 Flinn-Brown seminar series. Applications and letters of endorsement are due Monday, April 27. About 25 Arizonans will be selected through a thoughtful and competitive process to join […]
Civic Leadership
Flinn Foundation names state-government executive Dawn Wallace to direct civic-leadership program
Dawn Wallace, a public-policy expert who has advised Republican and Democratic governors and guided policy development in both houses of the Arizona Legislature, is joining the Flinn Foundation as its new Vice President, Civic Leadership. Wallace succeeds Nancy Welch, who retired in December after guiding the Flinn Foundation’s statewide civic-leadership program from its launch to broad recognition as Arizona’s premier initiative preparing leaders for state-level public service. Wallace will begin her new role March 23. The application for the 2020 cohort of the Flinn-Brown Fellowship will open two weeks later, on April 6. Wallace served […]
Civic Leadership
Nancy Welch retires after nearly a decade leading statewide civic-leadership program
Nancy Welch led the effort over the last nine-plus years to create Arizona’s leading statewide civic-leadership program through the development of the Arizona Center for Civic Leadership and its Flinn-Brown Fellowship. Welch, who retired at the end of 2019, was hired by the Flinn Foundation in October 2010 as the inaugural director of the center. […]
Civic Leadership
Flinn Foundation issues grant to support COVID-19 testing, cancels events
Conference center closes, staff to work from home Responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Phoenix-based Flinn Foundation has issued an emergency $100,000 grant to the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) to support population-based testing of the novel coronavirus in Arizona and to help TGen immediately and dramatically ramp up its capacity to analyze individual samples for the disease. Meanwhile, following guidance from the U.S. Centers for Disease […]
For information about Civic Leadership, please contact:
civicleadership@flinn.org or (602) 744-6832
Dawn Wallace
Vice President, Civic Leadership
Sara Larsen
Program Manager, Arizona Center for Civic Leadership
Linda Kissel
Executive Assistant & Civic Leadership Program Coordinator