by David Ball
Staff Writer
David Stevens, Carolyn Broughton and John Rafferty make it their business to know Jacksonville inside and out.
Stevens, a native, has likely seen the most as a 28-year veteran of the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, where he now serves as Chief of Patrol East.
Broughton honed her knowledge as a local TV reporter, and she gained an inside view of municipal government as the City’s Public Information Administrator and Cable Franchise Manager.
When area news happens, Rafferty sees it as Vice President and General Manager of Ch. 4.
But they all expect there is more to see and learn about Jacksonville, and they hope to uncover it through this year’s Leadership Jacksonville program, which since 1976 has been carrying out a core mission of producing “community trustees who improve the quality of life for self, family and community.”
“I have access to a lot of things others may not have,” said Rafferty. “But to do something like Leadership Jacksonville, it’s an opportunity to get even more perspective about where I live and work.”
Class members will get that perspective through 15 days of activities and programs spanning from now until May 2008. Topics include city poverty, education, social justice, health, economy, arts and several team and leadership building courses.
The program began under Fred Schultz with financial support from the Junior League of Jacksonville, the Jacksonville Regional Chamber of Commerce and the Jacksonville Community Council Inc. The first class graduated 29 members in 1977.
Thirty years later, more than 1,350 members have graduated from Leadership Jacksonville Inc., which has a full-time staff led by Executive Director Isabelle Spence and has incorporated new programs for youth and collegiate leadership, an annual leadership summit and school leadership workshops.
Mayors, sheriffs, and many business and political leaders make up a select fraternity of Leadership Jacksonville alumni. This year, more than 200 people applied for the class and 50 were accepted.
Stevens first applied in 2002 when he was president of the Fraternal Order of Police and came with recommendations from then-Sheriff Nat Glover and former Mayor John Delaney. He didn’t get in.
“It’s not easy, because I felt like I had a pretty good shot with those two guys recommending me,” said Stevens. “Then Sheriff [John] Rutherford made it happen for me this year.”
Leadership Jacksonville President Sandra Ramsey said her group looks for several factors when choosing applicants that result in a very diverse class that closely resembles the demographic makeup of the city. Of the 50 members of the current class, 24 are female and 10 are non-white.
“A diverse class often makes for a better sharing of ideas,” said Ramsey. “We also look for emerging leaders who we can help crystallize their views.”
One of those leaders was Mayor John Peyton, who was the guest speaker at the Leadership Jacksonville reunion luncheon on Monday that attracted 190 alumni. Even if there was no budget crisis to stump on, Peyton said he still would’ve attended the reunion as he does every year to catch up on his class of ‘91.
“We’re the best class,” said Peyton, touching on a hotly contested item amongst the alumni.
He said Leadership Jacksonville gave him an invaluable education about the city.
“This is the closet thing to getting a master’s degree on Jacksonville you can get,” he said. “They instill trusteeship and ownership of this community into the members.”
The relationships and bonds forged by the different classes remain strong over the years, said class of ‘95 alumni Pete Helow.
“Here we are 12 years later, and they come up and hug me as if we just got out of class,” said Helow. “The Leadership Web site will let you track other alumni and search for your friends. People tend to stay in very close contact after going through.”
As Broughton prepares for her trip through the program, she said she’s already been welcomed by alumni and told of the experience that awaits her.
“Within days (of being accepted) I was getting e-mails and phone calls from other graduates congratulating me and telling me all that I would learn about the community and that I would make friends for life,” she said. “It’s just been great so far.”
But Broughton, Rafferty and Stevens said they know they will only get out of the program what they put in, and each has different skill sets and experiences they bring to the collective knowledge of their class.
Broughton said she hopes to educate more people on the workings of city government, while Rafferty said he wants to learn more about Jacksonville’s history in order to learn where it’s headed.
As for Stevens, he said he would like to give ride-alongs to all his classmates to experience the city from a law enforcement perspective. As for possibly motivating him to run for Sheriff, as he said the experience did for Rutherford, Stevens said only time would tell.
“That’s not my purpose for being involved,” Stevens said, “but if one day I did look at that, these folks in Leadership Jacksonville would be the ones that I would want to talk to.”