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Bloomberg and Harvard Team Up to Train Mayors

For the nearly two out of three American citizens who live in cities, life could be about to improve – or at least get a little easier for their mayors.

For the nearly two out of three American citizens who live in cities, life could be about to improve – or at least get a little easier for their mayors. 

 

Traditionally, most training for mayoral roles has been on-the-job, with few formal opportunities to learn from their peers. On Thursday, however, Harvard University and former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s Bloomberg Philanthropies announced their plan to partner on a groundbreaking executive education program targeted at educating urban executives as many mayors take on increasingly ambitious challenges, responding to a perception of government gridlock and increasing urbanization. Nearly 63 percent of Americans live in cities, according to Census data. 

 

“This is a vitally important opportunity to advance the understanding of urban issues,” Harvard president Drew Faust said in a statement, “and to work with mayors and other public officials to bring discoveries from University research into communities across the nation and around the world.”

Bloomberg Philanthropies’ gift of $32 million will fund the Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative for four years, meaning it could train as many as 300 mayors and 400 staffers before the next presidential election. The organization will partner with Harvard's John F. Kennedy School of Government and Harvard Business School. 

 

Selected mayors and staffers will convene for several days at the beginning of the program, conference online each quarter, continue to receive year-long support and individualized coaching from former mayors.

 

The program’s founders hope that the support network and training provided by the program can help spur innovative solutions to contemporary problems, from student achievement to crime and incarceration rates, as mayors' responsibilities grow with their cities' increasing size and influence amid ongoing urbanization – not only in the United States but worldwide. 

Caroline Cournoyer is GOVERNING's senior web editor.
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