LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- A training program is developing leaders in Louisville's international communities.
The Global Louisville Leadership Academy kicked off this year's cohort on Feb. 17. The free leadership training program empowers foreign-born leaders to help their communities.
Leonard Bungura is a leader in Louisville's Burundian community. He's one of 30 participants in the eight-month program.
"This training, I'm going to benefit a lot that I'm going to share with my members of the community, to also help those who are struggling," Bungura said. "The knowledge we get from this training will help us."
Participants gain an in-depth understanding of city government services and how to access community resources. It's led by Louisville Metro Government's Office for Immigrant Affairs.
Amos Izerimana, the Director of International and Immigrant Affairs for Louisville Metro Government, speaks at the Global Louisville Leadership Academy.
"It's really focused on helping people understand city government, the services, the structure, the various leaders and agencies in Metro," said Amos Izerimana, the Director of International and Immigrant Affairs. "We have a diverse international community in Louisville."
They'll learn about leadership development, civic engagement and volunteerism, along with working together on a group project. The participants will also learn from each other.
"For me, it's important to better incorporate folks who have language barriers to get them connected with opportunities," said Natasha Cummings, director of recruitment for LSS Holdings. Cummings is originally from Nassau in the Bahamas.
160 people have graduated from the program since its inception in 2020.
"We have people who have started nonprofits, we've had people who are a program manager and coordinator in their community, now they're an executive director for a nonprofit," Izerimana said. "When we are looking out for volunteers or community members who can assist with communications around an emergency like a tornado or snow storm, we've always had members who have participated in this program reach out and say what can I do to help. So that's really a success of the program."
The leaders plan to share what they learn from the classes with their communities.
"Because I have that love to help people, people who are newcomers, they don't know which way to use to ask for assistance," Bungura said.
The class gives leaders in various communities the chance to be connectors to newcomers of Louisville.
"We want participants who will go on to share the information that they're learning with their communities," Izerimana said. "With almost 10% of the population being foreign-born and half of that being non-English speaking, it's helpful to serve as ambassadors for the city to ensure that everybody who finds themselves here in Louisville can access the services we can provide."
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