Connect Class Program

At Leadership Florida, our mission is to continually discover and convene committed individuals, enhancing and recharging their leadership skills by introducing them to a powerful community through whom they find knowledge and inspiration. We engage Floridians by providing essential information and a meaningful forum for their opinions and create opportunities for shared experiences that are inviting, inspiring, and of lasting value.

Leadership Florida Connect is the state’s only leadership program that spans industry boundaries and focuses solely on developing Florida’s existing and emerging leaders. Created in 2009 as a Leadership Florida® program, Connect has developed into the sought-after statewide institute for professionals ages 25 – 39. Leadership Florida Connect is comprised of five sessions over a nine-month period in different locations throughout our State. Each programming session focuses on key issues and opportunities that are specific to Florida while intertwining leadership skills and development. Connect selects a class of diverse leaders to participate in programming and experiences with the goal of becoming educated, engaged, and inspired to make Florida a better place while forming lifetime connections and bonds among classmates.

One of the most rewarding and lasting benefits of the program is the chance to spend valuable time interacting with other leaders from a variety of professions, philosophies, and geographies who represent Florida's diverse ethnic and racial composition. The program sessions provide ample experiences designed to facilitate the deepening of relationships among the Class members and thus extend the network of relationships that form the fabric of our statewide leadership.

Graduation from our classes does not signify the end, but the beginning of a lifetime of opportunity as a member of the Leadership Florida membership network. Leadership Florida convenes regular meetings, regional and statewide, to facilitate continuing issues-oriented education, advanced leadership training, networking, and the opportunity for members to work together toward shared goals.

The over 3,100 graduates of Leadership Florida programs are men and women who serve as chief executive officers of some of Florida's top corporations, mayors, and other elected officials, executives of pivotal non-profit groups, and leading academicians. They are also farmers, managers of high-tech consortiums, rural hospital administrators, and head Florida's most important agencies. They own small businesses and even include law enforcement officers in communities throughout our state. They are committed to local and state communities through their collective service on over 5,000 boards of companies and organizations throughout Florida.

2O23-2O24 CLASS SCHEDULE

SELECTION CRITERIA

The Leadership Florida Selection Committee, comprised of Leadership Florida graduates from throughout the state, seeks to identify those individuals most likely to utilize their leadership abilities for the long-term benefit of Florida and individuals who are committed to making Florida a better place in which to live and prosper. Through the application process, including discussions with references, the committee strives to select participants who will provide the Class with broad professional, geographic, ethnic, and gender representation.

The basic profile of and criteria for selection include:

• Senior-level leaders with significant achievements in career and community
• Sincere concern about the future of Florida and a personal commitment to help shape its future
• Demonstrated commitment to the community through past and present activities
• The potential for exercising substantial leadership in the future
• Willingness to commit the time and energy necessary to continue involvement in the organization

AGE REQUIREMENTS

Leadership Florida Connect and Cornerstone Program applicants must meet specific age requirements. The Leadership Florida Education Program has no age requirements.

Applicants must be 40 years of age or older to be eligible for the Cornerstone Class Program.

Applicants aged 25-39 are eligible for the Leadership Florida Connect Program.

The specified age is as of September 1 for the upcoming class year.  For example, for the 2022-2023 Program Year, the specified date is September 1, 2022.

PARTICIPATION

Participants are required to attend each session in its entirety to graduate with their class. Leadership Florida strictly enforces this policy.

TUITION AND PAYMENT POLICY

Tuition covers all of your registration fees, activities, local transportation, and most meals for the entire Leadership Florida Class program. The annual meeting registration fee and your first year of membership dues are also covered under your tuition.

Tuition does not include travel or hotel room fees for any of the sessions, including the Leadership Florida Annual Meeting.