As public agencies working to meet the needs and complexities of our communities, it’s not okay to be good enough. We need to be better than that. We need to strive to be the best we can be – and that requires ongoing professional development training.

Finding worthwhile professional development opportunities designed for county elected officials, executives and staff can be a challenge. Finding these opportunities close to our rural counties in Northern California is downright impossible. Well, it was until the CSAC Institute for Excellence in County Government opened up its north state campus.

Shasta and Tehama Counties worked together to bring the campus to the north state. We are excited to invite county leaders and staff from our neighboring counties to join us in Redding. The interaction of staff from multiple agencies enhances the sharing of experiences and encourages participants to relax and be more engaged.

County elected officials and staff have regularly driven that long haul down to Sacramento to attend courses. Our northern campus, however, reduces staff time and expenses, which can be very important to rural counties that have tight budgets. Now it’s more convenient to attend courses from a variety of area counties, including Trinity, Siskiyou, Lassen, Glenn, Butte, Plumas, Humboldt, Del Norte and Modoc.

We are kicking off our second 10-course credential program at our Shasta/Tehama campus. Our first year was a success as 15 staff members received their Institute credentials, with class attendance averaging more than 40 students. The rest of the Winter/Spring course schedule at our campus includes the following courses:

• Local Governance in California on Feb. 14
• Art and Practice of Organizational Leadership on March 14
• Intergenerational Leadership on April 11
• Leading with Emotional Intelligence on May 9
• County Financial Reporting for Nonprofessionals on June 13

Participants can take a solo course or work toward their credential, which requires attending 10 courses.

As county executives, we are ecstatic how the Institute is providing the training we need. Here are just a few of the comments we have heard from staff who have taken courses at our campus.

“I learned a lot in this class … and I liked the practical tips that were given throughout the day. These are tips that I can implement with my staff immediately.”

“The class helped me gain tools to support my agency and my team.”

“The course provided the opportunity to talk about struggle of wanting to make changes that I believe will benefit organization and the resistance encountered.”

We invite our colleagues from rural Northern California to join us for one or more courses, or send staff. We are more than happy to talk about how the CSAC Institute is making a positive impact in our counties.