Carson graduates from Kellogg program

Special to The Canton News

Canton native Angela Carson is a recent graduate of the W.K. Kellogg Community Leadership Fellowship Program. A great accomplishment, she is one of eighty persons chosen nationally for this class of cohorts. Carson brings twenty years of management and training experience to her work building nonprofit, corporate and government organizational capacity. She founded her own business, Carson Consulting Services LLC, to “help clients develop their leadership skills and achieve their changemaking goals,” she explained. 

Carson is also the host of “Be in the Know” on WMGO radio, connecting residents with information and resources. A dedicated member of numerous boards, youth programs and community development initiatives, Carson is driving transformation in her community and beyond.

The Center for Creative Leadership (CCL®) and W.K. Kellogg Foundation  (WKKF) recently announced Class Two of the WKKF Community Leadership Network, a model program for  developing local leaders who can unite people to create transformational change toward a more equitable  society for all. 

The eighteen-month fellowship program brings together eighty dynamic and diverse leaders from across the United  States and sovereign tribes. The class is organized into cohorts based in Michigan, Mississippi, New  Mexico and New Orleans – the foundation’s priority places – along with one national cohort.  

“We are very impressed with the high caliber of these fellows, and we are excited to work with this talented new class to explore what’s possible for creating equity at the local, state, tribal, regional and national levels,” said CCL President and CEO John R. Ryan. CCL was asked to lead the program based on its fifty-year track record of cutting-edge research, practice and training that develops leaders for the benefit of society. 

Fellows come from all walks of life – tribal leaders, elected officials, health practitioners, youth advocates, educators, businesspeople, attorneys, civil rights activists, conservationists and faith leaders. The class includes a state senator, pediatric dentist, comedian, street food entrepreneur, doula and civil rights  historian. 

More than 800 people applied to the WKKF Community Leadership Network program. The inaugural class was held in 2014 to 2017.  

Through hands-on training, mentoring and practical experience, the fellowship prepares leaders to rise to the challenges of their time. The program offers opportunities to understand the embedded racism in systems and learn practical approaches to heal and unite communities around solutions.  
“Our founder understood that visionary leaders have the power to bring communities together and create lasting change for children,” said La June Montgomery Tabron, president and CEO of the Kellogg  Foundation. “Class Two is part of our legacy of developing local leaders. They join a network of  thousands of fellows that span decades of work in communities. Their ideas, passion and wisdom are crucial to creating equitable opportunity for children and families.” 

Fellows go on to lead meaningful change in their communities. Several have run for elected office,  including the mayor of Albuquerque and a city councilwoman in New Orleans, to create more equitable policies and foster economic growth that benefits the whole community. Alumni are also engaging Latino families to improve early childhood education in Michigan and advancing racial justice for African Americans in Mississippi.  

In addition, fellows become part of a vast network of 1,700+ alumni through the Kellogg Fellowship Leadership Alliance, who collectively are working to effect systemic change. 

The first fellows’ gathering will be held in Battle Creek, Michigan, in March 2019, where they will begin to get to know each other, explore their own leadership styles, learn ways to be agile in leading change and practice communicating with vision and purpose.  

For more about the WKKF Community Leadership Network with the Center for Creative Leadership and a complete list of fellows, visit wkkfcln.org.