CTP Alumni News

Today the Sorensen Institute celebrates the continued success of our graduates at the polls.

Christopher Hilbert (Candidate Training Program Class of 2004) won re-election to the Richmond City Council from District 3 (unopposed).

Corey Stewart (Candidate Training Program Class of 2003) was elected Chairman of the Prince William County Board of Supervisors (This was a special election to fill a seat recently vacated by Sorensen Fellow Sean Connaughton, Political Leaders Program Class of Fall 1995, who was appointed by President Bush to serve as head of the U.S. Maritime Administration).

Evette L. Wilson (Candidate Training Program Class of 2002) was re-elected to the Richmond School Board from District 9 (unopposed).

We also want to congratulate and thank those Sorensen graduates who demonstrated great leadership by stepping forward to get involved—men and women who care very deeply about the Commonwealth and will surely find other ways in the future to serve the communities they love.

Jacqueline Jackson (Political Leaders Program Class of 2002) was an incumbent candidate for the Richmond City Council from District 8.

Jerry Miller (Candidate Training Program Class of 2004) was a candidate for the Richmond School Board from District 4.

Gail Parker (Candidate Training Program Class of 2003) was an Independent candidate for U.S. Senate here in Virginia.

Barbara Pryor (Political Leaders Program Class of Spring 1994, the first Sorensen class) was an Independent candidate for U.S. Congress in  the 6th District.

Jeanette Rishell (Candidate Training Program Class of 2006) was the Democratic candidate in a special election in the 50th District of the Virginia House of Delegates (a seat that was held for 24 years by Harry Parrish until he passed away in March).

Al Weed (Candidate Training Program Class of 2003) was the Democratic candidate for U.S. Congress in the 5th District.

Bedford County's Lewis Medlin, a graduate of the Candidate Training Program Class of 2006, is the subject of an article in today's Roanoke Times. Reporter Jay Conley writes:

With this year's general election only a few days away, a political
newcomer is already looking to next year's fall election for the 19th
District House of Delegates seat.

The district covers the city of Bedford, part of Bedford County and much of Botetourt County.

Lewis Medlin Jr. lives in Bedford County, where he runs a family
business in Montvale that manufactures metal brackets used in
commercial construction.

Medlin, 56, is seeking the Democratic Party nomination for the
November 2007 election, and could be a challenger to Lacey Putney, a
longtime independent who has served in the House of Delegates since
1962...

Medlin is interested in the state delegate position because delegates only meet for a few months each year.

"I'm needed here to keep this thing going with my father," he said of the family business. "I can't go full time" into politics.

But he's serious enough about running to have taken a three-day-long
candidate training program earlier this year at the Sorensen Institute
for Political Leadership at the University of Virginia.

"It helps you focus in on what actually you're trying to accomplish," Medlin said.

Click here to read the full article.

Vickie Williams (PLP 2005)

Sean O'Brien, Executive Director

Delegate John Cosgrove, State Board member and alumnus (PLP 1998)

Marc Johnson, Director of Youth Programs and alumnus (CLP 2003)

Andrew Almand (CLP 2006)

Carolyn Lincoln (PLP 2001, CTP 2002)
                        

Tim Heaphy (PLP 2005)

The Sorensen Institute congratulates Lonnie Craig, a graduate of the Political Leaders Program Class of 2000 and the Candidate Training Program Class of 1999. Lonnie was recently elected Chairman of the Chesapeake Health Authority. Lonnie will serve in that position for two years. A former chief of the Virginia Capitol Police and Virginia Port Authority, Lonnie has been a longtime active member of the Authority.

Congratulations are also due Dr. Cynthia Romero, a graduate of the Political Leaders Program Class of 2005, for having been elected president of the Chesapeake Health Medical Staff. She is the first female physician to hold that post. Way to go Cynthia!

The Sorensen Institute is celebrating gubernatorial appointments of two of our own today. Governor Tim Kaine recently announced that "Dr. Cheryl P. Talley of Harrisonburg will continue to serve as a member of the Board of the Frontier Culture Museum. Talley is an associate professor in the School of Psychology at James Madison University and commissioner for the Harrisonburg Redevelopment and Housing Authority Board of Directors." Talley is also a graduate of the Political Leaders Program Class of 2000 and the Candidate Training Program Class of 2002.

Governor Kaine also reappointed William L. Nusbaum of Norfolk to serve as chair of the Board of the Virginia College Building Authority. "Nusbaum is a partner at Williams Mullen. He is a past member of the Governor’s Advisory Committee on Small Business, and a former president and honorary life director of the Foodbank of Southeastern Virginia.: Nusbaum is also a graduate of the Candidate Training Program Class of 2001.

Jeanette Rishell of Manassass, a graduate of the Candidate Training Program Class of 2006, is the new Democratic nominee for the 50th seat in the Virginia House of Delegates. Click here to read coverage of the recent primary.

Rishell is running against Republican nominee and Manassass City Council member Jackson Miller. The election will be held on November 7.

Delegate Jennifer McClellan of Richmond recently joined Governor Tim Kaine for her first bill signing ceremony.

McClellan is a graduate of the Political Leaders Program Class of 2001, the Candidate Training Program Class of 2005, and a member of the Sorensen State Board.

Sorensen's Coy Barefoot interviewed Delegate McClellan this past Tuesday on his radio program. They discussed movement towards a compromise on the state budget as well as the new Virginia Civil Rights Memorial.

Click here to listen to that interview.

Congratulations to Delegate Jennifer McClellan of Richmond (shown at left with Governor Tim Kaine at our 2006 Gala). She was recently appointed by the Speaker of the House to serve on the Civil Rights Memorial Commission, the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Commission, and to the Board of Trustees of the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Living History and Public Policy Center.

Delegate McClellan was elected to the House of Delegates from the 71st District in 2005.

She is a graduate of the Sorensen Institute's Political Leaders Program Class of 2001, the Candidate Training Program Class of 2005, and a member of the Sorensen State Board.

The Sorensen Institute for Political Leadership is proud to announce the very latest numbers regarding the achievements and status of our alumni.

Political Leaders Program
Of the 408 graduates of the Political Leaders Program, 63 have served in elected office around the Commonwealth, including 10 Delegates and one state Senator; more than 40 have been appointed to state boards and commissions. Of our graduates, 380 still live and work in the Commonwealth.

Candidate Training Program
Of the 178 graduates of the Candidate Training Program, 43 have served in elected office around the Commonwealth, including six Delegates; 21 have been appointed to state boards and commissions. Of these CTP alumni, 152 still live and work in the Commonwealth.

PLP and CTP Alumni
40 people have participated in both the Political Leaders Program and the Candidate Training Program. Of those double-alumni, 11 have been elected to office including three members of the Virginia House of Delegates; nine have been appointed to boards or commissions.

College Leaders Program
Of the 137 graduates of the College Leaders Program, over 20 have served as Student Body President or Class President at their Universities.  23 of these alumni now work in public service (including in the Governor’s Office and in the White House), one is a Rhodes Scholar, eleven have served as Governor’s Fellows, and two have been appointed to state boards or commissions.

High School Leaders Program
Of the 62 graduates of the High School Leaders Program, 28 are still in school and 36 have graduated. 30 of those 36 graduates have gone on to Virginia colleges and universities, including the University of Virginia, Virginia Tech, the College of William & Mary, James Madison University, George Mason University, the University of Mary Washington and Virginia Commonwealth University.

Nearly 1,500 candidates stood for election yesterday across Virginia for mayor, city and town councils, and school boards. We are proud to say that of that number, 25 were graduates of the Sorensen Institute. Our alumni celebrating victory today include:

Paul Smedberg, a graduate of the Political Leaders Program Class of 2001, won re-election to the Alexandria City Council.

Dave Norris, a graduate of the Candidate Training Program Class of 2006, won election to the Charlottesville City Council.

Bryan Collins, a graduate of the Candidate Training Program Class of 2006 and a member of the Political Leaders Program Class of 2006, won election to the Chesapeake City Council.

Jay Leftwich, a graduate of the Political Leaders Program Class of 1996, won re-election to the City of Chesapeake School Board.

Edythe Frankel Kelleher, a graduate of the Political Leaders Program Class of 1997 and the Candidate Training Program Class of 2001, won re-election to the Vienna Town Council in Fairfax County.

Ted Byrd, a graduate of the Political Leaders Program Class of 1995, won election to the Harrisonburg City Council.

Craig O'Der, Jr., a graduate of the Political Leaders Program Class of 2000, won re-election to the Ridgeway Town Council in Henry County.

Bob Zoldos, a graduate of the Political Leaders Program Class of 1997, won re-election to the Lovettsville Town Council in Loudon County.

Scott Garrett, a graduate of the Candidate Training Program Class of 2006, won election to the Lynchburg City Council.

Earnest Porta, a graduate of the Candidate Training Program Class of 2005, won election as Mayor of the Town of Occoquan in Prince William County.

Jim Wood, a graduate of the Candidate Training Program Class of 2002, won re-election to the Virginia Beach City Council.

Linda Crandell, a graduate of the Political Leaders Program Class of 2005, won re-election to the Colonial Beach Town Council.

Congratulations to all the winners!