The long-term vision behind the ISBA Leadership Academy.

Your Illinois State Bar Association continues to flourish because of the hard work and leadership of its committee and section council members, Board of Governors, and officers. We recognize that just as we learn to become lawyers through training, we become leaders by acquiring skills and accepting challenges.

Under the direction of Second Vice-President Anna Krolikowska, we have created a governing board of five talented lawyers with demonstrated leadership skills to strategically develop ISBA’s future leaders through the ISBA Leadership Academy. Governing board members J. Timothy Eaton, Athena Taite, Sonni Williams, Paul Osborne, and Daniel Thies have been working hard at organizing six intense programmatic sessions for the Academy’s first class of candidates.

This fall, up to 20 ISBA members will be notified of their selection into the Academy. The inaugural class will consist of members with three to 10 years of legal experience with a diversity of backgrounds and practice areas. The six sessions will be held throughout the state, commencing at the Midyear Meeting in December and ending with a graduation ceremony at the 2020 Annual Meeting in St Louis. (See the Illinois Bar Journal’s September 2019 cover story, “A Path to Leadership”).

The Academy is not a one-year venture. Our president-elect and two vice-presidents have committed to supporting the Academy as a continuing undertaking of the ISBA. They understand the importance of this project and the value of the continuing development of future leaders not only for the ISBA but for the communities in which we live. We look forward to providing prestigious programming and valuable experiences to our class members by conducting an in-depth and thoughtful analysis of the program so that we may continue to improve and leverage the talent the ISBA has in its membership.

Professional leadership trainers, judges, lawyers, and civic leaders will all join in this effort by presenting ideas and skills that can only benefit our participants in their future endeavors.

We ask that you give careful consideration to nominating yourself or a new lawyer for the Academy. While it will be impossible to accommodate all nominations this year, we hope to include as many nominees as possible—this year and in future years. For more information about the Academy and to nominate a candidate, visit the Leadership Academy page.