27 U.S. mayors selected for seventh annual Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative

Forty mayors from around the world, including 27 U.S. mayors, and 80 senior municipal leaders will participate in the program established in 2017 by Bloomberg Philanthropies, Harvard Kennedy School and Harvard Business School.
The goal of the yearlong professional management program is to equip mayors and city leaders with tools and expertise to help them to better serve their constituents.

In a statement, Michael R. Bloomberg, founder of Bloomberg LP and Bloomberg Philanthropies and 108th mayor of New York, said: “Mayors face no shortage of urgent challenges right now—from poverty to climate change to public safety. This program is designed to help build their capacity to lead and empower them to act boldly. We look forward to working closely with this new class throughout the year and to seeing the results they’ll deliver for the millions of residents they serve.”

Participants kicked off their training in New York with a four-day immersive classroom experience. According to Bloomberg, two senior leaders from each of the cities will start their participation in August. Throughout the year, participants will work with Harvard faculty, staff and students, along with experts from Bloomberg Philanthropies’ global network. In addition to classroom, virtual and field-based learning, participants will have benefit from peer-to-peer collaboration and executive education programs focused on economic development, HR, procurement and civic engagement.

Mayors selected for this year’s program hail from nine countries across 6 continents. Forty-five percent of the mayors are from cities with populations of less than 200,000, 40 percent from cities with populations of 200,000 to 1 million people and 15 percent from cities with populations greater than 1 million. The 27 U.S. mayors represent a variety of cities from across the country, including 11 from California and four from Florida. The selected U.S. mayors are:

Ashleigh Aitken, Anaheim, Calif.
Rita Ali, Peoria, Ill.
Karen Bass, Los Angeles
Barbara Buffaloe, Columbia, Mo.
Ulises Cabrera, Moreno Valley, Calif.
John Carli, Vacaville, Calif.
Kimbley Craig, Salinas, Calif.
John Dailey, Tallahassee, Fla.
Craig Greenberg, Louisville, Ky.
Kevin Hartke, Chandler, Ariz.
Chris Hoy, Salem, Ore.
Phillip Jones, Newport News, Va.
Farrah Khan, Irvine, Calif.
Shannon Martin, Port St. Lucie, Fla.
Eduardo Martinez, Richmond, Calif.
Jared Nicholson, Lynn, Mass.
William Reynolds, Bethlehem, Pa.
Rex Richardson, Long Beach, Calif.
Jim Ross, Arlington, Texas
Mark Salinas, Hayward, Calif.
Curt Skoog, Overland Park, Kan.
Brett Smiley, Providence, R.I.
Bruce Teague, Iowa City, Iowa
Sheng Thao, Oakland, Calif.
Dean Trantalis, Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
Harvey Ward Jr., Gainesville, Fla.
Nancy Young, Tracy, Calif.