Leadership Las Vegas

Leadership Las Vegas class participants are selected every year from hundreds of applications. Leadership applicants come from all industries and job sectors and represent a cross‑section of the Las Vegas community.

Here is the most recent Leadership Las Vegas graduating class. The class of 2011 graduates join more than 1,000 other alumni who have successfully completed this award winning program since 1986.

Bruce W. Barnes Manager, Infrastructure Protection and Corporate Security NV Energy	Dana J. Berggren Vice President Cushman & Wakefield / Commerce Real Estate Solutions	Andrea T. Bricca Managing Director MLA Global
Melissa Cipriano Executive Director Candlelighters Childhood Cancer Foundation of Nevada	Jessica Connell Account Executive Connell Outdoor Advertising	Chanda R. Cook State Director Nevada Public Education Foundation
Chaka Crome Attorney/Partner Chesnoff & Schonfeld Law Firm	Heather N. DeSart Programs Manager, Adult & Dislocated Worker Workforce CONNECTIONS	Valerie G. Dodd Director of Consumer Field Marketing CenturyLink
Matt Engle Account Executive Cragin & Pike Insurance	Patricia Falvey Director of Endowment Fundraising Catholic Charities of Southern Nevada	Stacy Frank Co-Owner Desert Oral Surgery
Peggy Franzino Vice President, Membership Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce	Pearl Gallagher Attorney Lionel Sawyer & Collins	Mary K. Giuliano General Manager Vdara Hotel & Spa
Jeanne Goodrich Executive Director Las Vegas – Clark County Library District	James M. Harden Director/Founder Youth E.T.E.R.N.A.L.	Ted Hartwell Program Manager Desert Research Institute
Rick E. Hunt Employee Relations Manager Las Vegas Convention & Visitors Authority	Jeff B. Iverson General Manager Presidential Limousine	Franz A. Kallao Vice President of Hotel Operations The Mirage Resort and Casino
Dave B. Lester President Brown & Brown Insurance of Nevada, Inc.	Rolf H. Maile Vice President-Investment/Portfolio Manager UBS Financial Services, Inc.	Linda A. Marvin Principal Marvin Holdings, LLC
Jami L. Miller Assistant Principal, Educational Technology Campus Vegas PBS	Kelley Nyquist Attorney Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck, LLP	Bill R. Olsen Director, Infrastructure Services, IT&T NV Energy
Shannon Petersen Corporate Sales Manager/Senior Vice President Nevada State Bank	Christina Primack CEO Jewish Family Services Agency	Shelly D. Ratto Sales/Leasing Northcap Commercial, LLC
Linda K. Robinson Executive Director Vegas Weddings	Karen S. Rubel Vice President for Development Nathan Adelson Hospice Foundation	Lawrence Sands, DO, MPH Chief Health Officer Southern Nevada Health District
John M. Saycich Manager, Line Construction & Maintenance NV Energy	Edy Seaver President Tangerine Office Systems	Greta Seidman Marketing Manager Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce
Guerin Senter President Firebird Financial	Jane Silver – Bagford Director of Operations SuperPawn	Rachel Skidmore Senior Project Manager Urban Environmental Research, LLC
David J. Stoft Attorney McDonald Carano Wilson LLP	London M. Swinney Vice President of Table Games New York-New York Hotel & Casino	Rebecca L. Thomas Statistician Urban Environmental Research, LLC
Tahirih Toll Financial Advisor Anderson & Delutri at Merrill Lynch	Fletcher V. Whitwell Vice President, Media & Interactive R & R Partners	Amy Wiles Director of Development The Alexander Dawson School at Rainbow Mountain
Anthony Williams Vice President, Property Operations Excalibur Hotel and Casino	Nicole Wolf Director of Marketing & Communication Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health/Keep Memory Alive

The Leadership Las Vegas Council will select one alumnus that has gone above and beyond in their commitment to the Las Vegas community to be inducted into the  Leadership Las Vegas Hall of Fame.

Darcy K. Neighbors

2011 Hall of Fame Inductee

Darcy Neighbors, founder and CEO of CIM Marketing Partners, visited Child Haven with her Leadership Las Vegas class. Neighbors identified a need for providing new pajamas to the children who came to stay at the shelter. Recognizing this need in the community, she mobilized her Leadership classmates and proposed an event to fulfill this need as the official class project. With talent mobilized and a partnership with the local radio station, DJs for PJs was launched in 2003.

In its first yar, the Leadership Las Vegas Class of 2003 and a host celebrities, volunteers, and DJs collected 3,000 pairs of pajamas. Since its inception, DJs for PJs has collected and donated 57,527 new pajamas to non-profit organizations throughout the Las Vegas community. This event has catapulted into a major annual charitable event, collecting thousands of pajamas for underprivileged children.

2009 - Punam Mathur

"Change, whether managed or not, is inevitable. Community leaders are those who possess  a vision, spend the time to gain knwoledge, and then rally the energy to manage and direct the course to desirable outcomes."

2008 - Howard L. Skolnik

"A leader is someone people follow without being asked. He/She has a vision which others willingly share regarding where the organization is going."

2007 - Gina Polovina

"Leadership is the ability to perceive common things in an uncommon way coupled with the capacity to inspire others to strive toward a desired goal."

2006 - Valerie Wiener

"It starts with one person, one idea, and the unswerving determination to put a plan into action. That's leadership. When that person combines his or her talents and insight with other inventive, resourceful, committed individuals...that's Leadership Las Vegas."

2005 - John Wilcox

"A leader establishes a vision and motivates others to achieve it. They do so by demonstrating their personal commitment in every aspect of their life. A Leadership Las Vegas graduate is a teacher, a counselor, a motivator, a listener and a role model."

2004 - Henry Hoogland

"A man's accomplishments in life are the cumulative effect of his attention to detail."

Thank you to the following supporters for their commitment to the Leadership Las Vegas Class of 2012 and the development of the Las Vegas community.

2012 - 2013 Program Dates

• September 13 -15, 2012 - Opening Retreat: Gateway
• October 12, 2012 -History Day & Fall Mixer
• November 2, 2012** - Community Safety Net Day
• December 7, 2012** - Government, Politics & Media Day
• January 11, 2013 - Business Day
• February 8, 2013 - Education Day
• March 8, 2013 - Criminal Justice Day
• April 12, 2013 - Health Day
• May 9, 2013 - Recruitment Mixer
• May 10, 2013 - Gaming & Tourism Day
• June 14, 2013 - Closing Session
• June 21, 2013 - Graduation Gala (6 p.m. – 9 p.m.)

Valerie Weiner Mastering Media Relations/Presentation Skills Seminar - To be determined 

** Please note session is not the second Friday of the month.

About the Leadership Las Vegas Alumni Program

With more than 1,000 alumni, the Leadership Las Vegas program extends well beyond your class year. The Leadership Las Vegas Alumni Committee plans a full calendar to keep the connections you've made through the program, create new relationships with other alumni, access exclusive venues for special alumni activities and help recruit candidates for upcoming classes. Sponsorships are available for the alumni program.

Leadership Las Vegas Alumni Program Sponsorship Levels

Leadership Green $500 (Chamber membership required)

• Logo on all Leadership Las Vegas Alumni correspondence for entire year
• Logo on sponsorship board to be displayed at all Leadership Las Vegas Alumni events
• Sponsorship moment at one Leadership Las Vegas event
• Company materials made available at all Leadership Las Vegas Alumni events table
• Up to $100 of complimentary admission to Leadership Las Vegas Alumni events

Leadership Yellow $250 (Chamber membership required)

• Logo on all Leadership Las Vegas Alumni correspondence for entire year
• Logo on sponsorship board to be displayed at all Leadership Las Vegas Alumni Events

Leadership Blue $100 (Chamber membership required)

• Company name on all Leadership Las Vegas Alumni correspondence for entire year

Leadership Red (Individual & Class Participation)

• Chamber membership not required, but must be a Leadership Las Vegas graduate

Sponsorship monies are used to enhance Leadership Las Vegas Alumni programming and events and a portion to support the Leadership Las Vegas Scholarship Foundation. For additional information or to sign up for a sponsorship, contact Mindy Unger-Wadkins, class of '96 and Leadership Las Vegas Alumni Activities, Sponsorship Sub-Committee Chair, at 702.379.7845.

2011 - 2012 Alumni Committee

Brian Rice, '09 - Alumni Chair

Lori Andersen '95

Britta Carlson '07

Pat Falvey '11

Stacy Frank '11

Ted Hartwell '11

Rebecca Howell '07

Jean Jones '08

Aggie Knoblock '06

Donna Lauger '10

Joan McGee '10

Dawn Merritt '97

Greta Seidman '11

Mike Sexton '05

Wendy Sexton '10

Mahima Singh '10

Anne Smith '00

Robin Smith '06

David Stoft '11

Barry Thigpen '07

Mindy Unger Wadkins '96

Nicole Wolf '11