Thanks to our generous donors, three Michigan communities now have women leaders with the skills they need to make the best decisions for their communities!

The Women’s Municipal Leadership Program — part of the League’s 16/50 Project — is celebrating its third success story from the class of 2018.

Courtney Magaluk, WMLP 2018 graduate and project manager for the City of Grand Rapids, is now the Scottville city manager. She credits the program will giving her more confidence when applying for city manager roles.

“Part of that was the education in areas that I didn’t feel were my expertise, like finance,” Magaluk said. “It gave me greater confidence that I do have some familiarity on this.

“I felt better moving forward and speaking about the critical skills needed to secure a city manager position.”

The networking and access to an executive coach made the experience particularly valuable, she said, adding that she couldn’t have had the experience without the support from our donors.

“I really appreciated the support of the donors who made it possible for me,” Magaluk said. “We don’t go into local government for the money. I would not have been able to afford it.

“To have a program that was free — and so well put together — was huge for me.”

Already, Frances McMullan was hired as city manager after serving as the interim manager three times and Kim Awrey was promoted to assistant manager in Gaylord after completing the WMLP program.

The WMLP provides coaching, networking, budgeting and economic development training for women who want to lead their communities. It’s sponsored in part by the MML Foundation, thanks to generous donors like you.

Please consider making a gift today to help us continue to offer this valuable program.