Bruce Duke Fellowship Fund

The Kettering Leadership Academy originally started as an idea proposed by City Councilman Bruce Duke. Councilman Duke saw the need for a Kettering focused leadership program after hearing from citizens and community groups who raised concerns about leadership in the community.

Councilman Duke then started the planning process by attending the 18th Annual National Leadership Conference in Omaha, Nebraska. Using ideas shared at the conference, Councilman Duke consulted with local and state leadership experts to shape a program for our community.

In the fall of 2003, the first Kettering Leadership Class embarked with a September retreat, followed by monthly classes leading up to graduation in May of 2004. Since its inception, the Kettering Leadership Academy has made a difference in over 200 students that have changed their community because of the workings of Councilman Bruce Duke.

To ensure this program remains robust and accessible to all individuals who would benefit from participating, the establishment of this fellowship will provide assistance to potential candidates without sufficient funds. This could include students, employees from non-profit organizations, retirees on a fixed income, or small business owners. An important part of KLA is to recruit a diverse group of participants to provide a variety of perspectives on the challenges our community faces. The administrators of the KLA program have worked hard to keep the cost of this program low. Tuition for comparable programs in the region can run upwards of $5,000. As costs of goods and services continue to increase, tuition costs will follow. Supplemental funds provided by this fellowship will ensure this program remains reasonable for all.