Saline Leadership InstituteBuilding A Community of Inspired Leaders

Saline Leadership Institute was founded in 1998 by Bill Lavery, Dan Stotz and Gretchen Driskell to help participants learn skills and tools to enhance personal, professional and community development.

Bill Lavery was the CEO of the Saline Hospital, Dan Stotz was the WCC Director of the Small Business Development Center and Gretchen Driskell was a Saline City Council Member prior to becoming the Mayor. Dan obtained a $10,000 grant from Gundar Myron, President of WCC, to fund the development of SLI which was and still is, based on Peter Senge’s Disciplines for a Learning Organization.

The first class, as the classes continue to be, was comprised of community members representing education, commerce, government, business and philanthropies in and around Saline. The members, along with the three individuals named above, worked together to complete the outline of what became SLI.

Each year since then, approximately 18 to 26 participants have enrolled in SLI classes. Today there are more than 500 graduates. 

Our Sponsor

SLI is sponsored by the Saline Coalition for a Quality Community (CQC) which was created in 1995.   Saline CQC works to create a network of cooperation and interconnectedness that promotes wise use of resources to serve the unique needs of our community. This is done by assessing community resources, facilitating groups working together and acting as a community clearinghouse.

This group serves as an umbrella non-profit for start-up groups beneficial to the Saline area community. Groups that have operated under the CQC include:

• • PUPS (Pick Up the Pace Saline!) – A group dedicated to improving the health of our citizens through physical activity, smoking cessation and healthy food choices
  • PACT (Parents and Community Together) – A group that supports Saline parents and community members in working together to provide a healthy and drug-free environment for our youth
  • 24 Hour Relay – An event held each year during Memorial Day weekend which raises funds for DARE, SADD and MADD
  • SLI – Saline Leadership Institute
  • The Community Gardens
  • The Mayor’s Task Force on Domestic Violence
  • The Fifth Corner Teen Center
  • The Saline Area Sustainability Circle

Organizations

Past SLI participants include individuals in city and township government, business and industry, education, churches, health and human services organizations and other non-profit groups.

Organizations represented by SLI participants have included: