As part of Greenlining's overall mission to impact state and national policy and secure community reinvestment on behalf of low-income and communities of color, the Greenlining Academy works to develop the next generation of multi-ethnic leaders and informed community members through its leadership training programs. The Academy promotes leadership in students who want hands-on public policy and advocacy experience and provides opportunities for them to acquire skills and build vital social networks that will enhance their effectiveness as future social justice leaders.

Established in 1996, the Greenlining Academy today is one of the most, if not the most, comprehensive, dynamic, and the largest multi-ethnic leadership training academies in the nation. Many of our students have gone on to be leaders in corporate America , in state and local government, and of grass-roots community organizing efforts. In 2007 alone, we will have trained over 100 new leaders.

The Greenlining Academy offers programs specifically for high school, college and graduate students, recent college graduates and graduates of law school. Academy programs are part educational and part experiential. Greenlining Academy experiences may include, but are not limited to, a main project assignment, oral presentation(s), leadership skills building, field site visits, a power lunch series with community, government and corporate leaders, and direct organizing and advocacy with Greenlining constituents.

Participants receive training workshops in public speaking, advocacy, critical thinking, business and policy brief writing, research and policy analysis. In addition, students are given hands-on training in which they are expected to make oral presentations before regulatory bodies and at legislative hearings; meet with CEO's and senior management of major corporations; and engage community leaders and policy makers in our state legislature. Greenlining Academy participants have spearheaded housing, consumer protection, health, economic development, and political reform policies through research, analysis, advocacy, and program implementation.

The Academy also supports the academic success of students at the University of California at Berkeley through Casa , a residential cooperative owned and operated by the Greenlining Institute.

And the Greenlining Academy experience does not end when the program is over. All participants are invited to become a part of the Greenlining Academy Alumni Association which has over 250 active members. Alumni are provided with opportunities for strategic networking through regional gatherings and an annual meeting and are a strategic ally in recruiting the next group of Academy participants.

For more information about the Greenlining Academy's programs, please visit the links below.