Cobb completes state leadership program

Curt Cobb (File photo) [Click to enlarge]

Bedford County Clerk and Master Curt Cobb is one of 16 local government leaders who successfully completed the 17th annual Local Government Leadership Program last month at the Jimmy Naifeh Center for Effective Leadership, part of the University of Tennessee Institute for Public Service.

"I enjoyed it," said Cobb on Friday. "I thought it was a good opportunity to look at the local government perspective, and I got to network with a lot of people."

UT faculty and private consultants led the three-day, invitation-only program that focused on personal leadership, ethics, public education and state budget practices in Tennessee. The program ended Oct. 30.

Cobb, who was a state legislator before accepting the Clerk and Master job last summer, said he doesn't know that his background in making the laws gave him any unusual perspectives on the subject matter. But he said there's been a learning process since he took office.

"You start seeing the other side of stuff that you're not as close to," he said.

Cobb said instructors stressed the desire for more transparency between state and local government.

Other topics included how to deal with the media, Cobb said.

"LGLP gives elected and appointed government officials the opportunity to examine the best practices in leadership and to learn from their colleagues and counterparts across the state," said Tom Kohntopp, manager of leadership and executive development programs for the Naifeh Center for Effective Leadership, in a news release. "By coming together, we find that common issues face officials in East, Middle and West Tennessee. LGLP participants share ideas, and their conversations and advice can lead to new solutions for their communities."

Since it began in 1991, more than 400 people have completed the Local Government Leadership Program. This year, two officials from Mountain City attended the training on scholarships available through the state office of economic and community development.