Alexandria Mayor Alyia Gaskins says her participation in a recent gathering of local leaders around the world at Harvard University was “transformative” and shared a story about confronting a property manager over mold.
From April 12-14, Gaskins was included in the ninth cohort of the Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative, joining leaders from 45 cities and 16 countries to exchange insights on local governance. She now says that the initiative has inspired her to focus more of her efforts on workforce development. Alexandria was also chosen for an “innovation track,” through which city staff will have the opportunity to learn how to better use data and innovation to work with residents and employers to enhance existing workforce strategies and explore new ones.