Northern Colorado is a remarkable place to live and work. Across our region, businesses are growing, communities are changing, new ideas are taking shape and people are working every day on questions involving workforce, education, infrastructure, housing and economic development.

All of this is inextricably connected.

People live in one community and work in another. Businesses serve customers across city limits. Our schools prepare the workforce that will support companies throughout the region. Transportation and infrastructure connect communities, employers and opportunity. The more we understand those connections, the more clearly we can see Northern Colorado as a whole.

That is one of the things I love about Leadership Northern Colorado.

For six months, LNC brings together leaders from different communities, industries and organizations and gives them an opportunity to explore the region they share. They meet the people shaping it. They learn about the institutions and systems that make it work. They hear perspectives different from their own and build relationships that can continue long after the program ends.

A familiar neighboring community becomes a place you understand more deeply. An issue you once encountered primarily through your own organization takes on another dimension. A name or organization you’ve heard about becomes a person you know and can call. That wider view is enormously valuable.

Last week, I described Leadership Northern Colorado as an investment in human capacity. It is. But the investment isn’t simply in developing capable individual leaders. It’s also in creating leaders who know their region, know one another and recognize the opportunities we share.

More than 400 people have graduated from Leadership Northern Colorado since the program began in 2010. Each has had the opportunity to spend six months discovering more about this place and the people helping shape it. Now we’re looking for the next 30.

Applications are open for the 2027 Leadership Northern Colorado class. Come see the region from a new perspective, and discover the role you might play in shaping what comes next.

Leadership Northern Colorado’s 2027 program is sponsored by Canvas Credit Union.

Up to 30 current and emerging leaders from throughout Northern Colorado will be selected to participate in the 2027 program, which begins in January and concludes in June.

Participants meet on the fourth Tuesday of each month for a day-long session exploring public governance, land use and infrastructure, education and workforce, economic development and regional leadership.

Tuition for the six-month program is $950 and includes all meals, session materials and graduation recognition.

Application deadline: Friday, October 23, 2026 at 5 p.m.

Questions about the program or application process may be sent to [email protected].