Transformational Connections with Leadership Iowa

Leadership Iowa 2025-2026 Nominations Due April 1, 2025

The benefits of Leadership Iowa, the ABI Foundation’s premier statewide issues-awareness program, transcend well-beyond exploration of our great state. The program serves as the foundation for lasting connections that enrich the lives of participants both personally and professionally.

Throughout the nine-month program, attendees engage in candid discussions, shared experiences, and collaborative projects that cultivate trust and camaraderie. These interactions lay the groundwork for meaningful friendships and foster a network of trusted confidants representing diverse industries, backgrounds, and communities across Iowa.

These same connections have been known to evolve into collaborative business partnerships and professional alliances. Whether launching joint ventures, exchanging expertise, or offering career support, participants can leverage their network to enhance opportunities for themselves and others.

“Throughout the Leadership Iowa program, I had the opportunity to connect with classmates who are also professional peers from across the state. Even now, we continue to exchange advice and collaborate on common challenges, despite being on opposite sides of Iowa,” said Ryan Waller (LI ’23-24; City of Marion). “One unexpected benefit has been the cross-industry collaboration. It’s opened my eyes to just how interconnected our work really is.

These connections also extend far beyond business and professional ties, however. The program’s legacy is one of enduring community – an interconnected group of leaders dedicated to supporting one another even with personal challenges, community involvement and more.

“My wife and I founded a nonprofit foundation, Do Better. Be Better, to support families facing medical emergencies in and around the Cedar Valley,” said Patrick Smith (LI ’21-22; First Bank). “I could have never anticipated that my LI class members would become some of our most dedicated supporters. I’m so grateful for this network, one I am proud to call family”.

The program’s immersive nature fosters deep bonds among class members, bonds that not only serve as the backbone of a vibrant professional network, but also create a support system that extends far beyond the nine-month program. To recognize an exceptional leader and help them join this transformative community, or to be a part of this experience yourself, nominations and self-nominations are accepted now through April 1 at www.LeadershipIowa.com.