State Rep. Zack Hudgins, D-Tukwila, will participate in The Council of State Governments’ Henry Toll Fellowship program in August.
Hudgins is one of 48 leaders from 29 states, Puerto Rico and Guam chosen to represent the three branches of state government in the leadership development program. A 12-member committee of state leaders, many Toll Fellows themselves, reviewed applications and selected the class.
“I am always working hard to be the best representative I can be for my constituents,” Hudgins said in a press release from CSG. “The Toll Fellowship offers me the opportunity to learn and improve for my constituents.”
For 30 years, the Toll Fellowship program, named for CSG founder Henry Wolcott Toll, has brought together a group of the nation’s top state officials for an intensive, six-day, five-night intellectual boot camp. This year’s program is Aug. 26-31 in Lexington, Ky.
The program’s agenda includes speakers and sessions designed to stimulate personal assessment and growth, while providing networking and relationship-building opportunities. Each year’s program is unique, but previous programs have included sessions on leadership personality assessment, media training, crisis management, appreciative inquiry and adaptive leadership.
“The Toll Fellowship program provides elected officials with an invaluable and incomparable leadership development experience,” said David Adkins, CSG executive director and chief executive officer. “In addition, the program fosters lasting friendships among a diverse group of elected officials with a like-minded passion for public service.”
Toll Fellows alumni include Oregon Gov. Kate Brown; U.S. Rep. John Carney, a former Delaware lieutenant governor; Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey; Maine Secretary of State Matthew Dunlap; Tennessee Secretary of State Tre Hargett; Delaware Gov. Jack Markell; Arkansas Secretary of State Mark Martin; Alabama Secretary of State John Merrill; Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate; U.S. Rep. Todd Rokita, a former Indiana secretary of state; and former U.S. Labor Secretary Hilda Solis.
Hudgins said he wants to learn from other states and develop new processes and structures for bringing people together to solve common problems.
“It is too easy to talk about the hot topics or the big ideas when most governing is not exciting and is very complex and important,” he said. “Continuing leadership development should help address the nexus between the hot topics and the long-term good governing.”
The Council of State Governments is a region-based forum that fosters the exchange of insights and ideas to help state officials shape public policy. CSG is the nation’s only organization that serves all three branches of state government. For more information, visit csg.org.
