Leadership Skagit

04/11/2026

Members of Mount Vernon High School's speech and debate team knocked it out of the park today as they presented as part of Arts & Culture Day at the lovely La Conner Civic Garden Club.

04/07/2026

When you join Leadership Skagit you embark on a nine-month journey designed to equip you with the knowledge, skills, and connections to become an even more impactful leader in our community. Our alumni include elected officials, business owners, executives, and dedicated community members – all committed to making a real difference right here in Skagit County.

Ready to get started? Take five minutes to fill out the Part 1 application: https://tinyurl.com/yc89tt8r

Leadership Skagit is a program of EDASC in partnership with Skagit Valley College.

04/01/2026

No foolin'! If you're planning on applying for the 2026-27 class of Leadership Skagit, the deadline is April 30.

Get started with your application here: https://tinyurl.com/yc89tt8r

03/19/2026

If you're thinking about applying for Leadership Skagit and want to know more about the curriculum and time commitment from someone who's been there, schedule a "Coffee & Chat." You'll meet with a program representative and alumni who can give you the inside scoop! Email [email protected] to get started.

Leadership Skagit is a program of EDASC in partnership with Skagit Valley College.

03/17/2026

Last week was the Economic Vitality Challenge Day. The Class of 2026 spent time touring the NW Innovation Resource Center IRC Lab-SWIFT, as spending time at the Port of Skagit's SWIFT Center and touring Janicki's Sedro-Woolley location. Not only getting to hear from business leaders but also see their facilities is part of the Leadership Skagit magic!

Special thanks to the Cascades Job Corps culinary students for providing lunch!

03/13/2026

Thank you to Christina Adams, LS '25, and Jason Wells, LS '24, for speaking about their experiences with Leadership Skagit at this week's info night for prospective participants.

If you're interested in being part of Leadership Skagit for the 2026-27 program year, you can get started here: https://tinyurl.com/yc89tt8r

03/04/2026

Your Leadership Skagit Class of 2026. It's hard to believe that the year has gone by so quickly and they will be graduating from the program in just three months!

03/03/2026

It's that time of year! We are now accepting applications for the Leadership Skagit Class of 2027 (September 2026 start). If you've been wanting to learn more about this community leadership development program or know someone who you think would be a great fit, we have an information session 4:30-6 p.m. on March 10 at the Burlington Coconut Kenny's. It's free to attend, but we would appreciate your rsvp: https://tinyurl.com/4bxaa5x3

Leadership Skagit is a program of the Economic Development Alliance of Skagit County - EDASC in partnership with Skagit Valley College.

01/15/2026

We love to see Leadership Skagit participants stepping up! Congrats, Ian!

We are proud to announce our 2026-2027 Ambassador Chair

Ian Houben is the Director of Philanthropy at Skagit Habitat for Humanity, where he creates strategies that secure funding for the organization’s local affordable homeownership programs. Before taking this position in 2024, Ian had 10 years of leadership experience working with teams in diverse business settings between Seattle and Bellingham. He holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Economics from Western Washington University and an MBA with a focus on Data Analysis from Louisiana State University-Shreveport.

Ian moved to Mount Vernon from Whatcom County with his wife, Mary, and his daughter, Morgan (aka Mo) in 2020. They love to travel, read, and go on nature walks around Skagit County. Ian enjoys tasting fine scotch and watching baseball and will likely talk your ear off about the differences between a Speyside whisky and an Islay or some nerdy baseball statistic you’ve never heard of, so be wary of these topics around him.

In addition to his work in the community, Ian has volunteered for 10 years with New Generation Haiti, a nonprofit organization based in Lynden, WA that focuses on community development in the Caribbean nation of Haiti. Ian and Mary traveled to Haiti in 2015, living there for 7 months to build relationships, assist with operations, and develop educational and entrepreneurial programs. They have remained active with the organization’s sponsorship program, events, and development initiatives. Ian is currently the outgoing President of the Board of Directors for New Generation Haiti.

Currently, Ian is a member of the 2026 Leadership Skagit cohort through Economic Development Alliance of Skagit County - EDASC and Skagit Valley College and the 2026 - 2027 chair of the Mount Vernon Chamber Ambassadors. Ian loves working with a team to solve problems and develop new strategies and is grateful to get to know so many incredible people in the community through the Mount Vernon Chamber of Commerce

01/07/2026

Congratulations to LS '24 grad Luke Currier, a new Anacortes City Council member!

11/07/2025

One of our current participants 😊

Swinomish Member Spotlight ➡️Amanda Washington is Pursuing Knowledge to Help Future Generations

Amanda Washington recently enrolled in Leadership Skagit, a program designed to equip participants with the knowledge, skills, and connections to become more impactful leaders.

Participants learn key insights into the interconnection of important county-wide strengths and needs, are educated on various aspects of justice, equity, diversity and inclusion, and enjoy an expansion of their personal and professional networks. The nine-month program culminates with a service project in which participants work in groups to choose, plan, and complete a project utilizing the skills they learned.

Amanda was encouraged to apply for the leadership program while working for Swinomish Workforce Development. She says, “My hope in participating in this program is that I can learn more ways to help our people and our community, along with surrounding communities, so we can all gain the knowledge to share with future generations.”

Learn more about Leadership Skagit at skagit.org/our-services/ls

Read this story and more in the October/November 2025 qyuuyqs News --> https://sitcgov.us/qyuuqsNews