JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — Experienced and emerging leaders from the St. Louis bi-state region came to Jefferson City this week to learn the ins and outs of politics beyond that of which is in a textbook.
FOCUS Leadership St. Louis and Coro Fellows in Public Affairs participants explored the Missouri Capital from a governmental and non-government perspective, meeting with elected officials, nonprofits, agency directors, and staff at every level.
“What I’ve observed is that the fellows, before they get here, know the by-the-book process. What it says on paper how a bill becomes law,” said Michelle Miller, director of Coro Fellows. “What they get out of this week, is sort of pulling back the layers and a deeper look at what happens: that’s complicated, that sometimes it’s messy, that there are human beings involved.”
This week participants in both programs have really gotten a behind the scenes look at how Missouri’s government operates on all levels. Participants got to talk with Senate Pro Tem Ron Richards, Lt. Gov. Mike Parson, Patrick McKenna, and dozens of other people immersed in the Capitol. They have gotten the opportunity to shadow employees in the Missouri Ethics Commission, Supreme Court, Attorney General’s Office, Department of Higher Education, and others.
This week has really reinforced the importance of civic engagement for Colin Dale, a Coro Fellow. For Zoe Brouns, also a Coro Fellow, she has gotten seeing how state affairs and state level politics really fits into the rest of the system.
“Before about a month ago probably, I’d never considered what the role of, for example, the Missouri Ethics Commission would be or what a Secretary of State actually does at a state level,” Brouns said. “That may be a very basic level, but saying what do they do, what are they about, and how they are working to get that stuff done, is how I think we are approaching this week.”
And just how “down to earth” everybody has been surprised Dale. Reading about people in a paper, seeing them on TV builds them up and were very nice and down to earth in person, he notes.
“The human factor in government doesn’t always make it into textbooks. So coming here and immersing themselves in the process, taking things they know academically and putting them forth in a practical sense, showing how they are interconnected, helps them better understand things,” said Miller.
Anthony Mitchell, who is in the LSL program, called the experience in the Capitol “great” and learning the different intricacies of the government has opened his mind.
“The process is so much more complicated and complex than expected,” said Mitchell. “My big takeaway is just how we all have to be invested in [the process].”
Leadership St. Louis is a nine-month program designed to prepare and build leadership resources and Coro Fellows is a full-time, nine-month, post-graduate program that brings highly talented, high-potential young leaders to St. Louis for an immersive, experiential learning process in the world of public affairs. There are 66 LSL participants and 12 Coro Fellows in this year’s classes.
Alisha Shurr was a reporter for The Missouri Times and The Missouri Times Magazine. She joined The Missouri Times in January 2018 after working as a copy editor for her hometown newspaper in Southern Oregon. Alisha is a graduate of Kansas State University.
