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The Executive Institute has earned the support of
many South Carolina leaders. Over 850 South Carolina government
executives, including corporate, non-profit, and local government
entities, are alumni of the South Carolina Executive Institute.
Here's what some of them think of the Institute:
“Very stimulating
discussion on real issues. Listening to the variety of opinions for
solutions I found quite interesting and especially as we got deeper in
to the gray area on issues. Every public servant executive or soon to
be executive should be given the opportunity to attend this insightful
course.”
Class of 2007 - James N. Openshaw, Budget
Director
The Citadel
“The course challenged
me to consider all perspectives of the case studies and to hear wide
ranging perspectives from my classmates. The professors were excellent
at helping me to understand theoretical and practical approaches to
public policy decisions.”
Class of 2007 - Bradley Anderson, Fire Chief
Columbia Fire Department
“The issues were thought
provoking and reaffirmed that there are significant gray areas. My
decision making process and how I evaluate situations will change. The
Institute allowed me to understand significantly more about “roles” in
the public sector and just how important that role is to our society.”
Class of 2006 - Jay Dowd, Vice President for
Development and Executive Director
Francis Marion University Foundation
"In addition to being exposed to 'top shelf'
academician's, the course gave me a perspective about government and
public service that I had never fully appreciated in my entire 26 [year]
career... The perspectives from the program have given me a new
confidence in my job as well as enthusiasm. It was a wonderful
experience."
Class of 2006 - Mark Williams, City Administrator
City of Forest Acres
"The curriculum and highly interactive sessions of the Institute have
strengthened my managerial skills. After reading the case studies,
my focus would be on several specific things, but once the class
discussions began and the participant's experiences intervened, my focus
was then broadened. In other words, the Institute helped me to
think "inside the box", as well as "outside the box" when it comes to
making decisions."
Class of 2006 - Elsie
Montgomery, Accounting Manager
Forestry Commission
"The Institute really helped me redefine my approach to my job. I
feel more confident in making decisions and helping others also in
leadership positions. ...The
Institute has exceeded my expectations for how much I learned during the
last eight months and what I bring back to my job."
Class of 2005 - Kathleen
M. Hayes, Director
Department of
Juvenile Justice
"The Executive Institute is a highly effective program; excellent course
content, instructors and staff. From one session to the next, I
could see the connectivity and opportunities to apply the principles of
other sessions to the current discussion issue. In fact, almost
unconscionably, I found myself applying or testing many of the
principles in my work environment during the course."
Class of 2005 -
Anonymous
“The Executive Institute
really helped me redefine my approach to my job. I feel more confident
in making decisions and helping others also in leadership positions. I
see the role of the Executive Institute as helping to tip the balance of
many of the participants in moving from role of competent manager to
leader….. This has been an outstanding experience.”
Class of 2005 - Anonymous
“The Institute increased
my understanding and knowledge of leadership and management of
state/civil employees. The discussions and lectures brought out ideas
and theories I had not thought of. ….Supposedly we are the future
leadership (if not current) of the State. The chance for us to get
together over the past eight months affords us the chance to meet and
work with these agency leaders was priceless. I will recommend the
Institute to other members of our agency.”
Class of 2005 - Anonymous
….“This is the 14th
Executive Institute class. You join about 700 Executive Institute alums
across the state. Folks that have been critical in shaping the nature
of South Carolina government…..Now I’ve got to tell you, I’m very biased
on the issue of the Executive Institute….I ask you to consider as an
advantage of this years class and any class graduating from the
Executive Institute is that you’ve been exposed to an extraordinarily
broad array of research and information sources….Without question this
is the finest state executive program in the country. How do I know
that? Brian Fry and I about four years ago actually did a study for the
International Journal of Public Administration, we published that and in
doing that process we looked at the thirty-seven other state programs,
we looked at them procedurally as well as substantively and we found on
almost every indicator…. that the South Carolina Executive Institute not
only surpassed, it truly dwarfed the efforts in the other states…..The
reason for that’s apparent, the strength of this curriculum, the quality
of the materials, the pedigree of the instructors….It’s also an
Institute that produces agency directors and people who will lead the
future of the state down the road.”
Dr. Fred Carter, President, Francis Marion University
March 20004 - Comments to the 2003-2004
Executive Institute graduating
class
"The combination of case studies and lectures is very effective. The
concepts built upon one another and at the end I felt it was all tied
together nicely. The whole experience left me wanting more….which in
this case is a good thing. I felt there is so much more I wanted to
learn and explore with the facilitators, presenters and classmates. It
piqued my mind.”
Class of 2004 - Mary Brantner, Communication Manager
Municipal Association of South Carolina
"The key to its exceptional effectiveness is primarily
due to the case study basis. They were diverse and all were
good--probably 90% were exceptional. The way the Institute is
organized makes for an important interactive participation...it makes it
a focused "hard working" experience."
Class of 2002 - John
Boudreaux, Chair
The Boudreaux Group
"Each case study during the course of the Institute introduced or
expounded upon a leadership and/or management skill. Of course,
the case study method would not be probably as effective without Dan
Fenn at the helm. He, in a matter of a few sessions, has taught me
that there are infinite number of perspectives to one problem and being
a public servant isn't so bad after all..."
Class of 2002 - Anonymous
"The Executive Institute has helped me view problems and challenges from a new
perspective. In the past, I thought I approached problems and
challenges with an open mind, considering all aspects before deciding on
a course of action. What I realized, thanks to the Institute, was
how heavily my experiences and beliefs influenced my thought process.
The case studies proved instrumental in this realization. In
addition, I recognized the need to continue probing (and being creative)
for answers. Previously, I would stop probing once I felt
comfortable about a conclusion or answer to a particular problem.
All in all, the Institute was a wonderful opportunity and I feel
fortunate to have been a part of it."
Class of 2000 - Philip Cromer, Risk and Safety
Services Manager
Municipal Association of South Carolina
"The Executive Institute exceeded expectations, curriculum content and
lectures were relevant to issues faced by today's managers. Made
participants think in a different way, expending their tools to deal
with issues they face daily."
Class of 1999 - Anonymous
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