Mayor Lily Mei is ready to explore the latest in leadership and management practices, as one of 38 mayors chosen for an intensive education program with the Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative. 

As a member of the Initiative’s Class of 2021-22, Mayor Mei is in a cohort of mayors participating in a program delivered by faculty from Harvard Business School and Harvard Kennedy School as well as world-class experts from Bloomberg Philanthropies’ global network. 

The yearlong program launched with a three-day in-person training session in New York City, on Sunday, September 26, 2021.  Mayor Mei is attending at no cost to the City. Each day of the convening, mayors will attend classroom sessions focused on the latest management and leadership practices, using case studies and workshops developed at Harvard. 

“Being chosen for the Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative is an honor.  I’m looking forward to the next year as an opportunity to meet with city leaders, exchange ideas, and discuss how best to approach solving pressing problems for our communities,” stated Mayor Lily Mei.  “I believe the program will help enhance our leadership team’s capabilities to work on our City’s areas of priority including financial health, continued response to COVID-19, addressing homelessness, and neighborhood improvement, not to mention connecting me with other mayors with innovative approaches to similar issues in their own cities.” 

Michael R. Bloomberg, founder Bloomberg Philanthropies and three-term mayor of New York City, collaborated with Harvard University leadership to create the Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative in 2017. 

Collectively, Harvard University and Bloomberg Philanthropies aim to help mayors and their leadership teams manage the complexities of running a city, and to give these leaders opportunities to learn from one another. The Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative will connect Mayor Mei to some of the university’s top educators, coaching from experts, a network of peers, and technical assistance. The program provides an opportunity to share practices and learn from fellow mayors about the promising ideas that are helping to enhance the quality of life in cities around the world. 

After the mayors convening, two senior-level city officials nominated by each mayor will attend a convening in October and attend virtual classes throughout the year. From Fremont, Community Services Director Suzanne Wolf and Information Technology Services Director Sanford Taylor were selected to participate in the yearlong program and help Mayor Mei translate what they learn into organizational changes that improve life in Fremont. 

Mayor Mei’s participation in the Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative, and that of Suzanne Wolf and Sanford Taylor – including tuition, accommodation, meals, and airfare – is fully funded by the program thanks to Bloomberg Philanthropies. 

The Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative is the Flagship Program of the newly announced Bloomberg Center for Cities at Harvard University, and a collaboration between Harvard Kennedy School, Harvard Business School, and Bloomberg Philanthropies to equip mayors and senior city officials to tackle complex challenges in their cities and improve the quality of life of their residents. Launched in 2017, the initiative has worked with 400 mayors and 1,300 senior city officials in 478 cities worldwide. The initiative has also advanced research and developed new curricula and teaching tools to help city leaders solve real-world problems. 

For more information, please visit the Bloomberg Harvard City Leadership Initiative.