Emerging Leadership in Community: Interview with Julie Baker

5. What do you consider to be the major strengths and capabilities that have made you an effective civic community leader? Are they rooted in action, in your personal style, in your organizational, political, and personal relationships, or in something else?

My biggest strength is my passion. I believe you have to care and be solution-oriented. I’m not a complainer because that’s not productive. I also think I am good with people, a key. part of developing good relationships and building a good team. I’m an honest person and have never been able to “play games,” whether in dating or anything else. I believe my strengths are rooted in who I am as a person. It is my personal style. I don’t think there’s much of a difference between the way I am at home and the way I am at work.

6. There are five key roles that civic leaders often play in their community. (Hand-out list and read):

 Mentor: teaching and engaging others
 Mediator: helping to resolve conflict
 Monitor: serving as a community watchdog
 Mobilizer: working to bring about change
 Motivator: urging people to pursue worthy goals

As you think about your own civic involvement in our community, which of  these roles have you played and which do you consider to be your strongest?

I definitely feel I am a mentor. I strive to do this with the people I work with as manager and Executive Director. I like that I am able to pass on what I’ve learned. I also do a lot of  mediation. The buzzword when I started at The Center was collaboration, but it felt like just a word. We’ve worked really hard to collaborate with other non-profits and work closely with other arts organizations.

7. This project has to do with the involvement of sage leaders like yourself in civic organizations that seek to improve the quality of life and well-being of Grass Valley and Nevada City. This includes nine types of civic organizations:

 Fraternal and service clubs
 Social services organizations
 Educational organizations
 Governmental and political organizations
 Arts organizations
 Media organizations
 Faith-based organizations
 Environmental organizations
 Other nonprofit organizations

In which of the nine types of civic organizations on the list are you currently involved? Overall, how many total hours a month do you give to these organizations?

As Executive Director of The Center for the Arts, I work at least 60 hours a week.