A graduation ceremony for Leadership Vicksburg was held on Tuesday afternoon at the MCITy building.

The program, run by the Warren County Partnership, is designed to teach new leadership skills to a variety of professionals in the community over the course of about eight months.

Vicksburg Mayor George Flaggs Jr. addressed the graduates during the ceremony, saying that he was proud of them for working to unlock their leadership potential.

“I would encourage all of you to possess that leadership that’s within you, show that leadership within you and go forward with that leadership within you,” Flaggs said. “Because we need your leadership ability, we need your potential. We need everything about you, because this is what this class is all about: us learning from each other, us going forward to make Vicksburg the place that it will be.”

One of the requirements for students during the program was the organization and execution of a community service project. The 21 students split into three teams, with each team focusing on a different project.

Graduates presented the results of those projects during the ceremony.

One team conducted a restoration of the courtyard at the Vicksburg Convalescent Home, cleaning surfaces, adding furniture and touching up paint.

Another team hosted an ‘Adulting 101’ day for local high schoolers. The team members taught students skills like financial literacy, interview skills and how to interact with law enforcement.

The third team created designs and took the preliminary steps for beautifying and improving Levee Street Park, located next to the Lower Mississippi River Museum.

Pablo Diaz, President and CEO of the Vicksburg-Warren Partnership, was another of several speakers at the event and mentioned his enthusiasm for what the program means for the future of the community.

“Thank you so much for your commitment to the class and for being here today talking about your project,” Diaz said. “I’m really looking forward to what’s coming next. There is a lot of work to do, and it’s exciting to do it in a community like ours.”

Recent graduates are:

• Joshua Brown
• Morgan Brown
• Aaron Cody
• Kelsey Conner
• Ryan Craft
• Emilie Dantin
• Ashley Dawson
• Brittani Downey
• Michael Foley
• Ashley Gatian
• Robert Gage
• Jessica Hearn
• Dr. Terence James
• Liz Johnson
• Bobby Jones
• Brandi McAdory
• Emily Payne
• Paige Pratt
• Mary Rather
• Ada Ringo
• Fermika Smith

For more information about the Leadership Vicksburg program, visit vicksburgusa.com.