Claremont Lincoln University (CLU) and the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy (LILP) have named Sarah SanGiovanni, Ph.D., Director of Research at the Southwestern Pennsylvania Municipal Project Hub, as one of 60 civic leaders selected for the Spring 2025 cohort of the Lincoln Vibrant Communities Fellows Program. This innovative initiative brings together civic leaders from across the country to build leadership skills and tackle pressing issues—housing, climate, land, water, finance, infrastructure, and more—vital to creating and sustaining vibrant communities.
Claremont Lincoln University and the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy developed the Vibrant Communities Fellows Program as part of a larger initiative to enhance ethical leadership in local government and build communities of trust, inclusion, and innovation. Participants will deepen their leadership capacity and enhance their knowledge of policy trends, cases and toolkits, scenario planning, and other emerging practices critical to leading urban change. The six-month program, which kicked off with an in-person conference in Chicago on January 30 – 31, 2025, includes immersive in-person training and events, online curricula, individual and group coaching, expert webinars, and peer networking. Fellows represent city managers, council members, regional planners, agency directors, and others who support public sector success from communities across the United States.
For Sarah, the most exciting part of joining the Lincoln Vibrant Communities Fellows Program is the opportunity to learn from and leverage the network’s expertise, partners, and resources to advance the Southwestern Pennsylvania Municipal Project Hub’s mission. “The Hub helps hard-working, capacity-strapped community leaders across our region manage and fund development projects that support quality of life, resilience, and opportunity for all. Connecting theory and research to hands-on services and resources is a crucial part of this work. Through the Lincoln Vibrant Communities Program, I look forward to learning about best practices that can amplify our impact on the ground,” she says.
“We are ready and excited to welcome the newest cohort for the Lincoln Vibrant Communities Fellows Program. This is a tremendous opportunity for leaders from across the nation to sharpen their skills, and work to put ideas and plans into practice,” President and CEO of LILP Dr. George “Mac” McCarthy said. “The Lincoln Vibrant Communities Fellows Program is a groundbreaking initiative that will propel public sector leaders to the forefront of change.”
About Claremont Lincoln University and the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy
The Lincoln Institute of Land Policy traces its origins to John C. Lincoln, a Cleveland industrialist and investor who in 1946 established the Lincoln Foundation. The Lincoln Institute of Land Policy was established in 1974 to focus on property valuation and taxation policy, urban planning and development, land economics, and property rights. In 2006, the Lincoln Foundation and the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy merged to become a private operating foundation.
Claremont Lincoln University was founded in 2011 out of the Lincoln family’s passion for ethical leadership, collaboration, and respect across differences and for developing leaders who can engage their communities in addressing social, economic, and environmental challenges. Claremont Lincoln University, an accredited, private non-profit university, offers a unique framework for engaged, ethical, and collaborative leadership. Its programs embed the research, cases, toolkits, and advanced practices of the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy. Working to bridge the gap between theory and practice, CLU and LILP provide a unique framework for engaged, ethical, and collaborative leadership.