DURHAM, N.C. 鈥 Sixteen rising leaders from water and wastewater utilities across the United States have graduated from 91社区福利鈥檚 .

WILD is a yearlong program, launched in 2021, that introduces mid-career water and wastewater managers to new approaches and resources for dealing with some of the most pressing issues facing the water services sector today, from funding shortfalls and aging infrastructure to climate impacts and uncertain population trends.

Over the course of the year, WILD Fellows take part in six online sessions and two intensive three-day workshops at Duke鈥檚 campus in Durham, N.C. Industry experts and leading researchers facilitate the sessions and workshops and provide coaching to Fellows, but there鈥檚 also a big emphasis on peer-to-peer learning, said Martin Doyle, professor of river systems science and policy at Duke鈥檚 Nicholas School of the Environment, who serves as faculty lead on WILD.

鈥淭he idea is to help emerging leaders build a network of peers they can brainstorm with and seek advice from, even long after the program ends,鈥 Doyle said.

This year鈥檚 graduating Fellows represented a wide range of utility sizes, from those serving communities as small as 10,000 people to utilities serving several million.

Annual enrollment in the program is limited to between 15 to 20 Fellows to optimize the learning environment.

Thanks to generous support from program funders, tuition, travel and lodging costs, which otherwise would be valued at about $14,000, are covered for each Fellow.

The 16 new WILD graduates are:

  • Jonathan Allen, director, Business Operations, Broward County Water and Wastewater Services, Broward County, Fla.
  • Derek Anderson, assistant director, Department of Public Utilities, Columbus, Ohio
  • Jorge Barrera, general manager, Eagle Pass Water Works, Eagle Pass, Texas
  • Carl Clark, deputy director, Environmental & Technical Support, Las Cruces Utilities Department, Las Cruces, N.M.
  • Jonathan Earle, supervisor of engineering services, Maine Water, Saco, Maine
  • Kari Foy, utility engineer, Lowcountry Regional Water System, Hampton, S.C.
  • Shannon Harty, commissioner, Water Environment Protection, Onondaga County, Syracuse, N.Y.
  • Amanda Jones, business development manager, Promise, and founder of Womxn in Water; Tucson, Ariz.
  • Kyle Leon, operations manager, Pueblo of Laguna Utility Authority, Laguna, N.M.
  • Yajaira Morphonios, capital program controls manager, Louisville Metropolitan Sewer Authority, Louisville, Ky.
  • Kacey Paul, city engineer, Marble Falls, Texas
  • Patekka Pope Bannister, commissioner, Plant Operations, City of Toledo, Ohio
  • Jorge Rodriguez, deputy director, Utility Services, Washington Suburban Sanitary Commission, Laurel, Md.
  • Maylinn Rosales, utility services engineer, City of Henderson, Nev.
  • Chris Sharrock, utility director, Pataskala, Ohio
  • Tiffany Stewart, attorney and assistant director, City of Newark Department of Water & Sewer Utilities, Newark, N.J.

All 16 graduates completed solo capstone projects that showcased how they used their new skills and knowledge in a current work or professional project or to help advance their individual career goals.

WILD graduates earn a non-credit-bearing Certificate of Completion from Duke鈥檚 Nicholas School of the Environment.

Applications for the next WILD cohort will open in spring 2022. For more information, contact Emily Bilcik, executive education program coordinator, at emily.bilcik@duke.edu.

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