The 2024 Oxnard Leadership Program (OLP) headed to farms, fields and storehouses last month to see first-hand the rich agriculture economy of Oxnard and Ventura County for Agriculture Day. The day was coordinated by Jordan Cruz of Bayer Crop Science and member of the 2023 OLP class.

​The 2024 Oxnard Leadership Program officially crossed the halfway mark this past Friday with the conclusion of the jam-packed History, Arts & Culture Day, which was held all in Downtown Oxnard. There is never enough time in a single day to hit everything, especially in a city with such a rich and diverse history and culture like Oxnard, but they made the most of it. This day was made possible by the incredible efforts and dedication of Carolyn Mullin, Executive Director of the Oxnard Performing Arts Center (OPAC) and Class of 2022 alum, and Gary Blum, Superintendent of Heritage Square and local historian, who were critical in planning and leading the day.

​Last month, the Oxnard Leadership Class of 2024 spent the day learning first-hand about the intricacies and complexities of transportation and land use within the City of Oxnard. The incredibly insightful day started off in the board room at Gold Coast Transit District (GCTD) with presentations from Dave Nafie and Jannette Jauregui from the Ventura County Department of Airports Administration, Martin Erikson, Executive Director of the Ventura County Transportation Commission (VCTC), and Cynthia Duque, Director of Planning & Marketing for GCTD, as well as a tour of the GCTD facilities from Planning Manager Austin Novstrup. ​In the afternoon, the program moved across town to the Oxnard City Council Chambers where both City of Oxnard Housing Director Emilio Ramirez and Planning & Environmental Services Manager Joe Pearson II went into detail about their worlds in relation to land use, with the day ending on a tour of upcoming development projects around Downtown Oxnard. 

​Last week for Public Safety Day, the Oxnard Leadership Class of 2024 got a giant peak behind the curtain of the incredible men and women who work tirelessly to operate the public services which keeps this city and county safe. The jam-packed day included presentations from Oxnard Chief of Police Jason Benites, Public Defender Claudia Bautista, Sheriff's Commander Garo Kuredjian and Emergency Services Director Patrick Maynard, as well as tours of the Oxnard Police Department, OPD's Sturgis Annex, Ventura County Pre-Trial Detention Facility and Office of Emergency Services. The highly insightful day was made possible by the masterful coordination of Tom Cady, WVCBA Board Member and Former Assistant Chief of Police of Oxnard.

Repeating high school isn't on many people's wish lists, but that was a sentiment often heard on Oxnard Leadership '23's Education Day in April. The day began at Oxnard Union High School District (OHUSD) headquarters with Superintendent Tom McCoy and visits to Hueneme High School, Oxnard College, Local 805 Carpenters Union, and Del Sol High School. The day was coordinated by Leadership '22 alum Teodoro Lopez, OUHSD's Web & Multimedia Coordinator, who wanted to highlight the career-focused learning opportunities available from K-12 and beyond. 

​Last month, the Oxnard Leadership Class of 2023 experienced Public Safety Day, which included lunch with County District Attorney Erik Nasarenko and meetings with Oxnard Police Department, Oxnard Fire Department, Ventura County Probation Agency, and Ventura County Sheriff's Department. The jam-packed day was coordinated by Tom Cady, WVCBA Board Member and Former Assistant Chief of Police of Oxnard.

For its second session, the 15 members of the 2023 Oxnard Leadership Program met with leaders to learn about important conversations happening around local housing, redevelopment, and transportation, and their impact on communities (and vice versa). Land Use and Transportation Day was first introduced in 2022 and is coordinated by Oxnard Planning Commissioner Daniel Chavez Jr, a Leadership '19 graduate. 

​A big welcome to the seventh class of the Oxnard Leadership Program! The Class of 2023's first session on January 27 was focused on government and set the stage for many of the topics they will explore over the remaining nine months. This year's class includes 15 participants who represent an array of businesses, agencies and nonprofits in the county (scroll down for the class roster).  

On December 7, the WVCBA celebrated the sixth and largest graduating class of the Oxnard Leadership Program since it began in 2016.  The ceremony took place at Heritage Square Chapel with alumni, friends, family and employers cheering on the 15 graduates who completed the 10-session program in just nine months (condensed due to the COVID surge in early 2022). 

With questions about the ongoing drought, new food waste rules, and Measure E updates, Oxnard Leadership 2022 got answers directly from the city's Public Works department. This was the 10th and final session for the Class of 2022, which is the largest cohort since the program began in 2016. 

As the 2022 Oxnard Leadership program winds down, participants experienced two eye-opening sessions in late September and mid-October. From SWAT demonstrations to packing food for the homeless, Public Safety Day and Health & Human Services Day highlighted two different - yet in many ways connected - aspects of our community. 

On September 30, Leadership participants got a firsthand look at the people and agencies protecting the community with session coordinator Tom Cady, former Assistant Chief of Police for the City of Oxnard and the Chair of the Oxnard Leadership Steering Committee. Public Safety Day began at Oxnard Police Department (OPD) with an overview from Community Affairs Manager Paul Carganilla and a presentation on body cameras from Corina Gardner. At OPD's Sturgis Annex, the group met with Chief Jason Benites, who delivered the keynote address later that day for Ventura County Criminal Justice Training Center’s Academy graduation. They also got an up-close look at SWAT equipment and training exercises. To understand safety services county wide, the group went inside the county's Juvenile Justice Center and the county's jail facility at the Government Center. The day ended by meeting with Sheriff Bill Ayub and Chief Parole Officer Mark Varela for an open Q&A session. 

The 2022 Oxnard Leadership Program has entered the home stretch with only three sessions remaining for the current cohort. In August, participants received an insider's view of three economic engines: Naval Base Ventura County, the Port of Hueneme, and the Channel Islands Harbor. And in the first of two September sessions, participants explored Oxnard's education system and how it is preparing youth for the future.

On July 15, participants of the Oxnard Leadership Program explored the present and future of farming for its fifth session of the year. The day focused on providing an understanding of the current state of local agriculture, innovations in farming, packing and distribution, and how the next generation is learning about an industry that's critical to Oxnard and all of Ventura County.