LEONARDTOWN, Md. – September 27, 2021 – Leadership Southern Maryland (LSM) is proud to welcome The MIL Corporation into its family of community partners. On September 16, 2021, MIL presented LSM with a $10,000 sponsorship designating the company as both a bronze level Executive Program sponsor and the sole 2022 Emerging Leaders Program (LEAP) sponsor.
Based in Lexington Park, Maryland, MIL provides innovative cyber, engineering, financial, and information technology services to the federal government. They have strong connections with the community they’ve called home for over 40 years. MIL Executive Vice President and LSM Board Member, Tom Clark (LSM’18), believes MIL’s support of LSM is a perfect fit on a number of levels. “It’s very important for MIL to support the community we work in. LSM gives us an opportunity to do that,” he said. The connection with LEAP is particularly exciting for Clark. “From a corporate perspective, the Emerging Leaders Program allows us to introduce up and coming leaders to our tri-county community in ways that we could not do on our own,” he explained.
MIL’s support of LSM and the Emerging Leaders Program goes beyond their financial sponsorship. The company supported the participation of an employee during LEAP’s inaugural year and plans to continue to send its rising stars through the program. Brady Spatola, an engineer at MIL and LEAP 2020 graduate, knows first-hand how the program can impact emerging leaders. “It definitely provided me with a wide-ranging perspective from local leaders. It was like an open question and answer forum with tri-county leaders like the sheriffs and county commissioners. Being able to ask them questions about their leadership styles and experiences was invaluable,” he said.
MIL boasts several LSM Executive Program graduates amongst their ranks as well. Senior Vice President Harvil Jenkins (LSM’21) believes in the power of building community connections, a key component of LSM’s mission. “LSM exposes participants to what the region offers,” he explained. “Engaging with county and business leaders and developing relationships with a diverse group people is a big deal and is a unique opportunity facilitated by the LSM Executive Program,” Jenkins said.
LSM Executive Director Denise Foster emphasized how much the support of community partners like MIL means to the organization. “LSM works hard to fulfill our mission to educate and inspire executive and emerging leaders and create meaningful connections that lead to change in our community. The support of our sponsors is crucial to LSM’s efforts. Members of The MIL Corporation have attended our programs, served on our board of directors and various committees, and supported LSM in countless ways. We are thrilled to expand our partnership with them and welcome them as an official sponsor of both our Executive and Emerging Leaders programs.”
In addition to their partnership with LSM, MIL supports various organizations and efforts including the local rotary club, MedStar St. Mary’s Hospital, and area food drives. The company also has a program called MIL Cares, an employee-driven, internal fundraising initiative where employees come together and decide where to put resources in support of the community.
Leadership Southern Maryland offers a nine-month, tuition-based Executive program as well as a six-month, tuition-based Emerging Leaders program. The organization is designed and dedicated to educate and inspire a diverse group of current and emerging leaders to create collaborations and partnerships to impact the community needs of Calvert, Charles, and St. Mary’s counties and incorporates a cross-section of the region to include diversity of geographic location, profession, ethnicity, and gender.
