On June 5, Leadership Council SMC honored the Leadership CORPS and Emerging Leaders Class of 2026 at a Graduation Ceremony celebrating ten months of learning, challenge, collaboration, reflection, and growth. Nearly 200 graduates and their supporters gathered at the South San Francisco Library | Parks & Recreation Center to mark the occasion.

Throughout the year, participants explored some of San Mateo County's most pressing challenges and opportunities. They traveled throughout the County for monthly Learning Days, engaged with local leaders and subject matter experts, practiced leadership skills, and worked on Community Acceleration Projects (CAPs) that supported nonprofit organizations, public agencies, and community initiatives.

The graduates represent organizations and communities across San Mateo County, spanning the nonprofit, public, and business sectors. While they began the program as strangers, they leave as trusted colleagues, collaborators, and members of a growing network committed to strengthening San Mateo County.

Still Learning

Graduation Day was also the final Learning Day of the year. Emerging Leaders presented their Community Acceleration Projects, sharing both their results and the lessons they learned along the way, while participants from both programs strengthened connections through a reciprocity activity and celebrated the relationships and sense of community built throughout the year.

Keynote speaker Ariane Hogan, Senior Director of U.S. External Affairs at Genentech, congratulated graduates and reflected on her own leadership journey. She spoke about Genentech's commitment to being a true community partner, emphasizing the importance of collaboration, shared responsibility, and working together to create a thriving place that everyone can call home.

During the ceremony, Leadership Council SMC Co-President Kaarin Hardy reflected on a question asked at the beginning of every new cohort: 

"Who will these leaders become?" 

Throughout the year, participants faced complex challenges, navigated uncertainty, took risks, and discovered that leadership is rarely a straight line. Through it all, they chose to stay engaged, support one another, and keep learning.

Co-President Margi Power captured the spirit of the year with a simple, yet vital, observation: 

"You showed up." 

Even though it wasn’t always easy, month after month, participants made the commitment to engage deeply with one another, their communities, and the issues shaping San Mateo County.

South San Francisco Councilmember Eddie Flores, a graduate of Leadership Council SMC's inaugural Leadership CORPS Class of 2022, connected instantly with graduates by reflecting on his own experience in the program. With humor, warmth, and genuine appreciation for the journey they share, he challenged them to carry two words forward: Aspire and Inspire, reminding them that the future of San Mateo County is shaped by leaders willing to step forward, reach for a lofty goal and encourage others to do the same.

Building Trust

That commitment to showing up created something powerful: relationships built on trust.

Leadership CORPS graduate Maz Bozorginia, Public Works Director and City Engineer for the City of Brisbane, reflected one of the year's defining themes in his Commitment Statement: "I commit to building relationships first, knowing trust is the foundation for lasting progress."

For many participants, those relationships expanded their understanding of what is possible when leaders work across organizations, sectors, and communities.

In a graduation ceremony filled with individual commitments, three North County Chamber CEOs decided to do something different. Mary Prem of the South San Francisco Chamber of Commerce, Felicia Leong of the Daly City/Colma Chamber of Commerce, and Susan Baker of the Burlingame/SFO Chamber of Commerce each shared their own Commitment Statement, but intentionally connected them into a larger message about relationships, belonging, and collaboration. Together, their individual commitments built toward a powerful message:

"Leadership knows no borders."

Their message reflected a lesson that emerged throughout the year: the County's most complex challenges are best addressed when leaders move beyond traditional boundaries and work together for the good of the entire community.

Stepping Forward

The commitment statements also highlighted the personal growth that comes from committing to learning. Leadership CORPS graduate Crystal Tilton, CEO of the Foster City Chamber of Commerce, shared a commitment that resonated throughout the room: 

"I commit to facing challenges head-on, embracing growth, and proving that where you start does not define where you finish."

Emerging Leaders graduate Stacy Routt of the San Mateo County Transit District captured the spirit of stepping forward that defined the day:

"Knowledge built me, action reveals me. I choose to be seen starting now."

It was a fitting conclusion to a year defined by curiosity, connection, courage, and the belief that showing up is where meaningful change begins.

Many Thanks

Leadership Council SMC extends its gratitude to our hosts, the City of South San Francisco and the South San Francisco Library | Parks & Recreation Center. The support of their team helped make this day a success.

Thank you to our sponsors, supporters, volunteers, alumni, board members, coaches, and community partners whose generosity and commitment helped make Graduation Day possible. Special thanks to Citizens Business Bank, Mazzetti’s Bakery, Moonstar Charitable Organization, Chick-fil-A (Serramonte Center location) for their contributions.

Most importantly, thank you to the graduates themselves for their dedication, curiosity, leadership, and commitment to making San Mateo County stronger for everyone.