The Rural Economic Development Institute held its graduation during a leadership "homecoming" celebration Friday, May 7, at the N.C. Rural Economic Development Center. Thirty rural leaders— including Anson County Board of Commissioners Chair Anna Baucom— graduated after an intensive, three-month leadership training program.

During his keynote address, Keith Crisco, secretary of the N.C. Department of Commerce, stressed the importance of capable leaders to help rural North Carolina weather the recession.

"Leadership is the only way out of the hole," he said. "Strategically out of the hole," he said. "Strategically it is the only thing that will move our country out of bad economic times."

He also expressed confidence that rural communities will emerge stronger and with a greater sense of unity. "People say this is the Great Depression. It's not," he said. "It's the depression that will make us great."

The class of 2010 brings the total number of institute graduates to 837. Several dozen alumni returned to the Rural Center for the homecoming event, which celebrated the center's 20-plus years of leadership development.

Sponsored annually by the Rural Center, the institute offers an opportunity for leaders in business, government, economic development, civic groups and grassroots organizations to broaden their understanding of rural community and economic development and to hone their personal leadership skills. Participants attend three sessions over the course of three months.

The new graduates are, by county: Anson, Anna Baucom; Ashe, Debbie Sexton; Avery, John Mejaski; Bertie, Collins Cooper; Buncombe, Matthew Raker and Brett Sculthorp; Burke, Ed Hallyburton; Cabarrus, Randy Wall; Columbus, Monte Herring; Cumberland, Monita McLaurin; Duplin, Randall Tyndall; Franklin, Mary Johnson; Johnston, Nicole Jones; Jones, Franky Howard; Lee, Angela Rivera; Macon, Linda Schlott; Northampton, Ray Harrell and Deborah Morrison; Onslow, Mark Sutherland; Perquimans, Steven Lambert; Randolph, Kelley Woodley; Robeson, Kim Pevia; Surry, Chris Knopf and Leslie Schlender; Tyrrell, Helen Craddock; Wake, Melody Adams and Tony Hayes; Washington, Henry Burdick; and Yadkin, Tyler Beardsley and Bonnie Lasky.

In addition to serving as chair of the Anson County Board of Commissioners, Baucom is a member of the N.C. Association of County Commissioners' Risk Management Pools Board of Trustees, Anson County's Partnership for Children and the Anson County Tourism Development Authority.

The N.C. Rural Economic Development Center is a private, nonprofit organization whose mission is to develop sound economic strategies that improve the quality of life in rural North Carolina, with a special focus on individuals with low to moderate incomes and communities with limited resources. The center operates a multifaceted program that includes conducting research into rural issues; testing promising rural development strategies; advocating for policy and program innovations; and building the productive capacity of rural leaders, entrepreneurs and community organizations.