Elgin councilwoman awarded political fellowship

Elgin Councilwoman Anna Moeller has been named to the inaugural class of Edgar Fellows, a distinguished group of individuals selected for their leadership potential.

The fellowship is an initiative of former Gov. Jim Edgar and the Institute of Government and Public Affairs at the University of Illinois.

Moeller, who works as executive director of the McHenry County Council of Governments, will join 39 other “up-and-comers” in a four-day workshop in August at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Mike Lawrence, press secretary under Gov. Edgar, is helping to coordinate the fellowship program through the institute.

Lawrence said the August seminar will focus on leadership and address current policy challenges for the state, giving fellows the opportunity to learn from scholars and those who have excelled in both the public and private sector.

“And also, our belief is that if they get to know each other, they will be able to work together across regional, partisan, ethnic and racial lines as they climb their career ladders,” Lawrence said.

A major focus of the initiative will be to address policy issues without letting differences get in the way.

Follow-up sessions are planned to keep fellows in contact with each other as they continue their political education.

Moeller said she is looking forward to the professional development opportunity — especially considering the only cost fellows incur is travel to the U of I campus.

“I don’t think these challenges are going to go away anytime soon so it’s exciting to be able to, in a collaborative classroom environment, talk about real world situations and learn from people who have had to go through these struggles before,” Moeller said.