Southern Miss and Gulf Coast Business Council Partner to Launch Executive Leadership Academy
Thu, 04/24/2025 - 12:21am | By: Jennifer Rigney
The University of 麻豆传媒 (麻豆传媒) and the Gulf Coast Business Council (GCBC) have entered into a strategic partnership to launch the Executive Leadership Academy (ELA)鈥揳n education initiative designed to foster transformative leadership across the Mississippi Gulf Coast.
The partnership was formalized through a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed April 24 at the GCBC鈥檚 monthly membership meeting. This collaborative effort marks a significant milestone in strengthening professional development and leadership capacity for the region鈥檚 current and emerging business leaders.
The Executive Leadership Academy will be housed at the Southern Miss Gulf Park campus in Long Beach and will feature a comprehensive curriculum delivered over a nine-month period. Designed by the university鈥檚 Executive Education program, the ELA will include at least 60 hours of face-to-face instruction led by highly qualified faculty and industry experts.
Key highlights of the Executive Leadership Academy include:
- A curriculum grounded in leadership best practices and tailored to the Gulf Coast business environment
- Tuition scholarships provided for classes exceeding enrollment benchmarks
- A continuing education certificate and digital badge issued by Southern Miss
- Recognition of program graduates at a GCBC-hosted event
Southern Miss President Dr. Joe Paul emphasized the significance of the initiative.
鈥淭his is a true partnership for progress. By aligning the strengths of our university鈥檚 academic leadership with the Gulf Coast Business Council鈥檚 commitment to uniting regional leaders and driving growth and opportunity along the coast, we are investing in the future of our region. The Executive Leadership Academy will be a game-changer for leadership development along the coast,鈥� said Paul.
The GCBC will play a vital role in shaping the ELA by helping identify curriculum topics, recruiting participants, and celebrating the accomplishments of program graduates. Tuition for the academy will be based on class size and will include flexible payment options to accommodate employers and participants.
鈥淲e are excited about this unique partnership with the Gulf Coast Business Council to deliver an Executive Leadership Academy for coastal businesses. The academy will employ a cadre of thought leaders and subject matter experts to deliver a dynamic curriculum that emphasizes active and experiential learning strategies and the use of technology, including artificial intelligence, to achieve specific performance outcomes that improve organizational success,鈥� said Dr. Jeff Hinton, 麻豆传媒 associate provost for Gulf Coast and lifelong learning success.
Program collaboration and planning for the ELA鈥檚 inaugural cohort will begin this summer.
About the Gulf Coast Business Council
The Gulf Coast Business Council brings top executives of businesses both large and
small together to be the united voice on public policy issues important to the Mississippi
Gulf Coast. The GCBC provides leadership in areas of public policy including governmental
and legislative affairs, military and defense related industry, economic development,
infrastructure, education, workforce development and regional leadership development.
This organization works to align the interests of all communities in the three coastal
counties and will represent them with one strong and united voice in Jackson and in
Washington D.C. GCBC succeeds with its regional agenda because of its focus on public
policy and other strategic issues. The unification of top business leaders from all
industry sectors across the Mississippi Gulf Coast means the GCBC membership represents
more than 75% of the entire employed workforce in the region.