2025 KLA Class Schedule
Unless indicated otherwise, all classes will be conducted at KernTax Conference Room, Kress Building, 1401 19th Street, Suite 204, Bakersfield, 93301.
August 27, 2025 – Wednesday
Class 1 – Orientation, Leadership
Faculty in Charge: Michael Turnipseed, Executive Director, Kern County Taxpayers Association
Objectives: Orientation: Opening Remarks; Self-Introductions; Introduction to the Academy; What is effective leadership? Class bonding.
September 3, 2025 – Wednesday
Class 2a – Ethical Leadership
Faculty in Charge: Nate Olson, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Philosophy, Chair of the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies, and Interim Director of the Kegley Institute of Ethics at California State University, Bakersfield (CSUB); Dr. Joseph Florez, Ph. D., Associate Director of the Kegley Institute of Ethics, Assistant Professor of Religious Studies at California State University, Bakersfield (CSUB)
Objectives: Ethical leadership emphasizes moral behavior, honest principles, and values. It not only focuses on achieving organizational goals but also prioritizes doing so in a manner that is both morally and socially responsible. Ethical leaders set a positive example and promote ethical conduct throughout the organization.
Class 2b – Today’s Ethical Challenges
Faculty in Charge: Melissa Frank, Senior Counsel/Director of Government Affairs at The Wonderful Company; Ariana Joven, Government Affairs Manager at The Wonderful Company.
Objective: Ethical leadership faces numerous challenges, including Conflicts of Interest, Gift Rules, Open Government Laws, and others.
September 8, 2025 – Monday
Class 3 – Critical Thinking Skills
Faculty In charge: Steven Gamboa, Associate Professor and Chair of Philosophy, CSUB.
Objective: Learning to Think Critically with an Open Mind
Topics: Critical thinking is a valuable skill that involves analyzing and evaluating information, arguments, and situations systematically and logically.
September 10, 2025 – Wednesday
Class 4a – Five Pillars/Decisions from the Dias
Faculty in Charge: Keith Wolaridge, Trustee, Panama-Buena Vista School District, Instructor at Bakersfield College, Writer.
Objectives: Every obstacle provides an opportunity to improve one’s circumstances.
Class 4b – Leading and Managing Group Processes
Faculty in Charge: Morgan Clayton, Tel-Tec Security
Objective: Group process refers to the behaviors of the members of small working groups that engage in decision-making and task performance. It encompasses the study of how group members’ characteristics interact with their behavior to create effective or ineffective group performance.
September 15, 2025 – Monday
Class 5 – Addressing Societal Needs
Faculty in Charge: Juan Avila, Garden Pathways
Objectives: Examining real-world issues not discussed during political campaigns and public meetings.
September 17, 2025 – Wednesday
Class 6 – Healthcare
Faculty in Charge: Alison Burrowes, Director, Kern. County Behavioral Health Services; Brynn Carrigan, Director. Kern County Public Health Department; Melinda Santiago, Director of Behavioral Health, Kern Health Systems
Objectives: Gain a comprehensive understanding of the scope and reach of public healthcare services for Medi-Cal beneficiaries, uninsured indigent populations, and privately insured individuals. Increase awareness of the significant, often unseen impact and costs of public healthcare on the county’s most vulnerable residents. Learn about current and future health initiatives, both locally and statewide, including the educational efforts that serve the entire community. Explore the interconnected and collaborative roles of managed care plans, county public health, and behavioral health systems in delivering coordinated care and serving the needs of Kern County.
September 22, 2025 – Monday
Class 7 – Homelessness
Location: Tour to be determined; Discussion in KernTax Conference Room
Faculty in Charge: Stacy Kuwahara, County of Kern’s Chief Operations Officer, and Lauren Skidmore CEO of the Open-Door Network
Objectives: Who are people experiencing homelessness? Why are they homeless? What is being done to address homelessness? Are there any genuinely effective solutions?
September 24, 2025 – Wednesday
Class 8 – B3K Prosperity – Building Kern’s Next Economic Future
Faculty in Charge: Georgia Petropoulos, President and CEO, B3K Prosperity
Objectives: The Scorecard: Number of Quality Jobs Created or Upgraded; Growth in Traded Sector Employment; Business Formation and Expansion Rates; Reduction in Child Poverty Rates; Improvement in Racial and Gender Employment Equity; Geographic Inclusion; Stakeholder Participation; and Capital Investment Attracted.
September 29, 2025 – Monday
Class 9 – Poverty
Faculty in Charge: Jessica Grimes, Ph. D., Dean of Economic and Workforce Development, Kern Community College District
Objectives: Addressing poverty through public policy requires a comprehensive and multi-faceted approach.
October 1, 2025 – Wednesday
Class 10 – Building a 21st-Century Workforce
Location: Off-Site KHSD Career Training Education Center (CTEC), 7301 Old River Road, Bakersfield, CA 93311, Phone: 661-397-7301
Faculty in Charge: Mike Zulfa, Ed. D., Superintendent, Kern High School District, Brian Miller, ROC/CTEC Principal
Objectives: Creating a 21st Century Workforce.
October 6, 2025 – Monday
Class 11 – TBD
October 8, 2025 – Wednesday
Class 12a – Issues (Challenges) Facing Regional, Private, and Public Sectors
Faculty in Charge: Jim Damian, Local Entrepreneur
Objectives: Effective collaboration between the public and private sectors at the regional level is crucial for addressing regional challenges. Public-private partnerships, data-driven decision-making, and adaptive leadership play pivotal roles in overcoming obstacles and fostering sustainable growth.
Class 12b – Agriculture and Water
Faculty in Charge: Rachel Nettleton, Executive Director of the Kern County Farm Bureau and Jenny Holtermann, Executive Directer, Water Association of Kern County
Objective: An overview of issues challenging the ag industry, with an emphasis on water.
October 13, 2025 – Monday
Class 13a – The Status of Kern County’s Workforce
Faculty in Charge: Dr. Richard Gearhart, Assistant Professor of Economics, CSUB.
Objectives: Labor market outcomes for young males: wages, employment, education, etc.
Class 13b – Kern County Looking Forward
Faculty in Charge: Dr. Nyakundi Michieka, Assistant Professor of Economics, CSUB; Dr. Mark Evans, Professor Emeritus, School of Business and Public Administration (BPA), CSUB.
Objectives: What could Kern County look like in the future?
October 15, 2025 – Wednesday
Class 14 – Financing Local Government
Faculty in Charge: Alex Alva, Budget and Finance Director, Kern County; Joe Arriola, Senior Fiscal and Policy Analyst, Kern County
Objectives: To provide an overview of the fundamentals of financing local government and Kern County’s financial challenges.
October 20, 2025 – Monday
Class 15 – Understanding Community Systems and Community Problem Solving
Faculty in Charge: Christian Clegg, Bakersfield City Manager
Objectives: Community systems are community-led structures and mechanisms used by communities through which community members and community-based organizations and groups interact, coordinate, and deliver their responses to the challenges and needs affecting their communities. Analyzing community problems is a way of thinking carefully about a problem or issue before acting on a solution. It first involves identifying reasons a problem exists and then identifying possible solutions and a plan for improvement.
October 22, 2025 – Wednesday
Class 16 – Local Government
Faculty in Charge: Scott Hurlbert, City Manager Wasco
Objectives: To provide an objective overview of governance at the local level (city/county), including state impacts, budget challenges, public safety, and job creation.
October 27, 2025 – Monday
Class 17 – Economic Development: How We Compete and What are the Customers Saying
Faculty in Charge: Barry Hibbard, ASU Associates
Objectives: Discuss the Economic future of Kern County and the Central Valley
October 29, 2025 – Wednesday
Class 18 – Final Thoughts
Faculty in Charge: Nate Olson, Ph. D., Associate Professor of Philosophy, Chair of the Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies, and Interim Director of the Kegley Institute of Ethics at California State University, Bakersfield (CSUB); Dr. Joseph Florez, Ph. D., Associate Director of the Kegley Institute of Ethics, Assistant Professor of Religious Studies at California State University, Bakersfield (CSUB); Michael Turnipseed, Kern County Taxpayers Association.
Objectives: Bringing it all together; seeing how ethics an character underlie the entire process; reviewing the Academy and making class suggestions for 2026.
November 3, 2025 – Monday
Class Makeup Day
November 5, 2025 – Wednesday
Commencement Dinner at Bakersfield Country Club 6:30p-9:00p