Public Leadership Certificate
USF, Elected Officials to Protect America, and Elected Officials to Protect the Earth jointly run a Public Leadership Certificate Program that expands elected and appointed officials, corporate, finance/philanthropic, and civic leaders’ knowledge to effectively create, communicate, and implement policy through gaining a deeper understanding of emotional intelligence, body language, negotiation, value-based communication, empathy-based fundraising, disinformation and cybersecurity, and climate solutions. Participants implement their learning by competing for an innovative policy prize. Recently, the Ukraine Energy Security Marshall Plan and Hawaii Climate Resilience through Tier 1 Mental Health won the prize and were passed by the UK Parliament and the Hawaii Legislature. Over 200 leaders from around the world apply, and on average, 37 are accepted. Cohorts are generally two-thirds elected officials, half female, and a third are veterans.
This seven-week program brings participants together at the University of San Francisco or at their Washington, DC campus for 2.5 days of experiential learning followed by online instruction for two hours each week for six weeks. Upon selection, full scholarships—including travel and lodging—are available. For those with resources, tuition is $2,500, or $1,500 with a partial scholarship.
The August 7–9, 2026 cohort is now open for enrollment!
Learning Objectives
Guest instructors are highly qualified experts and elected officials who have successfully passed significant legislation. Modules include:
- Emotional Intelligence and Public Leadership with Fmr. Rep. Alex Cornell du Houx and Air Force veteran Christian Brock
- Value-Based Communications and Public Speaking with Dr. Ievgeniia Kopytsia and Alex Cornell du Houx
- Body Language and Negotiation with four presidential medals from two presidents, forensic psychologist, and a former Ukrainian Lt. Col. Iryna Andrukh
- Policy Solutions with One Earth and Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation founder Justin Winters
- Disinformation and Cyber Security with Professor Darren Linvill
- Public Speaking and Marketing Your Message with Rep. Paul Evans
- Empathy-Based Fundraising with Navy veteran and fundraising consultant Matt Gill
- Energy Security Solutions and Military 101 with former two-star general and Afghan special forces, Naweed Kawusi
Policy Prize
Participants in the Certificate Program create policy teams that compete for a $7,500 policy prize to support implementation of their plan. US municipalities can also compete for a $250,000 prize focused on sustainability. They will incorporate the skills learned each week into the final policy implementation capstone exercise. Experts from Cornell, Stanford, Maryland University, USF, and relevant institutions, including the Atlantic Council, Prosperity for the Commons, and the Truman Center, judge the prize.
Recent policy prize winners include a former military veteran and General Electric executive, whose policy team discovered a unique way to repower wind turbines, which can finance mine removal in Ukraine. The UK lawmakers, Ukrainian mayors, and US lawmakers who are veterans created a Ukraine Energy Security Marshall plan, which became a full program of EOPA/E. The Hawaii Vice Speaker and Budget Chair worked with fellow lawmakers to create Climate Resilience through Tier 1 Mental Health after the tragic Maui fires for the school system and first responders.
UK Parliament Partnership
We are formally partnered with Rt Hon. Sir Lindsay Hoyle, Speaker of the House of Commons, who is the patron of the Parliamentary Knowledge Foundation, and run by former British Royal Marine Jamie Anderson. The Parliamentary Knowledge Foundation’s mission is to broaden MPs’ understanding of policy by having them experience businesses and organisations beyond Westminster, in an impartial and transparent manner. Lawmakers will build knowledge systematically and in context, forming new connections leading to experience-based decisions. Members who are accepted to this programme will be accepted to the Public Leadership Certificate to connect the experiential policy learning to the soft skills and policy prize.
About Elected Officials to Protect America/Protect the Earth
Elected Officials to Protect America and the international partner Elected Officials to Protect the Earth are a nonpartisan network of current and former elected officials who care deeply about protecting our planet and people. Our mission is to educate, inspire, and mobilize lawmakers to protect our lands, waters, and democracy. EOPA/E is led by lawmakers who are veterans.
About the University of San Francisco and the Master’s in Public Leadership
The University of San Francisco is committed to creating a community of leaders surrounded by people who care and are working to change the world for the better. Among U.S. national universities, USF is second in student diversity, top six in lifetime earnings, and is listed as a Tier One National University by U.S. News and World Report, with a 12-to-1 student-to-faculty ratio. The Master’s in Public Leadership is designed specifically for lawmakers, veterans, and military families and is open to everyone. The Master’s attracts decorated military veterans from elite units. One in three participants already holds a graduate degree from an Ivy League or equivalent institution.
Brazil Parliament Partnership
We are partnered with Clima de Politica, a Brazilian nonprofit network of environmentally-focused parliamentarians. They are an independent and non-partisan civil society organization and have trained over 1,200 lawmakers who have approved over 50 pieces of legislation.
Apply now to join the August 7–9, 2026 Public Leadership Certificate cohort in Washington, DC
