Overview & Mission

The American Leadership Forum (ALF) is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to join and strengthen diverse leaders to serve the common good.  We do this through a yearlong Fellows Program in which leaders can engage in dialogue, explore differences, and build relationships.  ALF strengthens Fellows’ capacity to address public issues collaboratively and builds a strong leadership network to work for positive change in our community.

ALF was founded in 1980 to create a regional network of diverse senior-level leaders across private, public and nonprofit sectors. ALF Fellows and Senior Fellows now number more than 4,500 nationwide. In Houston, they have created a network that brings together a broad cross-section of leaders committed to building a stronger community. They use collaborative leadership skills to identify and deal with complex regional issues, model servant leadership, and create opportunities to work together in ways that make a significant difference to Houston and its surrounding communities.

 ALF Core Values: 

• Primacy of relationship
• Appreciation, exploration and inclusion of diversity
• Dialogue and Collaboration
• Service to the common good
• Inner reflection and personal growth

ALF Cornerstones:

These Core Values lead to a curriculum based on the following “Cornerstones:”

• Building trust and networks among diverse leaders
• Motivating leaders to be catalysts for positive community change
• Strengthening capacities for community change
• Exploring the interconnectedness of communities within a region
• Exploring and enriching personal values
• Understanding and empowering self and others
• Exploring, understanding, and valuing diversity
• Inspiring leaders to a lifetime of active public engagement