Learning to Achieve Public Sector Goals: How DFI and LFNC Shape Future Leaders

Lead for North Carolina is an innovative full-time fellowship program that connects future public service leaders with local governments across the state. Every summer, Fellows gather at the UNC School of Government for an intensive summer academy, during which they are introduced to community revitalization by Tyler Mulligan and Marcia Machado Perritt, leaders of the Development Finance Initiative (DFI). “Sometimes, after meeting with the Fellows, they will identify an opportunity in their community that aligns with our mission and can help turn that possibility into a reality,” said Mulligan.

For some Lead for NC Fellows, their Fellowship is the beginning of a deeper commitment to public service. Some pursue their MPA degree, where they often enroll in DFI’s Community Revitalization Applied Course. This course provides an in-depth, practical opportunity to practice new skills and gain valuable experience learning what it takes to transform vacant buildings into vibrant spaces. Under the guidance of Mulligan and staff experts, students perform pre-development feasibility analysis, gain technical skills in financial modeling, data analysis, market research, and GIS, and evaluate whether a redevelopment project would attract private investment, or how a public-private partnership might enhance its feasibility.

“There's a wonderful cycle where Lead for NC Fellows come back and keep engaging with North Carolina communities and learn more about working with local governments from all these different perspectives,” said Mulligan.

The stories below highlight three Fellows whose involvement with both Lead for NC and DFI illustrates the impact both initiatives have on the careers of future local government leaders.

Skye Allen

Skye Allen joined the third cohort of Lead for NC and served two years with the Town of Spencer, where she created a large-scale public mural program. “I noticed a lot of people would come to the North Carolina Museum of Transportation, but not many would go into downtown Spencer,” said Allen. “I saw lots of buildings downtown with blank space and created a mural program to capitalize on that space and draw the attention of visitors.” Allen secured $20,000 in grants to create murals that are now seen in the town. Allen also coordinated and developed a festival to promote economic development, and community events like cleanups and Halloween events.

Inspired by her experience during the Fellowship, Allen decided to pursue her MPA degree at the School of Government. As a graduate student, she took the DFI class and assisted the Town of Tarboro with an economic assessment of redevelopment options for an old milk plant downtown. “This was an interesting building with a cool history that the Town was interested in giving a future.” The recommendation of Allen’s group was to renovate it into multifamily housing.

“Taking this class helps me to now look at projects from the private developer perspective, which provides more context and nuance to how I operate and communicate with people in my current role. Usually, you operate from the local government perspective, and private developers take different things into account.”

Allen has continued working with the Town on the public murals project while completing her MPA.

“I’ve enjoyed being part of projects like this that engage the community and make places nice to live in,” said Allen. “I always had a strong interest in being involved in government. I just didn’t know how to get involved, and Lead for NC was an excellent way to get started.”

Liam Brailey

Brailey’s interest in public service started early in life; “With two parents working for the federal government, it was almost expected that I would go into public service,” he said. After taking political science classes at Elon University, Brailey realized he enjoyed knowing about the operational side of government and being involved in his community. At the end of college, Brailey decided to pursue a career in local government and applied for Lead for NC. He was placed in Anson County as part of the program’s very first cohort of Fellows. He served two years assisting the county manager with a variety of projects including helping with the town budget through cost auditing, IT contracts, and attending board meetings. Brailey also assisted with a DFI project in the county, examining the feasibility of redeveloping an old mill building and, later, an old department store. Brailey assisted with touring the building and securing information for DFI’s analysis, such as GIS parcels and communicating with local stakeholders.

After his experience with Lead for NC, Brailey decided to pursue his MPA. “When I was a Fellow, I saw a lot of people who had jobs I wanted, and they all had MPA’s. The fact that I was already familiar with the School and knew I could learn a lot by going there created a pipeline of continued learning for me.”

During the MPA program, Brailey completed the DFI class and worked on a project in Statesville analyzing the development potential for a historic building used for office space.

“Since I took that class, I feel a lot more empowered to talk to developers and question them on what they’re seeing in my current role with the Town of Cary. It’s empowering to know how to put together a pro forma, what to look for in a market study, and to know the tools that a government can legally get involved with on a project.”

Brailey completed his Professional Work Experience for the MPA program with the Town of Cary, after which he was hired on part-time and eventually full-time as a financial strategy analyst. Currently, Brailey is the town budget manager. “I knew I had an interest in finance, but my experience in Anson County gave me the grounding I needed to pursue it further.”

When he was graduating, Liam added, he was faced with a choice between pursuing a career in his hometown in the D.C. area or doing LFNC. “Lead for NC is what kept me in the state,” he said.

Layne Cole

Cole joined Lead for NC to get his foot in the door for a career in public service. “Lead for NC gave me the opportunity to build my resume, learn new skills, and take my first steps into public service,” he said.

As a Fellow, Cole worked in the budget office for the City of Hickory, where he created the City’s first Popular Annual Financial Report to enhance public access to financial data. He also effectively managed over $100 million in bond project revenues and expenditures. Cole’s contributions in crafting the majority of the City’s proposed budget book and handling all departmental budget transfers and revisions were instrumental in ensuring efficient financial management and transparency.

Cole credits his Lead for NC experience for pushing him to get his MPA degree as he learned more about local government, the impact of civic engagement, and realized he enjoyed being involved in it.

As an MPA student, Cole took DFI’s class and developed a proposal for redeveloping a gas station in Cameron, North Carolina. “I think my whole team got professionally and emotionally invested in providing good recommendations to the Town,” he said. “I like that this project for class can create real change in a community. I was excited to learn about planning and to apply my knowledge in the class to a real-world project.”

After taking the class, Cole wanted to further develop his skills and took on a coaching role for students currently taking the class. “It’s a very difficult class, and I give my group of students advice on the best way to get through it,” Cole said. His team is working on a plan to renovate a building in Williamston by building community profiles, conducting market and parcel analysis.

“DFI’s class and Lead for NC give you space to learn how to achieve goals in the public sector. In the DFI class, you learn to propose a project successfully, and Lead for NC gives you a view of the day-to-day working in the field. Both cemented that I want to work in public service,” said Cole.

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To learn more about Lead for NC, visit lfnc.sog.unc.edu.

Published March 21, 2025.