The Lee Institute is a nonprofit organization that serves people, organizations, and the community through leadership development, design and management of collaborative projects, support of community collaboration, and citizen involvement. Founded in 1997 in honor of corporate and civic leader Bill Lee, the organization is built upon his support of civic leadership and collaborative initiatives.

The Lee Institute is part of the Lynnwood Foundation, which is a non-profit organization established in 1996. The Lynnwood Foundation also maintains the Duke Mansion, a historic inn and meeting place.

Our Client and Project List Includes:

• Facilitating the creation of a theory of change for improving outcomes for students in the CMS Achievement Zone through the community-wide effort supported by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Achieve Together
• Designing and facilitating focus groups and a survey of the Charlotte Fire Department to inform the new Chief about the views and concerns of his workforce
• Convening community stakeholders and conducting research to gather qualitative data and build a culture of champions around Charlotte Housing Authority’s Moving to Work implementation
• Facilitating a Committee of 21 community leaders appointed by the City, the County and the Chamber of Commerce in order to prioritize local and state road needs in Mecklenburg County and build consensus around a funding source to meet those needs
• Providing project management for Charlotte-Mecklenburg African American Agenda (CM3A), which aims to reduce disparities that exist for African Americans in Charlotte-Mecklenburg, specifically focused on education and economic development
• Designing and facilitating the merger of two local arts organizations with overlapping missions: Children’s Arts Project and Creative Art Exchange
• Facilitating an organizational assessment of Community Health Services to bring its resources in alignment with priority needs and high impact strategies
• Designing and facilitating community partner meetings for Mecklenburg County Department of Social Services (DSS) in order to provide feedback to DSS regarding its strengths and potential areas for improvement
• Providing facilitation and project management for the Mecklenburg County Infant Mental Health Working Group, a collaborative of parents, clinicians and other professionals seeking to build a community of support for the social and emotional health of children zero to five years old
• To follow up from a research and discovery phase completed in summer of 2008, The Lee Institute is again partnering with the Mecklenburg County Manager’s Office on MeckConnect, an initiative designed to develop an implementation strategy around citizen engagement with local government
• Designing and facilitating community summits across South Carolina in order for SC First Steps to hear about priority issues and service gaps from representatives of its 46 county partnerships as part of developing a strategic plan for preparing young children for school
• Facilitating and providing logistical support for Mecklenburg County’s System of Care, a national best practice model for improving the lives of young people with mental illness and their families
• Using the expertise gained from nearly ten years of operating the Charlotte Region Chapter of the American Leadership Forum, The Lee Institute is working with the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation to pilot a Waccamaw Region Chapter of ALF in South Carolina
• Building the collaborative capacity of the Simmons YMCA and the Charlotte East Community that surrounds it through qualitative research, work with Simmons Board and staff and ongoing engagement of charlotte east community leaders