• Annual Reports
• About the Riley Center

  • Mayor Riley
  • Faculty and Staff
  • Executives in Residence and Fellows
  • Nonprofit and Local Government Support
  • Public Health and Sustainability
  • Public Safety
  • Education, Arts, and Culture
  • Urban Design, Planning, and Housing
• Contact Us
• Advisory Board
• The Riley Center in the News

Leading EDGE: Engaging, Developing, Growing, and Empowering your Local Government through Leadership and High Performance

The College of Charleston is excited to announce a new local government leadership development program at the Riley Center.  Leading EDGE is a week-long program available to local governments across the country who seek to enhance organizational performance in the face of profound change.  The faculty of these programs will continue their well-known and respected work with localities throughout the country to develop leaders at all levels of local government to achieve higher performance in their communities. Participants will develop personal insights, explore opportunities for positive change, experience powerful team development, and delve into the principles of the High Performance Organization (HPO) model.  Leading EDGE brings to the Riley Center a host of already established relationships, a proven model for improving organizational performance, and offers a valuable expansion of the Riley Center's capacity to promote livable communities. 

More info about Leading EDGE can be found here.

To apply for Leading EDGE and/or Executive Leading EDGE, please click here. 

Local Government Leadership Institute

The Local Government Leadership Institute has been developed through a collaboration of practitioners and academics.  Hosted by College of Charleston, Coastal Carolina University, and Francis Marion University in collaboration with the Darla Moore Foundation and the South Carolina City/County Management Association, the purpose of this program is to provide a skill-building educational experience for new and potential executive-level managers in South Carolina local governments.  The program is intended to prepare the participants to affect change in their organizations, and ultimately to improve the communities in which they live.

Six one- or two- day sessions, limited to 30 participants, will be held from September to April.  The sessions, held in Lake City, will include a variety of instructional techniques and learning opportunities including expert presentations, case studies, panel discussions, and individual and small group assignments.  Content area covered will include Government in SC; Managing & Administering Local Governments; Budget, Finance, & HR Management; Planning and Economic Development; Governance and Politics; Public Safety and Crisis Management; and Pulling it Altogether.  

More info on the 2021-2022 program can be found here. 

In order to apply, send a resume, letter of interest, and three references to Ali Moriarity at abtitus@cofc.edu.

The South Carolina City and County Management Association

The goal of the South Carolina City and County Management Association is to improve the quality of public administration in South Carolina local government, and enhance the proficiency of local government managers, administrators and other staff. The Association’s membership consists of approximately 180 city and county managers, administrators, assistants, and other staff members. The Association has annual winter and summer conferences to promote professional development and networking opportunities.  The Riley Center facilitates all of the day-to-day and long-term operations of SCCCMA.  For more information, please visit their website here, or email Ali Moriarity at abtitus@cofc.edu. 

South Carolina Clerks to Council Association

The Riley Center provides support for the South Carolina Clerks to Council Association.  The Association's purpose is to aid in improving public administration and increasing the proficiency of Clerks to Council and executives of counties in South Carolina. We also want to provide a means for the exchange of ideas and experiences among Clerks to Council; to promote and encourage the education of all Clerks to Council; and to collect, analyze and distribute information relative to county government in South Carolina.

1. Coordinate the certification educational programs for the SC Clerks to Council Training Program and provide registration services for these programs.
2. Provide instructional services by teaching up to two educational programs.
3. Maintain records for those clerks who are working towards certification

For more information, please visit the SC Clerks to Council Association homepage.

Municipal Clerks and Treasurers Institute

The Riley Center provides support to the South Carolina Municipal Clerks and Treasurers Institute.  The Institute is designed to provide municipal clerks and treasurers with the knowledge and skills critical to their respective professions. MCTI is offered as a series of six half-week (2.5 days) sessions. Each year, two half-week sessions are scheduled. Each is unique and designed to build on the previous sessions. Participants are encouraged but not required to attend consecutive sessions thus completing MCTI in three years.

1. Coordinate the MCTI educational programs along the Municipal Association of South Carolina.
2. Maintain records for those clerks who are working towards certification

For more information, please visit the Municipal Clerks and Treasurers Institute homepage.

Center for Women

In 2014, the Center for Women in Charleston, SC and The Riley Center began gathering information on the economic, social, and physical well-being of women in both Charleston and South Carolina as a whole, for the purpose of developing a Status of Women Report.  After initial research was complete, it was decided that a task force of stakeholders and subject matter experts should be formed in order to more effectively determine what metrics and indicators should be used to construct this report.  This task force is currently underway with The Riley Center providing research and information resource support.  Review the Status of Women Report, Charting a Course for Change.

YWCA Stakeholder Analysis

The Riley Center provided background research and data collection for the YWCA of Greater Charleston as well as assistance through focus group facilitation and interviews of various stakeholders in the community.  This enabled the YWCA to better understand the community they serve, and assist them in determining programs to develop and offer.

Leadership Training

The Riley Center has provided training over the past few years for a number of local governments and nonprofit organizations including: Charleston County, City of Charleston, South Carolina Research Development Authority, Charleston Fire Department, the City of Greenville, the town of Walterboro, etc.

Meeting and Focus Group Facilitation

Faculty and staff associated with the Riley Center have provided facilitation for a number of local governments and nonprofits including the City of Charleston, The Horticulture Society, and the East Cooper Community Outreach.