The EAGLE would like to extend our congratulations to the 2016 Leadership Lafayette class, a group of 25 Oxonians who are giving up at least one day a month this year and dedicating time to cultivating their leadership skills and learning more about what makes our community unique.

The group also will discover ways to improve our community, and work on projects that aim to do just that.

We commend the Oxford and Lafayette County Chamber of Commerce for providing this program to our residents. Doing so ensures continuous community leadership, and will instill a lifelong love of Oxford in all participants.

We also commend businesses that understand the importance of sending employees to Leadership Lafayette and are supporting members of the 2016 class, monetarily and by allowing them to miss work days to attend this worthwhile program. Skills developed while participating in Leadership Lafayette are sure to help participants when they return to the office.

To the members of the 2016 class, we hope you will take this program seriously, learn more about our community and develop your leadership skills even further. We at the EAGLE look forward to hearing about your community projects and what your group does to better Oxford and Lafayette County.